Will Trump run again for president in 2024? POTUS, 74, thinking about it but says he'll be 'four years older'
A White House source has reportedly claimed that President Donald Trump fears he may be too old to run for the White House again in 2024. The outgoing POTUS will turn 75 in June, and is said to have spoken to his close friend David McIntosh about his reservations while on an Air Force One flight to Georgia earlier this month. When asked if he'd run again in 2024, Trump appeared rather unsure - a far cry from his otherwise headstrong demeanor. "Yeah, I’m thinking about that. But you know, I’m going to be four years older," he reportedly told McIntosh.
If the former real estate mogul manages to secure the White House in January 2024, he would be less than six months off his 79th birthday - making him the oldest president ever elected. As of now, President-elect Joe Biden holds that title. He will be sworn-in around midday tomorrow at age 78.
The claims about Trump's alleged fears about his advancing years hurting his future presidential prospects were made in an Axios report. According to the report, he has flip-flopped over whether to announce a 2024 bid for the White House - despite winning more votes in 2020 than he did in the 2016 election.
Meanwhile, Biden's age and apparent incoherence also created hurdles for him on the 2020 campaign trail.
Earlier this year, MEAWW reported how nearly twenty percent of Democrat voters believed that Biden was suffering from "some form" of dementia, according to a poll released on June 29. The poll, conducted by Rasmussen Reports, also stated that a majority of likely voters responded saying it is important for him to address the issue of his mental health publicly. The survey reportedly asked respondents to give their opinion based on the content they watched or read related to the former vice president. The poll reportedly found that at least 38 percent of the total voters in the survey believed he has dementia, while 20 percent of the Democratic voters felt the same. Rasmussen, in its poll results, stated "that compares to 66% of Republicans and 30% of voters not affiliated with either major party."
Trump was impeached last week by the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives for allegedly "inciting an insurrection" at the US Capitol on January 6. If the Republican-controlled Senate convicts Trump, he will be barred from running for president ever again.
It's worth noting that this is the first time since 1869 that the outgoing president will not be attending his successor’s inauguration ceremony, as Trump is confirmed to skip Biden’s inauguration and also refrain from the traditional and symbolic helicopter lift from the US Capitol.
Instead, Trump plans to organize an elaborate farewell ceremony at Joint Base Andrews before leaving the White House for Florida on the morning of Wednesday, January 20. The farewell ceremony will reportedly take place hours before the scheduled inauguration and swearing-in ceremony of President-elect Joe Biden. That said, Trump’s last full day in office will be on Tuesday, January 19. Political experts have predicted that Trump will issue around 100 pardons and commutations to white-collar criminals, including some from the music industry. Rapper Lil Wayne’s name has also surfaced online, with many claiming that the rapper might receive a pardon from the president before his term ends.
Last-minute presidential pardons is a customary tradition for outgoing US presidents. Whenever a sitting president leaves office, he pardons a significant number of people before his successor starts his term.