Too old?

What I've seen and heard about Bernie Sanders I like very much but I do wonder if he would continue to have the energy to do this job. If there was no-one else putting forward the sorts of views and policies he espouses I think I would vote for him though. I don't know much about the other possible declared and candidates and must read up on it.

I don't think I could have voted for Hillary Clinton. Much as I am pleased if women progress further in all areas of public life, I wouldn't vote for a woman just because she is a woman.

As The Times reported in December, Mr. Sanders is struggling to retain the support he garnered two years ago, when he was far less of a political star than he is today. His supporters have conceded that in some ways, Mr. Sanders is a victim of his own success.

“Ironically, Bernie’s agenda for working families will be the Democratic Party’s message in 2020, but he may not be the one leading the parade,” Bill Press, a talk show host who supported Mr. Sanders in 2016, said last year.

Regardless of candidates personal qualities it’s impossible to tell who will be chosen as ultimate candidates, last time Trump won and his personal qualities are awful. Wether his policies turn out to be successful has still to be proved, a lot of republicans are uncomfortable with Trump and would prefer a different president.

Unfortunately US elections are won by the candidate who has the most cash backing and clever dirty tricks, thankfully our system is slightly better, despite the current mess.

Bernie is too old.. Donald Trump is doing a good job and even those that were against him are now on his side.. Look at how much good Trump has done for the people and country,, and compare that with what Obama did and if his wife gets in she won't be any better then Obama was.

Other personal aspects of a politician are all too often the most powerful influence than age - once they have the 'control' button, all sense of character, morality, 'servant of the people' attitudes seems to go out of the window.
They will say, and do, anything they feel is expedient, self-interest to their own narrow sphere.
So many lose (if they ever had it in the first place) the bigger picture, instead preferring to surround themselves with syncopants and one trick ponies...but, ask yourselves, would any of us be any different?
Bring on true democracy!

Grannygravy13. Would you rather then a young GW Bush2nd who with his pal Blair created a situation the consequences of which are with us on a daily basis.

I have American friends who say he will do good....

I think there is nothing that Bernie could have done to temper the disappointment his young followers felt. I can understand why people who are left wing would not want to vote for Clinton.
Corbyn seems to work well with Emily Thornbury who seems pretty tough and of course Diane Abbott. Sarah Campion and Shami Chakravarti are also not that young and he gets on well with them. I know that people like to find fault with him but misogyny really doesn't stand up.

It’s ridiculous that he should stand. He’s too old, he’s not even a Democrat, and his massive ego meant he just couldn’t give in gracefully after Hillary Clinton beat him (resoundingly) in the Primaries. Instead he kept winding up his (mostly) young and impressionable supporters to take the moral high ground and not vote for Hillary in the Presidential election.. Look where that got us - with the orange idiot Trump! I also think he - and Corbyn- are old fashioned misogynists who like young women but get very tetchy when dealing with powerful older women.
And if you listen toBernie’s speeches, they’ve no substance at all, just motherhood and apple pie cos he knows he will never have to deliver anything. Meanwhile, he has made a LOT of money out of standing in the primaries.
Sorry, finished ranting now. In case you hadn’t realised, I’m still not over 2016! We had a chance to have the first women President who was also an incredibly able, experienced, principled woman who Bernie doesn’t hold a candle to. What a mess.

Day6 agree wholeheartedly with what you said in your post. There are plenty of younger potential candidates who do not have the astuteness or gravitas to carry it off!
It is not always age that is the most relevant.
However, I think too much would be made of his age in any campaigning and distract from the politics.

I liked Bernie Sanders last campaign as much as I hated Hilary Clintons! I was rooting for him back in..2016?

Sadly I think he has probably missed the boat politically. I do hope he mentors younger politicians though. I think at 75 the enormity of the role might prove to be too much for him, physically rather than mentally.

(I know some very wise and erudite people in their late 70s and early 80s and I think we must guard against dismissing the old as a group of people becoming mentally infirm. Many remain sharp till the day they die. My Mum died at 86 with her book, newspaper and a half-finished crossword on her hospital bedside table.)

