Joe Biden's Unhappy Birthday

President Joe Biden will on Monday spend his 81st birthday pardoning turkeys at the White House as a Thanksgiving tradition before traveling to the Atlantic island of Nantucket on Tuesday with his family.

But his enjoyment of the day may be tarnished by renewed attacks from critics who think he is too elderly to hold office.

The Democrat is the oldest person ever to be president and his tenure has long been marred by claims he lacks the mental fitness for the position. Detractors have pointed to his verbal gaffes and physical missteps, such as stumbling on the steps of Air Force One as evidence for his incapability.

Newsweek has contacted representatives of Biden for comment via email.

As he marks another year, these criticisms have ramped up. In a weekend editorial, The Wall Street Journal called Biden running again "an act of profound selfishness," because of his age.

Meanwhile, John B. Judis, a longtime political strategist and author, suggested Biden's age has made him look less presidential.

"He doesn't look and speak the part," Judis told The New York Times. "He's not a commanding or charming presence on a presidential or presidential election stage."

"I think a lot of voters, and young people in particular, who are not at all put off by his political positions or accomplishments, are put off by his utter failure as a regal persona," Judis said.

Biden has in recent weeks also faced a series of damaging polls that suggest he will not win a second term in the 2024 presidential election.

A Harvard-Harris poll released last month found that 58 percent of voters say they have doubts about his fitness for office and 67 percent said he was too old to be president. The survey was taken of 2,116 registered voters on October 18 and 19.

Democrats are divided almost equally over Biden's response to the war between Israel and Hamas. Fifty percent of Democrats approve of the president's handling of the situation so far, with 46 percent disapproving, according to an Associated Press/NORC Center for Public Affairs Research survey of 1,239 American adults, conducted between November 2 and 6.

Meanwhile, after The New York Times and Siena College published a poll on November 5, showing that voters are backing Trump by margins of 4 to 10 percentage points in five of six important battleground states, one year before the 2024 election.

A number of Democrats have suggested Biden step aside, including David Axelrod, a political strategist who worked on former President Barack Obama's 2008 and 2012 campaigns and served as a senior adviser in his administration,

He wrote on X, formerly Twitter: "Only Joe Biden can make this decision. If he continues to run, he will be the nominee of the Democratic Party. What he needs to decide is whether that is wise; whether it's in HIS best interest or the country's?"

Axelrod doubled down on his position over the weekend, telling New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd on Saturday that Biden's chances of winning the election next year were "no better" than 50-50.

Despite these attacks, some remain confident in Biden's abilities. Ron Klain, who served as Biden's chief of staff during his first two years in the White House, said the president's age "gives him more wisdom and experience, [look at] how he's navigated this difficult problem in Ukraine."

Meanwhile Alan Kessler, a Democratic donor and Biden fundraiser, pointed out that Donald Trump, the former president and Biden's most likely rival next year, is 77 but people criticize him less over his age.

"Neither are going to get any younger on their next birthdays, yet Biden seems to get, on a continuing basis, knocked for his age, while Trump does not," he told Politico. "No one brings up the age thing with [Trump]. That double standard is troubling."