Joe Biden is 80 now.

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Joe Biden has turned 80. He is now the first ever octogenarian incumbent US president.

I'm nervous about this.

Even as someone who voted for him, I don’t like that our president is 80 years old. Hoping for a better democrat nominee in 2024

It depends on the person, really. There are many effective 80 year old people these days.

Only Republicans seem to harp upon his supposed dementia.

Dr. Anthony Fauci is 81, almost 82….and he’s not exactly senile. Not even MAGA folks who despise him can deny that.

Pelosi is an effective House Speaker, and she’s in her 80s.

And its so ironic that the Repiblicans attack Biden for his age given that Donald Trump is almost as old as he is.

My mother is now 90 and is much sharper than Biden. I don’t think I’d like my mother to be the leader of the free world, though.

Maybe she could have been as sharp as the Queen of Thorns in Game of Thrones?


https://youtu.be/J5VV2qQO4lo

The Republican senator in my home state is 89. I mean holy f***, some people just don’t get tired of the grind!

Depends on the eighty year old.
Some here are still cutting firewood and sharp as a tack.

Just because a lot of geriatrics are clinging to the reigns of power, doesn't mean it is a good thing. I understand their reluctance give up power, especially because for most of them, it Is all they have known for decades. It also means admitting, at least subconsciously to themselves that they are too old and that their time has passed. But, their personal issues are not a reason for them to be keeping the younger generations from taking their place. Right now Xers are the ones who should be in most of these leadership rolls, not literal pre-boomers from the "silent" generation.

Thankfully pelosi had the good sense and grace to finally step down.


Edit: we have age restrictions at the younger end on many of the positions of power, why not at least unofficially accept that at a certain age people should not be placed into such serious and demanding rolls. A 34 year old is considered too young to be president, why is an octogenarian not considered to be too old? Especially in a time of crisis, this seems silly to me.

Trump, the younger of the two, claimed in the same breath that there's no such thing as global warming and that China is to blame for it. I prefer to look more deeply than a chap's chronological age when I try to assess how fit they might be to lead.

There are also checks and balances on presidents. If one goes bananas then with a bit of luck their colleagues will relieve him of his duties in time to prevent a devastating blunder. Personally I prefer a more democratic system anyway, where no one person is credited with supreme executive power for long enough to sink the boat, indeed I suspect that it would be good if no one person ever had supreme executive power at all.

In the UK, relatively young Boris Johnson was pretty clearly incompetent at his job (prime minister). When he nearly killed himself because of the reckless personal risks he took with Covid, some people worried that while he was incapacitated in hospital, there would be a terrible power vacuum and the UK would be like a headless chicken. But things went on much as before.

Of course age isn't the only factor in whether someone is qualified for such positions, It's not even one of the most important, but it is still an important factor and one that has to be taken into account.

You also don't seem to understand the main issues with having geriatrics in the most powerful positions. The main concern is not that they go suddenly completely senile (although Regan did develop Alzheimer's while in office). Geriatrics all suffer from decreased abilities to varying degrees as well as significant increases in risks of serious complications, such as strokes, broken bones, heart attacks, death, ect.. There are good reasons why most people retire in their 60's.


The office of POTUS is quite possibly the most demanding job in the world. It is also critically important. Aditionally, replacing a president part way through their term (whether they died or for any other reason) can be quite disruptive and should not just be seen as a reason why it is ok to put unfit people in the position.

Because Biden is a stutterer and has always been a gaffe machine it is hard to tell how much if any of his head shaking gaffes of late are dementia or Joe being Joe.