The Question of John McCain’s Advanced Age Spurs Debate in the United States

After the questions of race and sex, a third question seems to preoccupy the American electors: that of Republican candidate John McCain’s advanced age. If he is elected, the Republican candidate will enter office at the age of 72. He will be the oldest sitting American president. His age is used by both his team and his rivals in completely different ways that spur the campaign: one side emphasizes the maverick’s experience, the other, a risk of fragility when the management of the country’s affairs calls for strength and good health.

Last week, Democratic Senator and ex-presidential candidate John Kerry, as well as Barack Obama’s foreign affairs advisor, Susan Rice, described John McCain as “confused.” As Politico explains, Mr. McCain’s staff believes that he “speaks in code,” looking to discredit the Republican candidate by using this type of vocabulary.

For the Democrats, these reproaches are only a Republican political communication strategy to box in the language used during the campaign. John Kerry responded to these accusations: “It is unjust, and even a little ridiculous, to conclude that, because we applied a word used by Americans in their daily life to John McCain, we are referring to someone’s age.”

Obama, a “Young Man”

The Republican camp also regularly uses the age argument, by flipping it back in John McCain’s favor. First, through recurring jokes that the candidate has made about his age, like in the sketch for Saturday Night Live, in which he explains, with a straight face, that “the major quality necessary for the President of the United States is to be very, very, very, very old,” before concluding “it is important to be able to look your children in the eye. Or in my case, my children, my grandchildren, by great-grandchildren, and my great-great grandchildren, the youngest of whom are now approaching retirement age.”

In addition to referring to John McCain’s 71 years through humor, the Republican rhetoric also places it in high esteem: when Barack Obama boasts of representing change, the Republicans see this only as inexperience. During a meeting at the end of May, John McCain called Barack Obama a “young man” with “very little experience,” adding, “from his very, very large lack of experience and knowledge, he could very well walk away.”