Knocks on Biden’s age may be unfair, but perception is reality in politics
As exonerations go, it was the worst kind imaginable.
It might be stretching things, but only a little, to suggest that President Joe Biden would have been politically better off had the recent Department of Justice report concluded that he was legally culpable for mishandling classified documents than to let him off the hook with the explanation that he is a “wellmeaning, elderly man with a poor memory.”
Then there was the forehead-slap moment during Biden’s angry press conference response, in which he appeared to reassign the president of Egypt to Mexico.
In fairness, Biden was a gaffe geyser even in his much younger days. And his anger was richly warranted at special counsel Robert Kyoung Hur’s unnecessary-verging-oncruel reference in the report to the death of his son Beau Biden.
It’s also fair to note that Hur’s résumé includes a government appointment by Biden’s likely Republican campaign challenger this year.
All of that said, the longrumbling issue of Biden’s advanced age has, with this report, become a volcanic roar.
Because of the glaring, obvious danger to democracy that a second Donald Trump presidency presents, some have implored Biden to step aside for a younger, more electable Democrat. But the practical reality is that both the electoral calendar and the lack of a clear Biden successor would make such horse-changing exceedingly difficult now, even if Biden agreed to it.
Still. This report is neither the first nor last time the intractable issue of Biden’s age will be thrust to the forefront of this year’s presidential contest. It’s not going away.
The incident should jolt Democratic leaders and convince them to finally nudge Biden toward the escape hatch he should have used months ago. The specter of a second Trump administration is just too dangerous to risk with an incumbent candidate who, fairly or not, is widely perceived as simply too old for the job.
It’s true that, at 81, Biden is only marginally older than the 77-year-old Trump. In terms of
“senior moments,” Trump’s recent comment confusing GOP primary opponent Nikki Haley with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is just one of many examples of his own demonstrable mental issues.
And that’s before even getting into Trump’s apparent criminality, his shameless and persistent lying and his clearly expressed desire to install himself as an autocratic dictator unconstrained by constitutional niceties.
Biden is, as Hur’s backhanded exoneration notes, “well-meaning.” To which we would add, decent, intelligent, responsible and joyously normal in ways his dangerously abnormal predecessor has never been.
Biden’s accomplishments in office include major legislative victories on infrastructure, climate and family-friendly tax policies, strong and responsible global leadership and a truly remarkable economic recovery.
His record alone would likely make him a shoo-in for reelection if not for two factors: The stubborn polarization and toxicity of America’s political environment today; and the widespread perception that Biden is, in fact, “an elderly man with a poor memory.”
It’s a cliché, but an accurate one in politics, that perception often is reality. Whether Biden’s halting, mumbling speaking style, his shuffling gait and the rest is truly evidence of infirmity, or just looks it, is beside the point if it creates an enthusiasm gap that costs him precious votes.
Biden’s spirited rebuttal during Thursday’s press conference presented both justified outrage at the ageist commentary in the Justice Department report — and cringe-worthy moments that seemed to confirm that commentary.
There are many more of these white-knuckle press conferences ahead for Democrats if they don’t get their act together and at least consider coming up with a candidate more clearly equipped to turn back the Trumpian threat facing democracy.