America's gerontocracy is getting too old

Forget about aging gracefully. We've reached a moment when the old refuse to resign, when pouty octogenarians hawk sex appeal from magazine covers (okay, just one), and when officials teetering on the brink of non compos mentis insist upon leading the country.

The notion of a generational changing of the guard has become a relic. But the past days and weeks have brought several reminders that age won't be denied no matter how many live in denial.

Dianne Feinstein (D-calif.) recently returned to the Senate after a 2 1/2-month medical leave necessitated by a shingles infection. The oldest current-serving member of Congress, Feinstein, 89, entered the chamber looking weak and diminished, presumably from the painful effects of the virus. She was in town to resume work, she said, while also saying she'd been at work all along, as though she'd never left.

When a reporter asked whether she meant she had been working from home, Feinstein said, "No, I've been here. I've been voting. Please — You either know or don't know."

True enough. Feinstein already announced she won't run for reelection in 2024, when she will be 91. This followed reports of her mental decline by several colleagues, including three Democratic senators, three former staffers and a Democratic House member from California. They agreed that her memory deterioration meant she couldn't do her job even with help from her staff.

In fact, Feinstein voted this week and attended a Judiciary Committee hearing to approve nominations which had been stalled by her absence. Otherwise, she's keeping a light schedule on doctor's orders and getting around in a wheelchair. Unsurprisingly, 83-year-old Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-calif.) has called reports about Feinstein's mental diminishment "ridiculous attacks that are beneath the dignity in which she has led and the esteem in which she is held."

Commentary about someone's age and related issues is painful to write and painful to read. At best, it seems disrespectful. But public life carries a duty to be honest with oneself while selfawareness is still possible.

Which brings us, inevitably, to President Biden. At times I think, oh, whew, he got through that speech pretty well. I'm always pulling for him because he's our president. I want him to be strong; I wish him good health and strong knees. But at other times, his speech is so muddled, I have no idea what he's saying, and it seems he doesn't either.

I hate saying this, but Biden is too old to serve another four years, not least because, should he become debilitated by illness or injury, we'll be saddled with one of the least-popular Democratic candidates from the 2020 primary campaign: Vice President Harris. Her word salads make Biden seem like Demosthenes. Ninety percent of the time, I have no idea what she's talking about. Or why she's laughing.

Here is Harris addressing climate change: "We will work together, and continue to work together, to address these issues . . . and to work together as we continue to work, operating from the new norms, rules, and agreements, that we will convene to work together . . . we will work on this together."

And she's only 58.

Lest my observations seem partisan, Sen. Charles E. Grassley, 89, has served as one of Iowa's senators since 1981. That's eight terms for Grassley, who, by the way, is fit as a fiddle. Just ask him. He described his daily routine to a group of Iowa radio reporters last fall: "I go to bed at 9. Get up at 4. [Run] two miles in morning. Get to the office before 6. Usually in the office until 6:30, quarter 'til 7. I have a full schedule when I'm in the office — you know, committee meetings, caucuses, interviews like this that I do 52 times a year."

Grassley forgot to mention that he'll drop to the floor and do push-ups for no reason whatsoever, and has the best Senate attendance record, according to one of his ads.

No one has challenged Grassley's mental acuity, though the Iowan will be 95 at the end of his term. I suppose he, like many men, worries that retirement means imminent death. But can't a case be made for going home as a gesture of good manners and fair play — to give someone else a turn at the wheel? Surely, some younger version of Grassley can vote for what Iowans want.

I'm guessing not many women are busting their bustles to challenge another older woman, who, the same week Feinstein rolled back into the Capitol, was flashing leg on the cover of the 2023 Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue. Martha Stewart just can't quit herself. For just $15.99 plus $4 shipping, you can view the 81-year-old vixen posing in a variety of bathing suits, including a white bikini. In one photo, she's lying on a beach, leaning on one arm and looking a little sleepy, as a young dude in jeans-no-shirt rides a stallion through the shallows, dragging two more horses behind him.

To each her own — and heaven forbid anyone should judge any woman's decision about her body — but note to self: To all things there is a season. Martha looks fine from what I've seen online, but I'd buy the magazine only for her beauty Rolodex — names, numbers and none of this nonsense about drugstore body glow.

She has no plans to retire, but you knew that. The woman who is about to publish her 100th book is in an important way different from the rest: No one can replace Martha.