People are so very different. Shirley Williams retired from the House of Lords at 85 but I heard her interviewed yesterday and she sounded just as sharp witted and eloquent as ever.

Perhaps there should be no compulsory retirement age for anything but we should judge each case on its merits.

Having said that I think I'd be reluctant to see anyone over seventy taking on a job like POTUS. Trump is obviously not up to it, but then I would not have supported him at any age.

Personally I would not vote for a Counsellor or member of Parliament who was over the age of 75. I feel that there should definately be a cut off point and the same goes for the House of Lords.

I think the Queen is in a category all of her own. She never stood for election, is a Head of State but not a Head of Government. She is very highly regarded and although she continues working, those around her no doubt do everything they can to share the load.

Where does this leave the Queen then? Her maj is still doing an excellent job, more savvy than most prime ministers, although she has handed over some of duties. Why not all of them if we are going to be ageist. Surely, surely Bernie has to be an improvement on Donald Trump, hasn't he?

It is a shame that we do have to consider age, and I think it is a sorry state of affairs if there are not other very obvious equally principled, knowledgable, personable & diplomatic younger candidate... in USA (or UK!)

winterwhite It is still early. People started announcing nominations ridiculously early. It distracts from the important things that they need to be concentrating on now.
I didn't like Tulsi Gabbard at first but she is very anti war and I think that she is impressive. I did like Kamala Harris at first and she seems to be the favourite but the more I see of her the less I like her.
None of them would be disastrous though in the way that Trump is and that to some extent I think Clinton would have been.

I live in the States and I wouldn’t vote for any of them. Is there nobody out there with the qualities needed to run the country? I feel the same about my home country (UK) too.

Watching him on the tv the other night, he appeared to need the lecture to keep himself upright so yes too old.

Michelle Obama should jump in she'd make a good " peoples " President. I'd vote for her, she's lovely.

I feel I don't yet know enough about the younger politicians so it's good to have reassurance from Jaycee. I agree that 79 is too old to embark on such a demanding role, but goodness Bernie Sanders was inspirational in 2016.

With age comes experience and hopefully that makes one wiser.

And no-one could make a hash of running the USA the way Trump has, surely?

Let Bernie have a go!

I feel that no politician should be over retirement age, whatever that is in the country involved, and indeed it might be a good idea to say that you are too old to be in politics or run for a presidency, or be prime minister after the age of 65.

Why should people our age cling to power instead of letting younger people take over?

What he has done is open the door for so many other progressives to stand and I like the look of a few of them.
They have gone from having one entitled candidate to having over 15 and counting and many are genuine progressives. I like Bernie Sanders but also Elizabeth Warren, Julian Castro, and Tulsi Gabbard. Sanders has his age against him (although there have been older Presidents and Prime Ministers) and the fact that some people think that he should stand as an independent.
I think any of those would be a good President.
There are thankfully a few Republicans coming forward to stand against Trump as it was thought but many pundits that none would be prepared to do that.

I think there comes a time when our generation needs to step back. We do have experience and, at least in some cases, wisdom that we can make available to younger men and women. I think Barack Obama was very smart to team up with Joe Biden for exactly this reason and that partnership worked well.

Maybe there should be an official cut-off point – say, 70 or 75 – for such a high-powered position. It is a very demanding job and most presidents seem to gain quite a lot of grey hair and lines on their faces even during a single term. I am 68 and have pretty good health and a lot of energy. However, I am aware that I no longer have the stamina I once had and that although my mind is still sharp, it doesn't work quite so rapidly.

No one seems willing to use the 25th Amendment to remove a president who has become incapable. Remember Ronald Reagan had Alzheimers but remained in office until the end of his second term. This amendment should have been used then and would have been a legal precedent. However, I have my doubts about whether it would be used for Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren or Joe Biden if any of them were the future president and became incompetent through ill health while in office.