Americans actually agree on something in this time of raw discord: Joe Biden is too old to be an effective president in a second term. Only a few years his junior, Donald Trump raises strikingly less concern about his age.
But they have plenty of other problems with Trump, who at least for now far outdistances his rivals for the Republican nomination despite his . Never mind his advanced years 91裸聊视频� if anything, some say, the 77-year-old ought to grow up.
A new poll from finds much of the public oddly united in sizing up the one trait Biden cannot change.
The president has taken to raising the age issue himself, with wisecracks, as if trying to relax his audiences about his 80 trips around the sun.
Age discrimination may be banned in the workplace but the president91裸聊视频檚 employers 91裸聊视频� the people 91裸聊视频� aren91裸聊视频檛 shy about their bias.
In the poll, fully 77% said Biden is too old to be effective for four more years. Not only do 89% of Republicans say that, so do 69% of Democrats. That view is held across age groups, not just by young people, though older Democrats specifically are .
In contrast, about half of U.S. adults say Trump is too old for the office, and here the familiar partisan divide emerges 91裸聊视频� Democrats are far more likely to disqualify Trump by age than are Republicans.
What91裸聊视频檚 clear from the poll is that Americans are saying out with the old and in with the young, or at least younger.
Democrats, Republicans and independents want to sweep a broad broom through the halls of power, imposing age limits on the presidency, Congress and the Supreme Court. In all about two-thirds of U.S. adults back an age ceiling on candidates for president and Congress and a mandatory retirement age for justices.
Specifically, 67% favor requiring Supreme Court justices to retire by a certain age, 68% support age ceilings for candidates for House and Senate, and 66% support age ceilings for candidates for president.
With elders mostly running the show and the Constitution to contend with, don91裸聊视频檛 expect that to happen any time soon.
Even so, the survey suggests are open to seeing a younger face, a fresher one, or both, capture the public imagination.
Among them is Noah Burden, a 28-year-old communications consultant in Alexandria, Virginia. Despite a clear preference for Biden over Trump, he wishes the top contenders for the presidency were closer to his generation.
91裸聊视频淭hey91裸聊视频檙e too old overall,91裸聊视频� Burden said. That older generation represents 91裸聊视频渁 sense of values and sense of the country and the world that just isn91裸聊视频檛 accurate anymore. It can be dangerous to have that view.91裸聊视频�
Similarly, Greg Pack, 62, a past and possibly future Trump voter in Ardmore, Oklahoma, wishes Biden and Trump would both move along.
91裸聊视频淛ust watching and listening to Biden it91裸聊视频檚 pretty self-evident he is not what he was,91裸聊视频� said Pack, a registered nurse.
Trump? 91裸聊视频淗e is a lot sharper but at the end of his term, who knows?91裸聊视频� Pack said, contemplating January 2029. 91裸聊视频淚91裸聊视频檓 just ready for someone younger.91裸聊视频� He91裸聊视频檚 had about enough of a man who is 91裸聊视频渁ll about himself91裸聊视频� and is 91裸聊视频渨earing his indictments like a badge of honor,91裸聊视频� but if that91裸聊视频檚 who it takes to defeat Biden, so be it.
WHAT91裸聊视频橲 YOUR WORD?
The AP-NORC survey went beyond posing questions and presenting choices. It also had a word association exercise, asking people to offer the first word or phrase that comes to mind at the mention of each man.
The answers underscored how age is a particular drag for Biden across party lines, even when people aren91裸聊视频檛 prompted to think about that, and how Trump largely escapes that only to draw disdain if not disgust on other fronts.
In those visceral responses, 26% mentioned Biden91裸聊视频檚 age and an additional 15% used words such as 91裸聊视频渟low91裸聊视频� or 91裸聊视频渃onfused.91裸聊视频� One Republican thought of 91裸聊视频減otato.91裸聊视频� Among Democrats, Biden91裸聊视频檚 age was mentioned upfront by 28%. They preferred such terms over 91裸聊视频減resident,91裸聊视频� 91裸聊视频渓eader,91裸聊视频� 91裸聊视频渟trong91裸聊视频� or 91裸聊视频渃apable.91裸聊视频� One who approves of his performance nevertheless called him 91裸聊视频渟enile.91裸聊视频�
Only 3% in the survey came up with 91裸聊视频渃onfused91裸聊视频� as the first descriptor for Trump, and a mere 1% used 91裸聊视频渙ld91裸聊视频� or the like. Instead, the top words were those like 91裸聊视频渃orrupt91裸聊视频� or 91裸聊视频渃rooked91裸聊视频� (15%), 91裸聊视频渂ad91裸聊视频� and other generally negative terms (11%), words such as 91裸聊视频渓iar91裸聊视频� and 91裸聊视频渄ishonest91裸聊视频� (8%), along with 91裸聊视频済ood91裸聊视频� and other generally positive comments (8%).
Why the divergence between the two on public perceptions of their age?
