WASHINGTON- The next president will be the oldest person to take the oath of office in history if either Joe Biden or Donald Trump wins the US elections in November 2024.
However, while Biden’s age and public gaffes have received more attention, his blustery Republican rival’blueprints are also receiving closer scrutiny.
Trump recently mistook the Hungarian leader for the Turkish one, asserted that he won the 2016 election over Barack Obama rather than Hillary Clinton, his real rival, and issued a warning that another world war might break out instead of the third.
With such bloopers, rivals of the former president have been having a field day, quickly reminding voters that Trump, who is currently the Republican Party’s clear favorite, is still quite young.
The Ron DeSantis campaign team has gleefully posted videos of the 77-year-old real estate tycoon stammering, verbally stumbling, or appearing frail and sweaty on social media. In most states, the Florida governor, a young 45-year-old, currently leads Trump’s Republican rivals in polls.
WEAK AND FRAIL
While the current president turns 81 on Monday, Biden’s team is not dissatisfied to be able to spotlight another aging candidate for once.
However, such slights have not gone unnoticed by the Trump camp.
According to Trump spokesman Steven Cheung, the Biden campaign must be perplexed just like their own candidate.
Cheung continued to mock Biden as being “weak and frail,” prone to falling, and even” just plain stupid” in an unusually direct and biting statement.
During his campaign rallies, Trump typically exudes energy and occasionally engages a sea of supporters for hours.
However, detractors question whether his repeated mistakes and the videos of him trembling while holding a glass of water or gripping railings on ramps are simply indications of weariness or signs of physical or mental deterioration.
It is impossible to know from the outside.
Biden appears to be older despite the fact that the two men are not particularly old, according to political scientist Kyle Kondik.
According to the polls, two-thirds of Americans think the current president is too old to run for reelection, while only half of those polled think Trump is slightly younger.
Once the campaign is fully underway, it will be interesting to see how the two fare, according to Kondik. He continued by saying that because Trump has made so many verbal mistakes, whether intentionally or unintentionally, they appear to be judged more leniently than Biden’s.
QUICK FOOD
Additionally, unlike his Democratic rival, the Republican is not subject to the same level of physical scrutiny.
As president of the United States, Biden, who is frequently seen biking with his Secret Service detail, must undergo a lengthy series of yearly medical examinations, the results of which are meticulously reported to the media.
In addition to describing him as “healthy ( and ) vigorous” in his most recent health summary, Biden also mentioned that he had undergone a colonoscopy in 2021 and had had some skin lesions removed.
However, almost no information about Trump’s health has been made public since he left office three years ago. Trump is a well-known fast food enthusiast who seems to exercise primarily on golf courses.
During Ronald Reagan’s second term in office in the 1980s, when some observers speculated that he appeared to be exhibiting signs of mental decline, the issue of presidents ‘ ages was hotly debated.
It was revealed that Reagan had Alzheimer’s disease years after he retired from office at the age of 77.
In a 1994 article published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, former president Jimmy Carter himself raised the alarm about the “danger” to the United States if the country’s president was diagnosed with “neurological disease” that impairs his ability to lead.
Trump’s age and transgressions have been highlighted more and more by the DeSantis campaign.
DeSantis stated on CNN on Sunday that” the president is not a job for an 80-year-old.”
Nikki Haley, a 51-year-old who is currently running for the Republican nomination, has repeatedly urged politicians over 75 to take mental competency exams.
However, nothing of the sort seems likely to happen anytime soon.