The Age of Biden

What does it actually take to do the job?

We are living in the age of Biden, the era of his presidency, and the preoccupation with his years of life. 

Today, these two ages collided when the special counsel investigating Biden’s handling of classified documents issued a report explaining why he was not pressing charges. But of course that was not what generated the headlines. It was all the added commentary on Biden and his age and memory that exploded across the press, predictably erupting in the gleeful social media streams of his Republican enemies, and leading to the teeth gnashing of some of the president’s political allies. 

The press, which have already made the president’s age the basis of their coverage of his presidency, amplified the outrage. 

Underlying all of this is a central question of this election: Can Biden do the job of the presidency?

But there is another question that doesn’t get asked nearly enough and one would think is highly relevant: Is Biden doing the job of the presidency? Because after all, he is president now. 

In the wake of the report, Biden gave remarks and answered questions from the White House press corps. He was forceful and emotional, especially over an allegation made by the special counsel that he didn’t know when his son Beau died. 

After Biden spoke from his prepared text, the angle of a majority of the assembled press was obvious even if making out the specifics of their queries in the cacophony of the gaggle was difficult. It was his age, his memory, and his mental acuity. They cited the trope that the American people are worried, which is true. But, of course, they failed to consider their own role in pressing that narrative incessantly. 

Biden is the oldest person  ever to be president, and these are fair questions, as far as they go. But there are many ways to answer them. Maybe the press could do some more actual reporting. Do members of the president’s staff have concerns about his age and ability to do the job? Do the world leaders with whom he is in constant contact? Do members of his cabinet? Members of Congress? Or others with whom he interacts in the many requirements of his job? Is he unable to travel? Is he unresponsive in meetings? 

I have seen almost no reporting of concern to any of those questions. In other words, I have seen no substantive worries about whether he is up to the job. 

In our era where video communication is dominant, it is easy to cherry pick moments of awkwardness and malapropisms. It is true that Biden is not a vigorous man of fifty (says a man who just turned fifty and is feeling his age). He may stumble on a word or search for a name. As someone who is not good with names, I sympathize with this as well. 

But does that mean he doesn’t have what it takes to lead a country?

As Biden said in his news conference today, look at his record. It has been one of the most effective of the last several decades. Is anyone suggesting that he isn’t deciding how to calibrate the response to Iranian aggression? To handle a divided Congress after ushering through one landmark piece of legislation after another? To elevate organized labor? To manage the economy? To navigate the complexity of our relationship with China? To appoint brilliant and diverse judges? 

Is anyone suggesting that this isn’t the Biden presidency?   

The Republicans like to attack from both directions, portraying Biden as a doddering old fool while simultaneously a brilliant mastermind who is part of a global conspiracy to destroy America. Those two attack lines are of course ridiculous and mutually exclusive. But the press usually lets them get away with it. 

Meanwhile, let us not forget the long litany of insiders from the Trump presidency who have attested that he is unfit for the job — mentally, emotionally, intellectually, morally, and constitutionally. Let us not forget the chaos of his reign. Let us not forget his enabling of dictators. Let us not forget his lies about a stolen election. Talk about being out of touch with reality. 

Asking the American people to entrust you with four more years as president is a serious consideration. Biden needs to answer more questions and give more press conferences. He needs to be himself. He needs to do more of what he did tonight. 

But when we ask what it takes to be president, maybe we should look at actual policy. Maybe we should consider the empathy and steadiness of the commander in chief. Maybe we should assess whether he believes in American democracy and honors peaceful transfers of power. 

Maybe that’s just as important as how quickly you can run up a flight of stairs, or whether you forget a word or mix up a name.