The oldest president in American history, Joe Biden, is 80 years old. On Wednesday, he downplayed age-related worries, stating, “It doesn’t register with me.”
The president declared on Tuesday that he was running for re-election. If successful, he would be 86 when he left the White House. Concerned about Biden’s age and health, some Democrats have questioned if Biden is their best choice for the nomination.
Nevertheless, when asked about his elderly age during a press conference with Yoon Sun Yeol, the president of South Korea, Biden laughed it off.
‘With regard to age, I can’t even say — I guess how old I am, I can’t even say the number, it doesn’t register with me,’ he said. He added he expected voters ‘to take a hard look at it, I would as well. I looked at it before I decided to run.’
Biden’s physician has cleared him to serve, but he has demonstrated evidence that he is beginning to show his age: he occasionally walks with a limp, he has fallen while ascending the stairs to board Air Force One, and he has made numerous verbal errors.
However, because to the risks of COVID, he will be more visible to the public in the coming year than he was during the 2020 election when he held campaign rallies from zoom meetings and in sporadic cars.
He will frequently be in public, engaging with voters and demonstrating his suitability for office.
Donald Trump, the front-runner for the Republican nomination, poses a “threat to democracy,” according to Biden’s remarks on Wednesday.
‘I know him well and I know the risk he brings to our democracy,’ he said, acknowledging that he’may not be the only’ Democrat who could defeat Trump.
He claimed that even if Trump didn’t want to repeat their 2020 election, he would still be running.
‘Yeah, I think I still be running if he wasn’t,’ he said. ‘I think we have to finish the job, nail it down.’
Additionally, he brushed off concerns about his low 40s favorability rating by pointing to the ratings of his predecessors.
He stated, “I noticed the polling data I keep hearing about is that I’m between 42 and 46% favorable rating, but everybody running for re-election in this time has been in the same position, nothing new about that.”
A clue that Biden and his staff believe Trump might be their rival in the general election is the fact that many of his 2020 campaign themes, such as a focus on the “battle for democracy,” were echoed by Biden in his announcement video on Tuesday.
As the campaign intensifies, Republicans have questioned Biden’s age and state of health.
Some contenders, such as presidential hopeful Nikki Haley, have asked those over 75 to take a cognitive test.
The GOP is also anticipated to exploit Biden’s age as a method to cast doubt on Kamala Harris’ eligibility to serve as president. As Republicans ask Americans if they feel comfortable with her being the next in line for the presidency, she is anticipated to become a target in the campaign.
It remains to be seen if she proves to be a political liability, as some Democrats worry.
