Should There Be an Age Limit for the Presidency?

What's the story?

• Former President Jimmy Carter, who’s about to turn 95, took aim at certain presidents – and presidential candidates – saying he would not have been able to handle the rigors of the presidency at 80.

What are people saying?

• Jokingly asked if he’d considering running in 2020, Carter laughed:

"I hope there’s an age limit. If I were just 80 years old, if I was 15 years younger, I don’t believe I could undertake the duties I experienced when I was president."

• He added: "The things I faced in foreign affairs, I don’t think I could undertake them at 80 years old," he said. "At 95, it’s out of the question. I’m having a hard time walking."
• Former Vice President Joe Biden would be 78 if elected, and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) would be 79 on Inauguration Day. President Donald Trump was the oldest president at the time of his inauguration in January 2017: 70 years old.
• Trump told reporters on Air Force One that Carter “was referring to Biden.”

"He said that it was because Biden’s having a hard time, there’s no question about it."

• Trump added that he thinks age limits for the presidency should “be limited by the public.”

"I think it has to be limited by the public. I met with a man the other day who was 85 years old, the sharpest guy you’ll ever meet. I’ve dealt with people that were 92, 93, 94, and they were totally sharp."

What do you think?

Should there be an age limit on the presidency? Or should it “be limited by the public”? Take action and tell your reps, then share your thoughts below.

—Josh Herman