Liberty Expose: A Push for Age Limits: President Joe Biden and Senator Mitch McConnell Create Cause For Age Limit Policy
MEGA / James Devaney
Discussions have emerged for the last several months over the necessity of age limits on elected American politicians. Between President Joe Biden, Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell, or Senator Dian Feinstein, their age and health have provided questions circulating through political dialogue, whether or not these political figures are no longer mentally fit for office. Maximum age limits for holding a position in office seem to be the most prevalent attempt at a solution.
Joe Biden is currently the oldest president to ever be elected. There have been countless instances of Biden stumbling, stuttering, and falling which can be attributed to his age. All of which has caused doubt in his ability to lead the country. This opinion is held by. 77% of Americans think that Joe Biden is too old to run for president. This includes 69% of Democrats. Health scares and viral videos have shown the cognitive decline of who is supposed to be the most infected person in the country and the world. However, this pattern can be attributed to either political perspective.
Mitch McConnell is the 81-year-old senate minority leader who has been representing Kentucky for over 35 years. He was elected in 1984 but questions about his health have been circulated because of multiple instances of his freezing up on camera. Once during a press conference in July and the second only a month prior. Speculation of his health has re-sparked the discussion of whether age limits should become future policy and whether or not they should step down.
Another elderly politician who is being asked to step down is Democrat senator Dian Feinstein from California, who is now 90 years old. Videos have emerged of Dianne Feinstein being confused and told to vote to just vote yes on various bills by her staffers.
The clear example is the senator for Philadelphia, John Fetterman. He was elected in 2020, several months after suffering a stroke. Fetterman is only 54 years old. His contrition was also very prevalent during his candidacy, and since being in office, John has also been committed to the hospital on multiple occasions. It is unsettling to see these leaders of our country suffer through these problems, and the high stresses of office are not contributing to their health. Therefore, it is clearly not as simplistic as age limits.
There are many other political figures that are very old that do not fit into this same category. Donald Trump is 77 years old and would be the oldest president if reelected if we were to win in 2024. while at the same time, his work schedule and rally’s, seems to indicate that he is in a much better position than others of similar age. The common denominator of all these problems does not seem to be merely their age but their cognitive ability.
These talks have caused some members of Congress to push for age limits for presidents and other officials. These bills seem unlikely to pass, not just because they're generally pardonice pushed but also because they will negatively affect the careers of these politicians. It is a very difficult task to vote against one’s own interests. Similar to term limits, the majority of politicians would not vote in favor of such legislation simply because it hinders their future careers.
Therefore, something like cognitive tests plays to the ego of politics, as they are not necessarily relevant to them. Mandatory cognitive tests will not necessarily affect their chances in the future, as most American political figures would be able to pass.
Even with cognitive tests in place, It seems dangerous to make the president congress or any other federal government body the able to remove elected officials based on a whim. Instead, these tests should be published and shared with the public, helping them make an informed decision on who they elect to run the country. It seems strange to nullify the American people to vote. Their decision should be honored, even when there is regret in the aftermath. Now that the American people believe that Biden or any other politician is unfit for office, they must live with these consequences and choose to elect them out. Ideally, these tests would be used to inform the public about the mental state of these high-profile people. It should not be the basis for immediate removal from office.
A valid argument is that even though someone has failed their cognitive test, they should not be removed from office. The votes made the determination to elect these people. Their vote counts and should be offered regardless of how bad the person is. It should be their purgative to vote them out at the next election.
Therefore, something like cognitive tests plays to the ego of politics, as they are not necessarily relevant to them. Mandatory cognitive tests will not necessarily affect their chances in the future, as most American political figures would be able to pass.
The argument that old age is inherently negative seems to be a grave assumption. There has been a deep history with the age of a society involved in politics. The Latin root word for Senate is Senex, meaning “old” showing that democracy always represents representation of older people in government. With age comes wisdom and life experience.
This seems to beg the question why Americans are so keen on electing increasingly older people. The median age for a member of the Senate is over 65 years of age and in the House of Representatives, the average age is over 55.
Some of which has to do with incumbents, because there is comfort in the familiar, looking toward the older and more expensive generation. For the last four presidents, three of them have been baby boomers born before 1964. Another explanation for this is the breaking of social structure in the United States. The perceived fragility of Americans will turn to what they feel comfortable with, and there is comfort in the perceived "non-threatening" optics of an experienced person. This is clearly not always true; however, the American people have proven that they prefer this to who they preserve threating candidate.
These discussions are important because these politicians' health scares and viral clips have increased the conservation we are having for the metal and physical capability to run the country. Joe Biden, Mitch McConnell, Dian Feinstein, and many others are suffering from the strain of age and the workload of being an American election official. However, I think that a pure age limit is too simplistic of an idea to actually address the problem that we are experiencing. Cognitive tests seem to be a better alternative, but the argument can be made that it is still up to the people and their votes to remove politics from office. These are policies that can have a major impact on the fabric of our country, and with enough support, they can actually be implemented.