Too old to be president?
Critics of Biden’s memory slips fail to mention any of the positive traits associated with aging.
(Century illustration)
In February, Robert Hur determined that no criminal charges should be brought against President Biden for retaining and sharing classified documents as a private citizen. The special counsel also wrote this: “Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.”
The White House was furious that Hur shifted focus from the lack of evidence against the president to his alleged cognitive decline, based on what the administration called “a commonplace occurrence among witnesses: a lack of recall of years-old events.” At a press conference, Biden said, “My memory is fine.” Then, in response to an impromptu question about Gaza, he referred to Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi as the president of Mexico.
In the days that followed, headlines focused on Biden’s memory lapses. Hur’s comments drew attention to a concern already shared by an overwhelming majority of Americans. According to a recent ABC News/Ipsos poll, 86 percent of respondents think Biden, 81, is too old to serve another term as president. (Sixty-two percent think Donald Trump, 77, is also too old to serve.)
