Toddler Or Tottering?

The issue of John McCain's age became a bit more comical and interesting with his announcement of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his choice for vice president. CNN thought she was "too young" -- perhaps in juxtaposition to McCain - and besides, she has all those young kids; one still in diapers.
So we have one candidate too long in the tooth, with a vice presidential candidate too short in the tooth with a child who has no teeth. And - good grief - she would be second in line for the presidency!
Did you know that the president pro tempore of the Senate is third in line to be president? That youngster is Democrat Robert Byrd, the longest serving senator in the history of this republic, and 90 years old - with no intention of retiring. So we have two senior senators, a 72-year-old vowing to veto earmarks, and a 90-year-old, known as the "King of Pork," who has steered millions of dollars of our tax money to West Virginia.
In fact, Byrd has long since passed the billion dollar mark. The proposed "bridge to nowhere" in Alaska was a mere bagatelle in comparison. Comparisons can indeed be strange sometimes. The youngster, Palin, has more executive experience than Sens. Barack Obama and Joe Biden combined. These guys were either teaching, writing or in politics. They never were mayors, governors or executives responsible for anything.
Perhaps the two most fascinating examples of both corruption and aging politicians were Sens. Bob Torricelli, D-N.J., and Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J. (I lived in New Jersey as a kid.) This is a cause-and-effect analysis. Without Torricelli, there would have been no contemporary Lautenberg. Let me explain: Corruption and scandal define the history of politics in New Jersey. When I was a kid in Jersey City, we referred to the cops, on what was then Hudson Boulevard, as Mayor Hague's storm troopers. Frank "I am the law" Hague was mayor and the head of the Democratic Party political machine for decades. Its corruption and dishonesty are the stuff of legend.
In keeping with this tradition, some years later enter Sen. Bob Torricelli, a Harvard graduate, who, according to the Federal Election Commission records and other reports, was linked to the mafia, gambling casinos, con artists, illegal campaign contributions, illegal gifts and the like. Denying any wrongdoing, and a month before his 2002 reelection campaign, he abruptly withdrew from the race when censured by the Senate Ethics Committee for wrongdoing - but only after giving a self-serving speech denying everything.
Democratic Party officials hastily selected the then retired 78-year-old former Sen. Frank Lautenberg, because every other younger Democrat declined to run in his stead, given the short notice, and the stench of Torticelli's corruption. No matter. Lautenberg won! Now get this: In 2002, 58 percent of voters polled said he was "too old to effectively serve another six-year term." His performance as a senator before he retired was questioned. Even comments by Democrats referred to his "unfocused style as a speaker," and his "verbal meandering." They even dredged up a videotape from two decades earlier in which he was seen as "befuddled and doddering before a camera."
Here's the point: Fast forward to 2008. The now 84-year-old Lautenberg announced he will run again for reelection - his second consecutive term since retiring. The conventional wisdom is that the "befuddled" Lautenberg will win. Why? New Jersey is a Democratic stronghold. Competency is never an issue - party affiliation is everything. West Virginia is no different. Byrd said he will run "until this old body just gives up and drops..."
It seems that age is only an issue with Republicans.
Then there's 75-year-old Pennsylvania Democrat Rep. John Murtha who told an AFL-CIO union gathering that McCain "was too old" for the job. (Murtha vowed to block funding for the successful surge in Iraq.) This attack on McCain's age prompted a former director of that union to start a new Web site called "Younger than McCain" with a 90-second video listing all the things younger than McCain - such as GI Joe and Barbie. (An unbelievable 1.8 million hits on Google! Never underestimate the viciousness and creativity of Democrats.)
I suspect Democrats will shortly start another Web site attacking the youthful Palin, called "Older than Palin" with an accompanying video showing all things older than Palin. I don't believe it. I just got 178,000 hits on this! One of them is the "baby boomers. All of them." (No innuendo is left unspoken or unwritten.)
Think about it this way: Given their differences in gender, age and background, these two people compliment each other quite well. One can just imagine the heated discussions these two will have behind closed doors.