No country for old men

CHELSEA, QUE.—One good thing about Canada—one of many good things, but let’s not start a fight—is the relative youth and vigour of our political class. Relative, especially, to you-know-where. Poor U.S. President Joe Biden seems a decent man, with a soothing style, humane instincts, and a modest list of accomplishments. But he is 81 years old next month, the oldest man ever to hold the crushing job and, if he wins the 2024 election, he will be 82 years old when he is sworn in as president in early 2025. He would be 86 at the end of a full second term. That would be challenge enough for any octogenarian, but Biden is already showing signs of wear. Whenever he approaches a microphone, everyone holds their breath—not in anticipation of a ground-shaking announcement, but from fear that he might trip on something, misplace his notes, or follow some verbal trajectory into whispery incoherence. Yes, he survived his recent, gruelling trip to Israel and the Middle East, and, yes, he is likely capable of surviving the rest of his term by pacing himself. But he should not be running again, many Americans know that he should not be running again, and if he doesn’t know that, he’s got bigger problems than Donald Trump. But, astonishingly, in so vibrant and diverse a country, Democrats can find no plausible (winning) alternative, so Biden stays. The only thing that might neutralize the age factor is the president’s chief rival: 77-year-old Trump, the greatest con artist of his generation. Unfortunately, age is way down the list of disqualifying factors for the former president—despite a steady diet of hamburgers and cola, Trump displays more physical energy than Biden and less cognitive decline (no more than usual, at least). If it's true that only the good die young, America may be swearing in a 78-year-old President Trump in January 2025, and sending him into retirement at the age of 82—if Trump agrees to go, that is. Now that is a depressing prospect for any country, and, given the wealth and power of the United States, for the rest of the world, too. Could we set aside partisan nastiness for a second and admit that we are blessed in the health, energy and work ethic of our political leaders? The apparently ageless Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is the oldest of the major party leaders at 51. Newly-buff Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and former martial arts practitioner NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh are both 44, and also are fathers of small children. Their physical fitness does not automatically imply “fitness for office," but at least we don’t have to worry about them tumbling down airplane stairs, or suffering a major heart attack on the golf course (after all, the new generation of politicians is more likely to run than golf). Canada’s age edge is also reflected elsewhere. It is difficult to find recent statistics for the average age in Trudeau’s re-made Senate, but, unlike the U.S., senators are required to leave at age 75 or earlier if they become incapable of carrying out their duties. Since the prime minister opened the jobs to all applicants, the composition of the Upper Chamber has trended somewhat younger and female. More than half of the 90 sitting senators are women. By contrast, U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell, 81, majority leader of the U.S. Senate—where there are no term limits—has experienced embarrassing mental “freezes” in front of reporters in recent months, leading to calls for him to step aside, and raising concerns about America’s political gerontocracy. The average age in the 100-member U.S. Senate trends older (and whiter and more male) than the U.S. population, at 65 years. Some 16 members are older than 75, and four are in their 80s. Former Democratic House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, 83, has announced she will run again in 2024. Another fixture, California Senator Dianne Feinstein, died recently at 90, after widely-shared concerns about her obvious declining acuity. Even the next rung of U.S. senators isn’t stacked with youngsters: Mitt Romney retired recently at 76, saying it was time for a new generation. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is 72. One of Trump’s rivals for the Republican nomination, Nikki Haley, 51, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, calls the U.S. Senate “the most privileged nursing home in the country.” The problems there are obvious: the enormous cost of winning a Senate seat, the power of incumbency, and the lack of term limits. Absent humility, self-awareness, and a sense of fairness to the next cohort, there is nothing forcing entrenched veterans to move aside. And this, even though they will enjoy a rich and secure retirement beyond the wildest dreams of most Americans. The United States’ highly politicized Supreme Court, unlike ours, also lacks a mandatory retirement age, which creates the risk of a powerful institution increasingly remote from the concerns of the people it serves—and of Brett Kavanagh, now 58, serving for another 30-odd years. That doesn’t mean older political veterans have nothing to offer, nor that age and perspective can’t be an asset. Canada’s ambassador to the United Nations, Bob Rae, is 75 years old and as passionate and engaged as ever. U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders continues to be sharply articulate, even as his message never varies. Canada’s Green Party Leader, Elizabeth May, notwithstanding recent physical challenges, continues, at the age of 69, to champion climate action and integrity in politics. Her knowledge of the climate file is an invaluable national resource. And, last week, the Liberals and others celebrated Vancouver Centre MP Hedy Fry’s 30 years in Parliament, the longest-serving woman member. A physician, born in Trinidad and Tobago, educated at Oxford and at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, she was an early and ardent supporter of gay rights when it wasn’t politically popular, amongst other achievements. Fry is 82, a fact that will come as a surprise to many who have followed her long career from afar. As he nears 90, former prime minister Jean Chrétien is long out of active politics, but remarkably undimmed: his everyman tone and bemused manner were on display recently when he complained about contemporary MPs coming to the House with scripted speeches “and it’s dull as hell” (he’s right, but those with long memories will recall his laborious formal addresses in the Commons with no fond nostalgia). While it is true that what we sometimes call “experience” is really just repeating the same thing over and over for 30 years, youth is no guarantee of fresh ideas, a new tone, or even basic manners. Poilievre, to name just one, keeps recycling Reagan-era economic truisms and Harper-esque slogans, like "Axe the Tax." He is intent on undoing necessary progress on climate change, returning to the glory days of fossil fuels, and dragging us back to a scientific dark age when vaccines are suspect and “experts” denigrated. Still, the health of any institution requires open windows and regular renewal—a system that encourages and helps newcomers, and bids a respectful farewell to those who have served long and often well. Former New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern shocked the world when she retired last January at the age of 42. As she told reporters: “I know what this job takes and I no longer have enough in the tank to do it justice. It’s that simple.” If only that message would reach the frisky young democracy, just to our south, that was once America. Susan Riley is a veteran political columnist who writes regularly for The Hill Times. The Hill Times

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No country for old men

The health of any institution requires regular renewal, encouraging newcomers while bidding a respectful farewell to those who have served long and often well.

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