With Biden, 81, Out of Race, Dems Will Try Flipping Age Card on Trump

Having swapped out their octogenarian presidential candidate for presumptive replacement Kamala Harris, 59, Democrats are now trying to flip the script on Republican nominee Donald Trump for being the oldest presidential candidate in American history.

One day after President Joe Biden withdrew from the 2024 race, Democrats who once touted the 81-year-old's wisdom and experience are now wielding the age issue against former President Trump.

At 78, and with Biden no longer running against him, Trump has become the oldest candidate to seek the high office.

"The American people are rightly concerned that the Republican Party has nominated Donald Trump, a 78-year-old convicted criminal who has spent decades screwing over working people, and now wants to destroy our democracy, ban abortion, and only cares about himself," a Harris spokesperson told Newsweek.

Further, The New York Times reported Monday that Harris plans to use Trump's age against him on the campaign trail.

However, Trump's campaign already appears ready to parry the attack; officials told Newsmax on Monday that "it's not about age, it's about competence."

"Kamala Harris has proven to be just as incompetent and ineffective as Joe Biden. She was named the Border Czar and has overseen the worst border crisis in history. President Trump is stronger than ever as proven by his relentless work ethic and remarkable resolve following the gruesome attempt on his life. The American people trust President Trump to lead our nation back to greatness," Karoline Leavitt, national press secretary for Trump's campaign, told Newsmax in an email.

Other Democrats and leftist groups got the age memo, too.

"Donald Trump is 78 years old and in a state of profound cognitive decline. He should end his campaign immediately," wrote Occupy Democrats.

Rep. Casey Weinstein, D-Ohio, said in a post that Trump "is too old to be president."

"Democrats are going to immediately flip the script of what we've heard Republicans say about Biden, now that Trump is the oldest candidate for President in history. Whether it's Kamala Harris or others, that will be a case to make for voters; this is a 24/7 job, mental acuity is a big factor in it," George Washington University legislative affairs program director Dr. Casey Burgat told Newsweek.

Although both Biden and Trump are older than past presidential candidates, some differences between the two have gone unmentioned by Trump's critics.

For instance, while Biden has appeared frail in recent months, Trump has talked up his continued physical activity, saying he has lost weight, improved his health and passed a cognitive test with flying colors — testing Biden did not consent to take. Trump has also appeared golfing numerous times in recent months and has boasted of winning club championships.

Earlier this month, he challenged Biden to a golf match during a Florida rally, picking up on an odd digression between the two men during their debate last month.

“I will even give Joe Biden 10 strokes a side. 10 strokes, that’s a lot. That means 20 strokes in case you don’t play golf. I will give him 10 strokes a side and if he wins, I will give the charity of his choice, any charity that he wants, $1 million,” Trump said.

Trump has also said it was not Biden's age that ought to have disqualified him from office, but rather a diminished mental capacity.

Meanwhile, many Democrats have been silent on some of Biden's more embarrassing memory lapses; it was Biden, not Trump, who called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy Russian President Vladimir Putin in remarks before NATO. Biden also called Harris "Vice President Trump" in that same speech.

And it was Biden's poor memory and garbled answers at a June 27 debate with Trump that intensified pressure on Biden to abandon his campaign amid concerns about his age, health and fitness for office. Ironically, that debate performance triggered the events that have now left Trump to answer Dems' attacks on his age, where many were silent on Biden's.

"But like a lot of politicians, Trump's energy seems to mask a lot of these concerns and he is now also flanked by a younger running mate," University of Oxford presidential researcher Dr. Laura Smith told Newsweek, referring to Trump's 39-year-old running mate J.D. Vance.