Hillary Clinton reflects on Biden, Trump's ages, highlights Trump as threat to US democracy

In an interview for a Sirius XM radio show on Tuesday, former US Secretary of State and 2016 Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton said that President Joe Biden “is old, but [has] been an effective president and does not pose a threat to our democracy,” while his competitor, ex-president Donald Trump, “is old, barely makes sense when he talks, is dangerous, and threatens our democracy.”

“Pick between your two old ones,” Clinton said, laughing, “And figure out how you’re going to save our democracy. Because no matter where you stand on the political spectrum, you want to maintain freedom, and the rule of law, and protection for people’s fundamental rights, or at least I used to think so.” 

HILARY CLINTON: People should “move on” from Joe Biden’s age pic.twitter.com/DbdihFZlyJ

— HOT SPOT (@HotSpotHotSpot) March 5, 2024

The presidential election in November is on track to be a rematch between President Biden, who was elected in 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic and exploding racial tensions and now sees his approval rating among the lowest in history, and Donald Trump, the lightning rod of controversy who, after four years as president himself, sought to overturn the results of that election, culminating in the riot at the US Capitol building on January 6, 2021. 

The issue of President Biden’s aging has been a major concern for voters and the media, with a recent New York Times poll finding that a majority of those who voted for Biden in 2020 say he is too old to be effective in a second term. Biden, who will turn 81 shortly after the election, is the oldest person ever to serve as US president— beating the previous record of 74, set by former President Trump.

Both men have been accused of cognitive decline, and both deny that they have dulled. 

Clinton on Supreme Court ballot ruling: up to American people 

Clinton, who lost to Trump in 2016, also addressed the Supreme Court decision this week that overturned Colorado’s disqualification of the ex-president to appear on their state’s ballot in November. The case hinges on an interpretation of the Thirteenth Amendment to the US Constitution, which prohibits those who have “engaged in insurrection” from holding federal office. 

The justices disagreed on the reasoning behind their opinion, with the conservative members of the court making a larger claim about the enforcement of that amendment, while the liberal justices limited their decision to a narrower response to this particular case. The nine members of the court, however, were unanimous in their decision. 

Clinton said that while she does believe Trump should be considered an insurrectionist, she is “not surprised this court would make this decision,” adding that “ultimately, it’s up to the American people to prevent [Trump] from getting near the Oval Office again.”