He has fallen off his bike, nodded off at summits, mangled his words and has been using a short, baby staircase on Air Force One after too many stumbles. He needs large-lettered cue cards to stay on message and repeats favourite stories inadvertently. That is just for starters. He will be 86 by the end of a second term in office.
Every gaffe and slip has been recycled on social media and Trump friendly talk shows. The message has got through. A Washington Post/ABC News poll on January 14 showed that only 28 per cent of respondents thought Biden, 81, had the "mental sharpness" to be an effective president, a diagnosis that explains why his approval ratings remain stubbornly in the doldrums. In contrast 47 per cent thought Donald Trump had the mental acuity to serve. Trump may be mad as a box of frogs with a maniacal energy that powers his campaign, but he has not been regarded as doddery or borderline senile. Until now.
Let the battle of the geriatrics begin! Nothing enrages Trump, 77, more than mockery and laughter, much as he loves dishing it out. And Trump, undeniably, has made a series of flubs.
First he muddled up Biden with Barack Obama no less than seven times at various events last autumn, called the Hungarian premier Victor Orban the leader of Turkey, claimed Kim Jong-un of North Korea led a country of 1.4 billion people (did he mean the Chinese president, Xi Jinping?) and appeared to confuse Jeb Bush, the ex-Florida governor, with his brother, former president George W Bush.
This story is from the January 31, 2024 edition of Evening Standard.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the January 31, 2024 edition of Evening Standard.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
The era of longevity is almost upon us. But can our minds really keep up?
A post-ageing world is just around the corner, says longevity scientist AUBREY DE GREY, and it’s going to change the way we live
Hidden London
SECRET SPOTS YOU SIMPLY HAVE TO DISCOVER
How Christian Louboutin fell in love with Melides in Portugal
The wild beauty of this seaside village charmed the French fashion designer so much that he made it his home
Actor Millie Bobby Brown romances in Hyde Park, feasts at Sheesh and buys thelot at Harrods
Interview with Actor Millie Bobby Brown
How will Arteta manage without influential Edu?
Arsenal need smooth transition between eras just like Man City
"I had no one in Manchester apart from my PlayStation"
Aaron Wan-Bissaka was a young man rated among the country's most promising footballers when Manchester United came calling in the summer of 2019.
The battle for the soul of Soho
Inside the war between London's porn baron family and the council they say is killing the vibe
At the table: Sad steaks seasoned with despair
Fetch the smelling salts, you're in for a shock: A Restaurant Critic Hates a Famously Terrible Restaurant. Low-hanging fruit? Perhaps.
Class portrait Nobody else writes about middle England so acutely
Tessa Hadley's first novella depicts women in refreshing ways
How a tiny cult radio station in Hackney took over the world
I think the most obscure place I've had a listener email from so far was probably a guy in the Yukon,\" laughs Flo Dill, the host of NTS Radio's flagship morning show.