ARE BIDEN AND TRUMP TOO OLD TO BE ELECTED PRESIDENT NEXT YEAR?

The talk of the day on the national scene, at least in politics, is the issue of age, specifically whether Biden and Trump are too old for the presidency. Biden would be 82 when sworn in as president in January of 2025 and would be 86 at the end of his term. Trump would be 79 and serve until he age of 83. If age is an issue for Biden, it would have to be for Trump too since he is only three years younger than Biden. 

Only once before in American history was age a significant issue in a presidential race, that was with Reagan's election in 1980, at age 69. He easily beat Jimmy Carter. When Reagan ran for reelection, in 1984, at age 73, age was rarely mentioned and he went on to one of the greatest landslide victories in American history. Obviously no one thought age mattered then. He was the oldest president in office up to that time. Ever since Reagan, conservatives have promoted him to iconic stature. Interestingly enough, many of the people who worship Reagan are now loudly protesting that Biden is too old to be elected.

In retrospect, whether Reagan was too old to be reelected is a matter of debate but he did the job until the end although there were rumors of mental decline. In fact, he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's a few years after he left office and died of complications of the disease.

Then, of course, South Carolinians would be well aware of Strom Thurmond who served as senator until his late 90's and died at age 100. Age was often mentioned but obviously was never a serious issue in his repeated landslide reelections.

This is not to say that age should never be a factor in politics. Senators Mitch McConnell (age 81) and Diane Feinstein (age 90) are painful to watch on the news. McConnell has blanked out twice on camera and Feinstein sometimes has to be told what is going on. These two should collect their gold watches and ride off into the sunset.

Age by itself should not be the deciding factor in any election. There are people who function quite well into their 80's and even 90's. What should be considered is the condition of the person. Do Biden and Trump have the mental and physical health and stamina necessary for the position of president? That is the question of the day, and a fair one, but unfortunately it is addressed in the context of politics. 

Time is of the essence. The first caucus is only four months away and shortly afterwards will come a torrent of primaries. So far, no one has seriously challenged Biden or Trump, and neither man has shown even a glimmer of hesitation. Unless a strong contender appears very soon, both Biden and Trump will win their nominations.

Mainly thanks to Republicans, age has been injected into the campaign. As an issue, it will not go away. If nothing else, Fox News will see to that. Many Democrats are terrified that Biden's age could become the focus of the race rather than Trump's vast record of alleged criminality. It is possible that the Republicans will succeed in making Biden's age the overriding question of the election.

To assess whether Biden is too old, one should consider his record in his present term. In fact, he led the country out of the worst pandemic in a century. His list of accomplishments is long and impressive. Age has not been a factor since his election except in the eyes of his opponents. In fact, his long history of experience has paid off in major ways. This is what people ought to consider before they vote. Consider the man before the age. 

The presidential election of 2024 is lining up to be the most important since the Civil War, more than a century and a half ago. The two candidates are very well known. With Biden we get a continuation of the evolution of the egalitarian democratic republic. With Trump we get a fascist dictatorship and the end of the Constitution and the American experiment in democracy. So, the impending election is fundamentally not about a man's age. It is about something far, far more important, the future of the country.