Americans have a fairly dim view of President Joe Biden. One way he could change that: announce his retirement.
Biden, 80, seems to think concerns about his age are overblown. He’s campaigning for reelection on the premise that he’ll retain the vitality needed to do one of the world’s most demanding jobs until he’s at least 86, which would be his age at the end of a second term, in 2029.
The White House has begun emphasizing the vigorous schedule Biden keeps up, while Biden’s reelection campaign is running a TV ad touting the rigorous trip he made to war-torn Ukraine earlier this year. Voters don’t seem to be buying it. In a recent Associated Press poll, 77% of respondents said Biden is too old to run for reelection.
The debate over Biden’s vitality, or lack of it, is giving retirement a bad name. In the private sector, the average age of a CEO is 58 and many companies have a mandatory retirement age, generally between 65 and 70. There are a few prominent business leaders older than Biden, such as Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway (93) and News Corp. executive chairman Rupert Murdoch (92). But those oldsters typically run empires of their own making, which gives them the privilege of sticking around for as long for as they choose.
Biden seems to think it would be some kind of failure to leave the White House after one term. But there could be a nobler way of looking at it. The Washington political establishment is a notorious gerontocracy. The average age of a senator is 65, with 16 senators 75 or older and four 80 or older. Ruth Bader Ginsburg remained on the Supreme Court until her death in 2020 at age 87, and she may have cost Democrats a crucial court seat by refusing to retire during President Obama’s second term, when she was even older than Biden is now.
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It’s time for somebody in Washington to stand up for retirement, because it’s honorable to go out on top and make room for those coming next. Old-timers stay in Washington forever because they can. There are no term limits for elected officials or Supreme Court justices. Incumbency allows some politicians to get reelected almost on autopilot, because they become household names and develop entrenched political machines capable challengers don’t want to tangle with.
The average age of an American is 38. Yet the United States has never had a president from a generation newer than the baby boomers, who range in age from 57 to 75. Imagine if Biden announced he’s stepping down after one term because it’s finally time for younger leadership throughout government. Americans would cheer — and Biden’s approval rating, currently a wan 41%, would undoubtedly soar.
Most ambitious people who formally retire don’t suddenly kill the engine and mothball the vehicle. They stay active doing volunteer work or consulting, pursuing hobbies and activities, even starting businesses. Biden could easily enjoy a rewarding and productive retirement, in the Jimmy Carter model. He could return to teaching at the University of Pennsylvania. He could write another book or two. He could help his troubled son Hunter rebuild his life with less of the relentless scrutiny and outright hate that attends public figures.
Republican Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah, who’s 76, recently announced he’ll leave the Senate when his current term expires in early 2025. “At the end of another term I’d be in my mid-80s,” Romney said. “Frankly it’s time for a new generation of leaders.” Why does Romney see that, but Biden doesn’t?
Some analysts think Biden views himself as uniquely able to beat Donald Trump, again, if Trump ends up being the Republican nominee in 2024, despite facing four criminal cases involving 91 separate charges. This seems backward. A younger Democrat with the chops to win the party’s nomination would be able to claim that the 77-year-old Trump is himself too old to be an effective president. A Democratic candidate 20 or 30 years younger than Trump would neuter the age issue for Democrats and make it solely a Republican problem.
But who? That’s the other Democratic conundrum. Vice President Kamala Harris seems like a very weak heir apparent, given that her own presidential campaign flatlined in 2020 and she hasn’t distinguished herself as veep. But there are other possibilities, and besides, keeping fresh blood on the bench because you don’t think they can win is self-defeating. As the US military knows, you develop new leaders by letting them lead, not by asking them to remain forever in the shadow of institutional eminences.
Americans clearly want a new generation of leadership. Biden is an ideal position to say, “I hear you, and as the oldest president ever, I understand it’s my job to usher the first Gen Xer or even the first millennial to the White House.” Then he can use his newfound popularity and boundless energy to campaign for a Democratic nominee who can speak to younger Americans as if he or she is actually one of them.
Rick Newman is a senior columnist for Yahoo Finance. Follow him on Twitter at @rickjnewman.
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