At 80, Mr. Biden has served his country well for more than 50 years, but you’ve got to know when to hold them and know when to fold them. The president has a month or so within which he can reasonably decide to pass the torch to a younger generation; if he decides not to do so, we might soon be singing, “Turn out the lights, the party’s over.”
John R. Maney Jr., Springfield
David Ignatius raised a legitimate question about President Biden’s electability — less so about his competence — but failed to explain who an alternative candidate can be and how that can be decided at this very late date.
For this to be a constructive suggestion, rather than just fuel for the GOP/Trump campaign, we need to know more precisely what process, and which candidates, would even be feasible with so little time left to build and sell such an unprecedented, desperate, last-minute national reset. Mr. Ignatius’s solution holds more risks than the “problem.”
I couldn’t disagree more with David Ignatius’s belief that President Biden should not seek reelection — and not because I am also an older person who is sensitive to people being written off because of age, but because Mr. Biden’s fantastic accomplishments in just two years make him the right person to run again.
Mr. Biden has already beaten Donald Trump, who will likely be Mr. Biden’s opponent. Mr. Biden put together the strong NATO alliance in support of Ukraine. With his experience and skill, he got through bipartisan legislation, including the Inflation Reduction Act, the lowering of prescription drug prices, and allowing Medicare to compete in the market.
As for Mr. Biden’s age: He has proved he is up to the job, including traveling all over the world. He is an avid exerciser. I would much rather go with a known entity to finish the job.
Joanie Grosfeld, Kensington
The Sept. 13 editorial cartoon contrasting Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy with a sleepy President Biden was an unfunny cheap shot. The cartoon’s dishonesty was made crystal clear by David Ignatius, who, by contrast, wrote a thoughtful op-ed about Mr. Biden’s decision to run for reelection.
Obviously, Mr. Biden’s age is an issue, but Mr. Ignatius rightly regarded Mr. Biden’s current, highly productive record of performance in very positive terms. The concern is about the future, a second term. Mr. Biden is in good health and is definitely not asleep at the wheel. And unlike former president Donald Trump, he’s also not criminally indicted.
David Bjelajac, Washington
David Ignatius’s Sept. 13 op-ed was a travesty — just repeating conventional wisdom as promoted by Republican partisans and polling that is highly suspect. As the op-ed recognized, President Biden has been one of our most effective presidents in decades, but Mr. Ignatius wrote he shouldn’t run again because of his age. This is nonsense and highly destructive.
Let’s compare the two presumptive candidates. Mr. Biden is healthy, exercises, shows considerable stamina (as on recent trip to Asia), makes excellent decisions on important matters, got major legislation passed and is surrounded by a competent staff and Cabinet. There is no reason he cannot continue to serve us well. Former president Donald Trump, likely to be Mr. Biden’s opponent, is only three years younger than Mr. Biden and visibly less healthy — he is overweight and doesn’t exercise. Mr. Trump did considerable damage when he was president and promises to do even worse if he is reelected. He is under criminal indictment in four jurisdictions, is emotionally erratic and is Russian President Vladimir Putin’s favorite candidate.
Catherine Burke, San Gabriel, Calif.