U.S. First Lady Dismisses Idea Of Competency Test For Elderly Politicians

U.S. first lady Jill Biden has hit back at Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley on Monday.

Republican presidential contender Nikki Haley’s suggestion that candidates over 75 years old take a mental competency test was dubbed “absurd” by US First Lady Jill Biden.

Although Haley’s idea has received widespread attention, both Democratic and Republican party leaders have criticised her.

U.S. first lady responded, “We would never even discuss something like that,” when asked if her husband Joe Biden, who would turn 82 during his inauguration if he were to win a second term, would undergo a mental health test.

Jill Biden cited Joe Biden’s recent travel itinerary as evidence of his endurance. “How many people in their 30s could travel to Poland and board a train? Travel to Ukraine in nine hours, then meet with President (Volodymyr) Zelensky there”, Jill Biden added.

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President Joe Biden would be 82 if he took office in 2025, while South Carolina’s two-term governor Haley is 51.

Although Biden has not officially declared his intention to run for president in 2024, he will probably do so shortly given that he is now the country’s oldest president. Biden and front-runner Republican Donald Trump are only a few years apart in age.

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