91裸聊视频淏iden just seems to be very compromised by age-related conditions,91裸聊视频� said Eric Dezenhall, 60, a corporate scandal-management consultant who has followed Trump91裸聊视频檚 career and worked in Ronald Reagan91裸聊视频檚 White House. 91裸聊视频淓ven people who like him see him as being frail and not altogether 91裸聊视频榯here.91裸聊视频�91裸聊视频�
91裸聊视频淲hatever Trump91裸聊视频檚 negatives are, I don91裸聊视频檛 think most people see them as being related to being disabled in an age-related way,91裸聊视频� he said. 91裸聊视频淚n fact, the more you throw at him, the more he seems like a ranting toddler. Disturbing, sure, but elderly? Not necessarily. Trump has been ranting this way for almost eight decades, and it always drives him forward.91裸聊视频�
For Diego Saldana, 31, it hits close to home when he see Biden fumbling some words or taking halting steps.
91裸聊视频淚 see all the symptoms my grandpa had,91裸聊视频� he said. 91裸聊视频淵ou can91裸聊视频檛 be ruling a country91裸聊视频� that way. His granddad now is 94. Saldana supports Trump despite hesitancy over the criminal charges against him.
Eric Colwell, 34, an audit manager in Sacramento, California, came up with 91裸聊视频渙ld91裸聊视频� for Biden and 91裸聊视频渋ncompetent91裸聊视频� for Trump as his first-impression words. An independent who leans Democratic, he sounded a little embarrassed on the phone that the U.S. can91裸聊视频檛 do better than these two.
91裸聊视频淪heer optics,91裸聊视频� he said. 91裸聊视频淥lder gentlemen. You want your leaders, from a visual standpoint, to be spry and energetic. And we tend to fall short.91裸聊视频�
He views Trump, with all his hand gestures and animation, as 91裸聊视频渁 larger figure, a little more lively, just his personality. That gives him that energetic appearance.91裸聊视频� But Colwell is certainly not going there.
91裸聊视频淏iden was a good step to steady the water,91裸聊视频� he said. 91裸聊视频淏iden is more representative of the status quo and normalcy and that91裸聊视频檚 probably what drew everyone initially to him91裸聊视频� after the tumult of the Trump presidency.
91裸聊视频淣ow you have a return to stability. But in terms of moving forward and having any measurable change on my generation, we91裸聊视频檙e probably going to need younger leadership.91裸聊视频�
Alyssa Baggio, 32, is a Democratic-leaning independent in Vancouver, Washington, who works as a recruitment specialist for a homebuilder. She thought Biden was too old for the presidency before he started it. She91裸聊视频檚 convinced of it now and open to voting next year for someone else, just not Trump.
91裸聊视频淚 don91裸聊视频檛 think he91裸聊视频檚 done a terrible job in office,91裸聊视频� she said of Biden, 91裸聊视频渂ut I think that91裸聊视频檚 more because, as opposed to Trump, he surrounds himself with more experienced and logical people.91裸聊视频�
Not that she places great value in experience, except in foreign affairs. 91裸聊视频淒.C. is a swamp,91裸聊视频� she said, 91裸聊视频渁nd the more experience you have, the more you sink into the swamp.91裸聊视频�
Said Jose Tapia, 33, a tech-company videographer in Raleigh, North Carolina, 91裸聊视频淭here91裸聊视频檚 got to be a multitude of younger people who are also super qualified. There91裸聊视频檚 no fresh faces at all.91裸聊视频�
Older Democrats are less negative than younger ones on Biden91裸聊视频檚 decision to run again. In the poll, only 34% of Democrats under 45 want him running for reelection, compared with 54% of those older. Still, about three-quarters of younger Democrats say they91裸聊视频檒l at least probably support him if he91裸聊视频檚 the nominee; others did not commit to that.
RESPECT YOUR ELDERS
All of this is dispiriting to S. Jay Olshansky, a public-health professor and aging expert at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He thinks age, when sizing up a presidential candidate, is no more relevant than eye color and the public91裸聊视频檚 focus on it shortchanges the gift of wisdom and experience.
91裸聊视频淚t91裸聊视频檚 sort of the classic ageism that we91裸聊视频檝e been battling for the last 50 years,91裸聊视频� he said. 91裸聊视频淭he age of the individual is irrelevant. It91裸聊视频檚 the policies that they bring to the table that are important. And the number of times around the sun just doesn91裸聊视频檛 cut it as an important variable at all.91裸聊视频�
From observing both men from afar and examining their medical records, Olshansky regards Biden and Trump as likely 91裸聊视频渟uper agers91裸聊视频� despite signs of frailty from Biden and Trump91裸聊视频檚 excess weight.
91裸聊视频淏iden is likely to outlive Trump because he has fewer harmful risk factors and he does exercise quite notably, whereas Trump does not,91裸聊视频� he said. But overall, 91裸聊视频渢hey91裸聊视频檙e both functioning at a very high level.91裸聊视频�
91裸聊视频淚f you don91裸聊视频檛 like what they say,91裸聊视频� he added, 91裸聊视频渋t91裸聊视频檚 not because of how old they are. It91裸聊视频檚 because you don91裸聊视频檛 like what they say.91裸聊视频�
The poll of 1,165 adults was conducted Aug. 10-14, 2023, using a sample drawn from NORC91裸聊视频檚 probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for all respondents is plus or minus 3.8 percentage points.
