Ageism, Statesmanship and the Common Good

The first thing to be said about President Biden’s decision to not seek a second term is that ageism is alive and well in the Democratic party. At eighty-one President Biden is still a vital, viable elder statesman who has more on the ball than half the people half his age. At eighty-one he is only three years older than the former Occupant. The media joined the trope of the former Occupant’s rhetoric that Biden is a doddering old fool. The media is as much to blame as is the former Occupant.

Let’s not forget that.

His poor performance at the debate does not minimize a lifetime of accomplishments as a public servant. Biden is an elder statesman who has devoted his life to public service. In his brief three and a half years as President, he and Vice President Harris have:

• Passed a 1.2 trillion dollar bi-partisan infrastructure package.
• Provided cogent leadership to address the disaster the former Occupant made of the pandemic.
• Created enhanced background checks for gun purchases and provided funds for youth mental health.
• Made a $369 billion dollar investment in climate change.
• Pulled troops out of Afghanistan, ending the longest war in American history.
• Gave $10,000 to $20,000 in college debt relief to Americans with loans who make less than $125,000 a year.
• Capped prescriptions costs at $2000.00 per year.
• Achieved historically low unemployment rates.
• Imposed a 15% minimum corporate tax on America’s largest corporations.
• Rejoined the Paris Agreement.
• Strengthened the NATO alliance in support of Ukraine.
• Gave Medicare the power to negotiate drug prices.
• Imposed economic sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.
• Increased the budget of the Internal Revenue Service to reduce tax evasion and increase revenue.
• Created 6.6 million jobs, more than any other president in history.
• Decreased healthcare premiums by $800.00.
• Signed the PACT Act to address service members’ exposure to burn pits and other toxins.
• Signed the CHIPS act to strengthen American manufacturing.
• Reauthorized the Violence Against Women Act
• Reinstated the ban on the death penalty.

The media should spend as much time talking about his accomplishments as they do about his stutter and poor debate performance. It is a flaming example of ageism.

There is far more to the story than what the lopsided media reports. It is interesting to note, as an aside, that every major news outlet including national networks is owned by supporters of the former Occupant. There is a stench in the air of neutrality. The media doesn’t report the news, it makes the news. And the one who pays the piper calls the tunes. But I digress.

What Biden knows in his bones is that government is meant to serve the greatest number of people in the best possible way. This requires a wide-angle lens on the big picture and a crystal-clear sense of how the parts move together and influence each other. While this can be described as political savvy, it is also deeply theological. As a man of faith, Biden has a foundation in understanding the public good.

There are instances a-plenty in scripture that illustrate the preferential option for the poor. In the first testament Israel is constantly measured against the plumbline of God’s justice and righteousness.  The witness of the prophets like Jeremiah, Isaiah and Amos is that God’s desire for humanity is to treat one another with compassion and equality and be good stewards of the resource of creation. These premises saturate scripture on just about every page.

The purpose of government is to serve the needs of people. The mark of any civilized society is how well it treats its most vulnerable members–the poor, the ill and the disenfranchised. These are complex social problems that defy simple solutions. The concrete actions of administrations that alleviate suffering, create jobs, sustain social safety net programs and look at the long term well being of creation are in line with biblical values.

The old saying that we don’t mix religion with politics is nonsense. We need the witness of scripture to inform our political opinions. We are called to look beyond individual self interest to the needs of those most in need of protection. We would do well to immerse ourselves in scripture as we approach this election season. If we are to claim our identity as people of faith we need to be grounded in biblical values and let those values inform our actions when we speak with others, cast our vote and assess the options before us in this political season.