As US voters express concern about the aging president, Joe Biden turns 81

On Monday, Joe Biden will celebrate his 81st birthday at the White House by pardoning the Thanksgiving turkeys, but don’t expect him to bring up the topic that has US voters furious.

The Democrat is now the oldest president in American history, and if he is elected to a second term next year, he would depart office at the age of 86. His birthday will unintentionally draw attention to these facts. Though aides point to a busy schedule that would exhaust considerably younger people and Biden sometimes makes jokes about it, poll after poll reveals that American voters’ top worry is the president’s age.

That has been substantiated by a slew of mishaps, stumbles, and balance issues, ranging from his losing his footing on Air Force One stairs to his sometimes meandering responses at press briefings. Though he is 77 years old, former president Donald Trump—whom Biden is expected to face next year—does not yet raise the same fears among voters despite a string of his own recent gaffes.

David Karol, a government and politics professor at the University of Maryland, said that while Biden is “not doing a lot wrong,” he is finding it difficult to alter people’s opinions about his age and other concerns like the economy. “People just have this perception, but he is lucid,” Karol said to AFP.

“Competency” –

Biden has been downplaying his age more and more in an effort to allay or diffuse people’s fears. While visiting Illinois to meet union members, Biden made the quip, “I know I only look like I’m 30, but I’ve been around for a long time.” He also said, “I just want the press to know that wasn’t me,” in response to a reporter tripping in the media area.

In other instances, Biden has made use of it to project an image of himself as a capable political figure by claiming that aging comes with it some wisdom. However, he would be nine years older when he left office if re-elected than record-holder Ronald Reagan was when he retired at the age of 77. Opinion surveys have been written off by the White House, even though Democrats have recently won a number of elections.

However, the party finds the figures depressing to read. According to a recent ABC/Washington Post survey, 74% of respondents thought Biden would be too elderly to serve a second term, compared to 50% who said Trump would. According to a Yahoo/YouGov survey, 54% of Americans—up from 41% before to the 2020 election—believe Biden no longer has “the competence to carry out the job of president.”

Some commentators argue that Biden’s age is irrelevant. According to University of Illinois at Chicago longevity researcher S. Jay Olshansky, the subject has been inappropriately “weaponized” in US politics. Olshansky said to AFP that “aging is not what it used to be.” “There are sizable portions of the population that live to be eight decades old and are fully capable of holding the office of president or engaging in any other activity they choose.”

The “Super-Agers”

According to Olshansky, Biden and Trump are both probably “Super-Agers,” a phrase that scientists have used to characterize a tiny percentage of individuals who retain their entire range of abilities far into old age.

Additionally, since US presidents tend to thrive on the stress of their jobs, his study indicates that for them, “biological time seems to tick at a slower pace” than for other individuals. Nevertheless, Biden’s team has started emphasizing what it claims are Trump’s mistakes. For instance, in a speech given in September, Trump expressed concern that the US was about to enter “World War II” and claimed that Viktor Orban, the prime minister of Hungary, was the leader of Turkey.

Nevertheless, during a taxing election campaign, Biden’s age would undoubtedly be scrutinized much more. Republicans have focused their attacks on Vice President Kamala Harris, who, in the worst case scenario, is just one lap away from becoming president. As the first woman, Black person, and person of South Asian origin to occupy the vice presidential position, Harris made history, yet her sub-40% popularity rating is on par with that of her boss.