David Axelrod: Biden's age 'major' problem for long run political viability

Daniel Chaitin

June 11, 12:38 PM June 11, 12:38 PM

Previous Obama adviser David Axelrod lifted a "important" crimson flag about President Joe Biden's ambitions to operate for reelection in 2024, pointing to the commander in chief's advanced age.

His remarks appeared in a New York Situations report Saturday that examined "whispers" between Democrats who are progressively anxious about Biden's leadership ahead of the 2022 midterm elections in which Republicans are commonly predicted to win back again handle of at minimum a single chamber of Congress.

Biden, who is 79, is the oldest male at any time to be president. In simple fact, Biden was more mature when he took the oath of office than was Ronald Reagan, the second-oldest sitting down president at any time, when he retired at 77. Biden would be 82 for a second inauguration.

BIDEN Officers WANT MUSK TO Bring TRUMP'S 'CRAZY' Back again TO TWITTER: REPORT

“The presidency is a monstrously taxing task, and the stark reality is the president would be nearer to 90 than 80 at the finish of a 2nd term, and that would be a main challenge,” Axelrod mentioned.

Biden reported in December that he would operate for reelection if he is in excellent health.

"I am a good respecter of destiny. Fate has intervened in my life a lot of, a lot of occasions. If I am in the overall health I'm in now, if I am in fantastic wellbeing, then, in fact, I would operate yet again," the president said at the time.

Ought to Biden decline to request a 2nd phrase, young politicians could line up to search for the Democratic Party's nomination. Amid them could be previous rivals in 2020 who became users of Biden's administration, together with Vice President Kamala Harris, who is 57, and 40-12 months-old Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. Among the the more mature established, Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), two superior-profile, still left-wing politicians who are 80 and 72, respectively, have also stoked presidential speculation as Biden's poll quantities have taken a nose dive.

Previous President Donald Trump, who has flirted with the notion of a 2024 marketing campaign, is 75 with a birthday coming up future 7 days.

Biden's critics frequently increase thoughts about his actual physical strength and mental acuity, spurred by regular gaffes that aides often then swoop in to thoroughly clean up. Axelrod, who was a best strategist for Barack Obama's two profitable presidential strategies, argued that the age aspect had been a distraction from Biden's accomplishments.

“Biden doesn’t get the credit rating he justifies for steering the nation as a result of the worst of the pandemic, passing historic legislation, pulling the NATO alliance with each other versus Russian aggression and restoring decency and decorum to the White Dwelling,” Axelrod stated. “And aspect of the reason he doesn’t is performative. He seems to be his age and is not as agile in entrance of a camera as he when was, and this has fed a narrative about competence that is not rooted in reality.”