Who Was The Oldest President Before Biden
Donald Trump was the oldest President until now, now aged 76.
When he won his first term in office, Trump officially became the oldest person to assume the presidency.
The presidency officially starts on Inauguration Day, which falls on January 20 every four years .
This is the beginning of a new political term, and at Donald Trumps first inauguration, he was 70 years, 220 days old.
If he completes his full second term in office, he will also be the oldest president to have served.
Ronald Reagan was the oldest president to finish his terms being 77 years, 349 days old when he left office.
At 79 Biden Is Testing The Boundaries Of Age And The Presidency
President Biden has said he plans to run for a second term, but his age has become an uncomfortable issue for him and his party.
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WASHINGTON When President Biden leaves Tuesday night for a four-day swing through the Middle East, he will presumably be more rested than he would have been had he followed the original plan.
The trip was initially tacked onto another journey last month to Europe, which would have made for an arduous 10-day overseas trek until it became clear to Mr. Bidens team that such extended travel might be unnecessarily taxing for a 79-year-old president, or crazy, as one official put it.
Aides also cited political and diplomatic reasons to reorganize the extra stops as a separate trip weeks later. But the reality is that managing the schedule of the oldest president in American history presents distinct challenges. And as Mr. Biden insists he plans to run for a second term, his age has increasingly become an uncomfortable issue for him, his team and his party.
When Mr. Biden fell while dismounting a bicycle last month, White House officials ruefully noticed that it was among the top stories of the week never mind that the president works out five mornings a week, often with a physical trainer, or that many men his age hardly ride bikes anymore.
Us Senate Campaign In Delaware
In 1972, Biden defeated Republican incumbent J. Caleb Boggs to become the junior U.S. senator from Delaware. He was the only Democrat willing to challenge Boggs. With minimal campaign funds, he was given no chance of winning. Family members managed and staffed the campaign, which relied on meeting voters face-to-face and hand-distributing position papers, an approach made feasible by Delaware’s small size. He received help from the AFLCIO and Democratic pollster Patrick Caddell. His platform focused on the environment, withdrawal from Vietnam, civil rights, mass transit, equitable taxation, health care, and public dissatisfaction with “politics as usual”. A few months before the election, Biden trailed Boggs by almost thirty percentage points, but his energy, attractive young family, and ability to connect with voters’ emotions worked to his advantage and he won with 50.5 percent of the vote. At the time of his election, he was still 29 years old, but he reached the constitutionally required age of 30 before he was sworn in as Senator.
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Making An Issue Out Of Age
In one of the more famous lines delivered in a presidential debate, Ronald Reagan, who was 73 when he faced off in his 1984 reelection campaign against 56-year-old Walter Mondale, deftly parried Baltimore Sun reporter Henry Trewhitts question on whether his advanced age would inhibit his ability to handle an emergency like the Cuban missile crisis.
Not at all, Mr. Trewhitt, and I want you to know that also I will not make age an issue of this campaign, Reagan responded. I am not going to exploit for political purposes my opponents youth and inexperience.
Despite being issued a clean bill of health by his physicians, doubts about Reagans mental acuity persisted throughout his second term. In 1994, five years after he left office at the age of 77, he announced that he had been diagnosed with Alzheimers disease.
A subsequent study by Arizona State University researchers published in the Journal of Alzheimers Disease based on Reagans speech patterns found that the onset of dementia was apparent while he was in the White House. Looking at the 46 news conferences that Reagan held while in office and comparing them against 101 held by George H.W. Bush, the researchers noted a marked increase in repetitive words and nonspecific terms as Reagans presidency went on. For Bush, who has never been diagnosed with Alzheimers, no such deterioration was noted.
Biden Had Received A Second Booster Heres Why It Wasnt Enough To Prevent Infection
President Bidens coronavirus infection is a stark illustration that the Covid vaccines, powerful as they are, are far from the bulletproof shields that scientists once hoped for.
Mr. Biden has received multiple doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine his most recent shot, a second booster, was on March 30. Studies suggest that those doses will provide a powerful bulwark against severe illness and indeed, the president has only mild symptoms so far after testing positive on Thursday, according to the White House.
But even booster doses offer little defense against infection, particularly with the most recent versions of the virus. What protection they do offer wanes sharply and quickly, several studies have shown. In the presidents case, the booster shot he received nearly four months ago is likely to have lost most of its potency at preventing infection.
Earlier in the pandemic, experts believed that the vaccines would be enough to forestall not just severe disease, but also the vast majority of infections. And that was true when earlier versions of the virus, including the Delta variant, swept the globe.
But the Omicron variant upended those hopes. As more of the population gained some immunity, whether from infection or vaccines, the virus evolved to dodge those defenses. BA.1, the subvariant of Omicron that circulated over the winter, was adept at causing infections even in those who had received a booster dose just weeks earlier.
Rebecca Robbins contributed.
