Donald Trump has often mocked Joe Biden by branding him “Sleepy Joe,” implying the 80-year-old is too old and mentally impaired to be the president.
However, Trump's tactics backfired on Friday when addressing the rightwing Pray, Vote, Stand summit by saying Biden threatened to lead the US into “World War Two” while declaring his successor “cognitively impaired and in no condition to lead” or deal with “Russia and possible nuclear war.”
Trump also suggested that he had beaten Barack Obama — not Hilary Clinton — when he became president in 2016.
Did Trump Forget Who He Ran Against?
On Monday, MSNBC host Joe Scarborough joked: “You think they may want to take out the ‘cognitively impaired' part of his speeches from now on.”
His co-host, Jonathan Lemire, added: “That's an attack line the Republicans and Trump love to use, but man, that does seem like he was looking in the mirror just there.
“I mean … we see these polls that suggest that voters are more concerned about President Biden's age than Donald Trump's age. Trump is only three years younger, and anyone watching Trump day in, day out says he's changed too.”
It may be easy to mock Trump for this gaff. Still, it points to a more significant issue in American politics – the advanced age of many of its leaders, and polls indicate many voters believe Biden and Trump are too old to hold office and want generational change.
Biden and Trump Are Too Old for The Presidency, Poll Reveals
Biden is the oldest American president ever. At 80, if he wins re-election, he will be 86 should he remain for a full term. A Poll by CBS and YouGov released on Sunday showed that more than 75% of those asked think Biden is too old to run for a second term, and only 34% thought Biden would complete a second term if elected. While 55% said they thought Trump, who is only three years younger at 77, would complete the full four years.
Asked if they were mentally and cognitively healthy enough to be president, 44% said Trump was, 26% said Biden was, and 23% said neither were.
Both believe they are fit to serve, with Trump telling NBC that “there should be a competency test” for presidents.
Democratic strategist Chuck Rocha told CBS News that a disproportionate amount of attention is being paid to Biden's age compared to Trump, stating: “Joe Biden is getting older, we all know that. But the other guy he's probably going to be running against is getting older, too. And in the focus groups that I'm doing, old and steady still beats old and crazy.”
Age Is a Legitimate Concern for Voters
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a distant second to Trump in the race to be the Republican candidate, told CBS age was “absolutely a legitimate concern” when electing a president, adding, “The presidency's not a job for someone that's 80 years old.”
DeSantis continued: “Obviously, I'm the governor of Florida. I know a lot of people who are elderly; they're great people, but you're talking about a job where you need to give it 100%; we need an energetic president.”
“I think that if the founders could look at this again, they probably would've put an age limit on some of these offices.”
Source: The Guardian