McConnell, Feinstein and the subject we can finally all agree on | Opinion

A moment of collective humanity blew across the airwaves last week as we watched Sen. Mitch McConnell, 81, freeze in front of a press gaggle. His eyes blinked but words would not come.

No matter how you feel about Mitch, it was hard to watch him struggle against whatever was happening in his aging brain. Finally and mercifully, fellow senators led him away, we hope to a Capitol doctor. He is only recently back at work after a six-week absence from a fall in March that caused a concussion.

Much less humanity is on display with Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who, at 90, is showing far worse ravages of aging than Mitch. That she is still in office, being told what to say and vote for by her aides and colleagues, is both elder abuse and abuse of power. It is also ruining her substantial and impressive legacy.

It’s easy to understand that being a member of Congress or even a leader there is heady stuff, full of perks and privileges. And of course experience is key to understanding the byzantine ways and means of federal government. But surely there are overwhelming reasons we can agree there ought to be either age limits or term limits. Or both.

None other than Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, a man who seems to love his job, introduced a term limit bill in January which would require just two six-year terms for Senators and three two-year terms for House members.

“The Founding Fathers envisioned a government of citizen legislators who would serve for a few years and return home, not a government run by a small group of special interests and lifelong, permanently entrenched politicians who prey upon the brokenness of Washington to govern in a manner that is totally unaccountable to the American people,” he said in a press release.

Not to mention all these octogenarians and nonagenarians are keeping younger people out of power and out of leadership, denying a strong back bench in either party of young and energetic people moving up the ranks. Look at our own Congressman Hal Rogers, 85 years old and in his 22nd term representing the 5th District. Looking at the dismal outcomes of his district in just about every measure, it might be nice to let someone else have a try.

Obviously, the larger backdrop to all of this is the prospect of electing either of the two oldest presidents in history: President Joe Biden, who is 80 and Donald Trump, 77. It’s hard to talk about age without seeming ageist, but there is always the argument that with term limits, we might have a broader array of candidates of different ages to choose from.

For those worried about age and experience, I’d say you could be more lenient than Cruz. Let Senators serve four terms, or 24 years. Let House members be elected to 12 terms for an equal number of years. Cut it all off at 80 or 85, no matter how bright and capable the person is. Nancy Pelosi is 83; she had the grace to turn over her leadership position to the next generation but has not as yet give up her seat.

Term limits would probably require a constitutional amendment, which complicates the situation a lot. But let’s face it, the Founding Fathers probably didn’t think about term limits because in the 1780s, the average lifespan was 35 and a half. They weren’t really worried politicians would stick around too long. Still, Republicans managed to get it done for presidents after FDR was elected four times. The 22nd Amendment was ratified in 1951 when Minnesota became the 36th state to approve it.

This is the most bipartisan of issues. According to a 2021 poll, as many as 80 percent of Americans approve of the idea of term limits; 87.6 percent of Republicans, 73.6 percent of Democrats, and 79.5 percent of independents. Unfortunately, it’s opposed by the very people it would get rid of — the oldest, most powerful politicians. But what would you choose? Mitch McConnell is a Kentucky icon, credited or blamed for our Supreme Court, our current campaign finance system and the success of the modern Republican party. Surely he’d rather leave office known for that, and not for being a late night joke who should have exited a few years before.