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First Lady Of The United States
Bidens husband was elected president and took office on January 20, 2021. She is the first spouse since Barbara Bush to hold the positions of both Second Lady and First Lady and is the first spouse since Pat Nixon to hold them non-consecutively. At age 69, Biden is the oldest first lady to assume the role. She is also the first Italian American first lady. In mid-November 2020, it was announced that her chief of staff as first lady would be attorney and diplomat and that her senior advisor in the role would be campaign staffer Anthony Bernal. In December 2020, an op-ed piece by writer Joseph Epstein in The Wall Street Journal, which urged the incoming First Lady to drop the Dr. from her preferred form of address because she is not a medical doctor, was met with a widespread backlash especially among professional women. Outgoing First Lady Melania Trump did not invite incoming First Lady Jill Biden to the White House for tea and a tour, which previously had been a tradition in the presidential transition of power.
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Death Of Wife And Daughter
On December 18, 1972, a few weeks after the election, Bidens wife Neilia and one-year-old daughter Naomi were killed in an automobile accident while Christmas shopping in Hockessin, Delaware. Neilias station wagon was hit by a semi-trailer truck as she pulled out from an intersection. Their sons Beau and Hunter survived the accident and were taken to the hospital in fair condition, Beau with a broken leg and other wounds and Hunter with a minor skull fracture and other head injuries. Biden considered resigning to care for them, but Senate Majority LeaderMike Mansfield persuaded him not to.
Years later, Biden said he had heard that the truck driver allegedly drank alcohol before the collision. The drivers family denied that claim, and the police never substantiated it. Biden later apologized to the family. The accident had filled him with anger and religious doubt. He wrote that he felt God had played a horrible trick on him, and he had trouble focusing on work.
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How Old Are Other World Leaders
One of the most well-known world leaders is Vladimir Putin, president of Russia as of June 2022. While he may have reached the age of 69 in 2021, he entered office in 2000 at 47 and was sworn in for a fourth time in 2018 at 66. When Putin ordered an invasion of Ukraine in 2022, president Volodymyr Zelenskyy was 44 years old.
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Some Dems are in the testing stage, notably California Gov. Gavin Newsom. But even a potent somebody isnt a guarantee of knocking off a sitting president, and Rollins points to a good example.
Heading toward the 1980 election, incumbent Jimmy Carter was considered a disastrous president Gallup had his approval at 28%.
Meanwhile Sen. Ted Kennedy carried the hope of those Dems who believed his name would be magic on the campaign trail, notwithstanding his infamous role in the death of Mary Jo Kopechne in an auto crash on Chappaquiddick Island in 1969.
In November of 79, polls had Kennedy leading the primary race by 58-25. But a series of missteps, including a disastrous interview with Roger Mudd where he could not articulate why he wanted to be president, cut into the lead and gave Carter confidence.
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Biden Will Work While Isolating For Five Days Jha Says
President Biden is is feeling fine and sounded great, Ashish K. Jha, the White House Covid coordinator, said on Thursday, adding that the presidents positive coronavirus test was being assessed to determine which variant had infected him.
Speaking at a White House briefing, Mr. Jha said Mr. Biden would follow guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and work in isolation for at least five days. He would then resume his normal schedule once he obtains a negative test.
White House officials at times, however, dodged or gave scant details on Thursday on Mr. Bidens timeline before his positive test result, his testing cadence and who he was in proximity with in recent days. The White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre initially said Mr. Biden began to experience his symptoms on Wednesday evening after delivering a speech on climate change in Massachusetts. He then took a pre-scheduled test on Thursday morning and then reported his symptoms to his doctor, Mr. Jha said.
Asked about why Mr. Biden was photographed Wednesday maskless at his desk and also in a video of him outside that the White House released, Ms. Jean-Pierre said the videographer and photographer involved were at least six feet away and wearing N95 masks.
And with the photo, he took off his mask so that the American people could see him and see directly the work that hes doing and that hes sitting at his desk continuing to do his work, she said.
Joe Biden Is The Oldest Us President In History
When Biden took office in 2020, he was 78 years old. This makes him the oldest US president in history by a sizable margin.
Before that, Donald Trump was the oldest president to take office. At the time of his inauguration in January of 2017, Trump was 70 years old.
This means that the last two presidents to take office were both in their seventies. Furthermore, they were the only two presidents in history to do so.
Before that, the only presidents to be inaugurated after the age of 70 were Reagan and Eisenhower, and that was for their second terms.
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There Are Unexpected Strengths To An Aging Mind
Come November, well have two septuagenarian candidates facing off. If theyre not geezers, theyre geezer-adjacent. Should we be worried?
A presidents schedule requires fortitude, patience, and intense concentration. A typical day includes a series of high-level meetings and events, including briefings by Cabinet members and White House staff, meetings with congressional and foreign leaders, and delivering remarks at various press events. There are official visits to important allied countries, international meetings such as the United Nations General Assembly each fall, and political events in key states. The president signs legislation but is also the chief executive of the largest employer in the US, a diplomat, and commander in chief of the armed forces. Its a grueling job physically and cognitively, and its natural to question whether there is an upper age limit on meeting such demands.
