One thing I learned about aging–through study and talking with people many years ago when I was a deacon at a Presbyterian church and on the task force for ministry to the aged–is that the 80s are hell.
Biden and Trump may be separated by only 3-4 years, but those years are crucial ones. It’s not the same as between someone who is 27 and someone who is 31. The difference between a person in their mid-70s and them in their mid-80s can be immense.
I say “can be” because there’s no rule to it. Every individual is different, and how one ages is a very particular thing. There are lots of people who are just as lucid and together in their 90s as they were in their 70s. And some who in their 90s are far more lucid and together than someone in their 70s sitting next to them. No rules. You have to take it on a case by case basis.
That said, in general, the typical individual who has made it through their 70s just fine will often hit a cliff sometime in their 80s. They fall, or get sick, or whatever–and they don’t come back, at least not all the way. They know it. It was those folk who told me about it. As one beloved friend told me, “I’ve gotten very old, very fast.” Now, recalling our conversation, I realize he was surprised.
That doesn’t mean they can’t do a lot of jobs very well. At that age–even when you’ve declined–you still have a whole lot of resources you can draw on. Yes, you need naps. But you know a lot. You don’t impress people with your virility, but you may with your wisdom. You aren’t quick with witty come-backs, but you aren’t rash and foolish, either. There’s jobs you can do better even than someone in their 50s. You not only know a lot, you don’t care about things no one should care about anyway. You’re wise. You see through the nonsense, and you call it as it is.
Instead of thinking about your career, you’re thinking about the world your grandchildren and great-grandchildren will be living in. That can be a really good thing for someone whose job is running the world.
But politics in America doesn’t care about all that, at least not as much as it should. It cares about optics. And the optics for the president right now aren’t looking very good. Even if–if–he can still do the job much better than his challenger.
None of that is meant to decide whether Joe Biden is a good presidential candidate. If he wasn’t the incumbent, would anyone be picking him out of the field at this point and saying “Hey, you should run?” Of course not. Ross Douthat this morning said Biden is clearly “unfit.”Â
Maybe. If this were the 14th century, and he was king, no one would be especially worried. But the president isn’t a king. He doesn’t just set strategy and guide the big picture. In a democracy, a president is the key salesman for his vision. He has to do retail politics, and sell the people on his vision, assure them, convince them, excite them even. Right now, it seems clear Joe Biden isn’t up for that part of the job. Will that be the decisive factor in how people vote, or will they adjust their expectations in light of the choice available? We’re in uncharted waters.