Biden will ‘have to deal with’ his age on the campaign trail, top Democrat says
One of President Joe Biden’s Democratic allies, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, said this week that the 80-year-old leader’s age is something he will have to deal with during the campaign trail.
But Whitehouse also argued that the incumbent president is the only viable choice for his party in the 2024 presidential race.
Whitehouse sat down with CBS Major Garrett for an episode of The Takeout Podcast and was asked about discouraging numbers showing that even about 40 percent of Democrats did not want Biden to run again.
“Well, I think we definitely — I think everyone would definitely like a younger Joe Biden,” Whitehouse said. “I think people are worried about an 80-year-old president. And I think that’s an issue that President Biden will have to deal with during the campaign…can’t go away.”
That said, “there’s not even a real alternative for him on the horizon,” Whitehouse said of Democratic competition.
One of President Joe Biden’s Democratic allies (left), Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (right), said this week that the 80-year-old leader’s age is something he will have to deal with during the campaign trail.
Spiritual guru Marianne Williamson has jumped in the Democratic primary, as has prominent anti-vaxxer Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
According to the polls, they are 6.5 percent and 15.7 percent respectively the polling average of Real Clear Politics.
“And I think he’s handled it well so far by saying fifty push-ups don’t necessarily make you a good president,” Whitehouse continued.
“With the wisdom and judgment and patience and prudence and knowledge of how the system works to deliver results for the American people, to build the infrastructure bill, to effect the exit from COVID, to deliver the first major piece to bring forward climate legislation, to see construction — manufacturing construction, factory construction, going through the roof in America right now, that’s a pretty good story to tell, that he’s a wise and able person to lead us,” added he to it.
Still, Biden has been plagued by headlines about stumbles and falls — most recently at the launch of the Air Force Academy earlier this month — and blunders.
The president also has the Delaware US Attorney’s investigation into his son Hunter’s business practices hanging over his head.
I think it’s probably pretty serious, which doesn’t mean he won’t get out at the end of the day without charges, you know, but it’s not a frivolous thing,” Whitehouse said.
President Joe Biden, 80, made a mess earlier this month when he tripped over a sandbag at the start of the Air Force Academy
But the Rhode Island Democrat also said he believed President Biden could extricate himself from Hunter’s troubles and come out politically unscathed.
“I think Joe Biden has established himself in the public eye in a very solid way over many, many, many, many years of service,” Whitehouse said. “A family member with a recognized drug and alcohol problem that went off the rails during episodes of that problem is a very familiar situation for many American families.”
“And I don’t think whatever problems Hunter Biden ended up having will do much to mar Joe Biden’s reputation and brand,” the senator continued. “At worst, he’s the man who adores a troubled son who’s had a bad spell and is now recovered.”
Whitehouse also doubted the Republicans have any real evidence linking the president to Hunter Biden’s Burisma deal with Ukraine.
“If you look at the pattern of behavior of the Republicans towards Democratic presidents, it’s always to throw accusations of misconduct and criminality at them that fizzle out over time,” he said. “But it becomes the theme of the day and it allows them to gather their base. And at this point there is literally zero public evidence to support any of that.”
The senator said he would tell voters, “Wait for real evidence.”
“Ultimately, these decisions, especially if they have a criminal aspect, should be made on the basis of real evidence, not third-party conjecture based on a statement by someone else whether true or not, by someone believable whether it be or not, that has now been reported in a form that has never been scrutinized and is now used by partisan political figures,” the Rhode Island Democrat said.
Not surprisingly, Whitehouse believed former President Donald Trump was in greater legal jeopardy.
Referring to the federal case against Trump over the former president’s mishandling of classified documents, Whitehouse said this will be a “very, very serious charge against the weather.”
“Jack Smith clearly chose to go the route of the indictment and tell a story,” the senator said. “I suspect if he’s a smart prosecutor, which he is, he’ll have a lot more good evidence in his holster that he’s ready to deploy.”