Looking at the health of former presidents doesnt necessarily provide any answers. Our presidents have ranged widely in age, and age hasnt always correlated with mental and physical fitness. George W. Bush was up at 5:15 each morning and in bed by 9 pm. But Bill Clinton, one of our younger presidents at just 46 when elected, had a quadruple bypass operation on his heart just three years after leaving office. Our oldest president before Donald Trump, Ronald Reagan, who was elected at 69, was diagnosed with Alzheimers four years after he left office.
Daniel J. Levitin
Joe Bidens Early Years
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. was born on November 20, 1942, in the blue collar city of Scranton, Pennsylvania. At age 10 he moved with his family to the Wilmington, Delaware, area, where his father found work as a car salesman. The first of four siblings, Biden attended a series of Catholic schools, including the elite preparatory high school Archmere Academy. Though he excelled at sports, Biden received mediocre grades and struggled with a stutter. In 1965 he graduated from the University of Delaware with a double major in history and political science, and three years later he earned a law degree from Syracuse University. Meanwhile, in 1966, Biden married Neilia Hunter, with whom he would have three children.
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With Midterm Elections Looming Heres Where President Biden Stands
- Staff Changes: An increasing number of West Wing departures has added to the sense of frustration inside the Biden White House.
I do feel its inappropriate to seek that office after youre 80 or in your 80s, said David Gergen, a top adviser to four presidents. I have just turned 80 and I have found over the last two or three years I think it would have been unwise for me to try to run any organization. Youre not quite as sharp as you once were.
Everyone ages differently, of course, and some experts put Mr. Biden in a category of super-agers who remain unusually fit as they advance in years.
Right now, theres no evidence that the age of Biden should matter one ounce, said S. Jay Olshansky, a longevity specialist at the University of Illinois Chicago who studied the candidates ages in 2020. If people dont like his policies, they dont like what he says, thats fine, they can vote for someone else. But its got nothing to do with how old he is.
Still, Professor Olshansky said it was legitimate to wonder if that would remain so at 86. Thats the right question to be asking, he said. You cant sugarcoat aging. Things go wrong as we get older and the risks rise the older we get.
But overall, Dr. Kevin C. OConnor, the presidents physician, pronounced him a healthy, vigorous 78-year-old male who is fit to successfully execute the duties of the presidency.
Jim Tankersley, Michael D. Shear and Katie Benner contributed reporting.
Biden Works Out Trump Does Not
Lean and fit, Biden works out five days a week. Trump likes to sit and watch hours of television, especially Fox News. The amount of sitting would explain why Trump is obese. At 63, he weighs 244 lbs. Healthy experts say he should weigh 10 pounds less. At six feet, Biden weighs about 185 lbs. For his vigorous workouts and lean body, we subtract one year from his age.
For someone in such a demanding job like Trumps and doesnt exercise, it clearly affects his temper. Exercise can release tension and stress. It boosts our spirit. That explains why Trump is often in bad moods.
The White House can provide the worlds best gym to accommodate any presidents needs. It also has a swimming pool. The White House exercise room is probably underutilized because Trump doesnt use it. The Clintons and Obamas made good use of it.
Trump golfs at his own private golf courses on weekends. Exercising once a week is not sufficient. He has gained four pounds since 2018. But given his tight campaign schedule, I doubt he has much time to golf lately. There is no question, his body is in terrible shape. Add one more year to his real age for not exercising.
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Anger Issues For Both
Trumps appetite for rage is just as immense as his ego. He likes to run the White House with fear when he doesnt like what he sees or gets what he wants, or when people dont praise him or give him credit when he thinks he should. Lately, its the Nobel Prize. He thinks he deserves it because of his role in bringing Israel and two tiny Arab countries in normalizing relations.
His debate with Biden illustrated his intense rage. When Biden said, A lot more people are going to die unless he gets a lot smarter very fast. The word smart provoked him instantly.
Did you say smart? Trump asked. Theres nothing smart about you.
Biden has a volatile temper too, according to the New York Times. But at the presidential debate last week, Biden was able to stay cool. The debate hurt Trump more than Biden, emotionally and physically. The Chinese believe that our body is driven by its inner energy. Trumps anger has damaged his internal vitality in addition to the stresses of preparing for the debate.
His short and long-term health problems linked to unmanaged anger, a stressful schedule, and a lack of sleep tripled his chances of getting COVID. Everything Trump does to himself disrupts the daily rhythms of his body. Add two more years to Trumps age for his never-ending anger.
Trumps COVID side effects will weaken his lungs, heart, brain and kidneys for years to come. For his new condition, add three more years to his age.
Assunta can be reached at .
