The corridors of power are increasingly resembling a nursing home, if not a hospice.
This year, two veteran congressmen, Republican Rep. Kay Granger of Texas and Democrat Annie M. Custer of New Hampshire announced they were retiring from public service, but the story of their final days played out very differently, illustrating the dangers of a political system that allows both gerontocracy and elder abuse.
Granger, 81, announced in March that she was stepping down from her powerful position as chairman of the House Appropriations Committee and would not seek re-election even when her term ends. She last voted on July 24, and since then has appeared in Washington only once. For all intents and purposes, Granger had disappeared from the public eye.
December 20 of this year Dallas Expressconservative online publication, revealed that Granger lived in a separate apartment building. Prior to this discovery, Granger’s office did not return phone calls Express or anyone else. Upon visiting her office, reporter Carl Tursios found “the door closed, the front door window closed, no one inside and no sign that the office was still occupied.”
Responding to the reports, the congressman’s son, Brandon Granger, said his mother suffered from “dementia,” which he said was diagnosed in September. Granger’s office shared a statement on where she is allegedly said that “since early September, health problems have increased, making frequent trips to Washington difficult and unpredictable. During this time, my staff remained steadfast in continuing to provide exceptional service as they have for the past 27 years.”
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This version of Granger’s story, which dates the onset of dementia to September, doesn’t make much sense because, as Ken Klippenstein reports in his Substack , there testify to the fact that already in March she found it difficult to read even a prepared statement without painful effort. In addition, she sold her house in early July, which suggests that her move to independent housing was already at that time.
Granger eventually gave up her seat, but it was too late. Had she left public service a few years ago, she would have been remembered as a trailblazer, the first Republican woman to chair the House Appropriations Committee. Now her legacy is a sad one, as The New York Times reportsshe “brought renewed attention to how Capitol Hill feeds off a group of septuagenarians and octogenarians, including those who refuse to relinquish power even after their prime.”
Granger’s 68-year-old colleague in Congress, Annie M. Custer offers a stark contrast. In an interview with The Boston GlobeCoasts it became clear that she is leaving Washington not only for personal reasons, but to show that lawmakers are actually capable of rejecting the gerontocracy. According to Kuster, “I’m trying to set a better example. I think there are colleagues — and some of them are still very successful and very productive — but others just stay forever.”
The Granger case, as well as new reports that show Joe Biden was acting reduced presidentputs gerontocracy on the agenda in Washington. Besides Biden and Granger, there are now increasing expressions of concern about the advanced age and health problems of former Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi and outgoing Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell (both of whom, despite the fact that they have officially given up influential positions, remain the main ones in Washington). questions were also raised about Democratic Rep. David Scott of Georgia, and even his fellow Democrats are expressing skepticism about his ability to serve. The decision was made to suspend young Congresswoman Alexandria Acasio-Cortez from the House Oversight Committee on behalf of Jerry Connolly, who is 74 years old and suffering from cancer. criticized even centrist Democrats for example, Jen Psaki, as evidence of an entrenched gerontocracy.
That’s a major shift from recent years, when a bipartisan code of silence shielded elected officials and judges from criticism even when there was ample evidence that age had rendered them unfit for office.
Republican Rep. Thomas Massey of Kentucky responded to Granger’s story chirping“I’m more concerned about congressmen who have dementia and still vote.”
Democratic Rep. Roh Hahn, D-Calif tweeted:
Kay Granger’s long absence reveals a problem with a Congress that rewards seniority and relationships more than merit and ideas. We have a sclerotic gerontocracy. We need deadlines. We need to get big money out of politics so that a new generation of Americans can lead and serve.
Hanna’s statement has the merit of moving the debate beyond the individual choices of lawmakers and into the broader system that made gerontocracy possible. Republican fan Kerry Lake, who rarely agrees with Hannah on anything and is rarely a voice of reason, also offered a systemic analysis, chirping“Washington, D.C. shouldn’t be a home for the elderly, but entrenched forces there are so desperate to hold on to power that they will turn away new voices by pulling stunts like this.”
Hanna and Lake clearly see the problem as embedded systems. Congressional rules reward seniority with more tenure, which also makes it logical for voters to continue voting for longtime lawmakers even after their terms are reduced. These legislators have staff who can make sure that the benefits of the power are still exercised by the voters.
These employees are themselves an important enabling force for the gerontocracy. After all, a downtrodden political leader basically acts as a figurehead or puppet for staff who can exercise real power behind the scenes. Joe Biden’s presidency may have been a tragedy for Democrats, America, and the world, but for individuals like National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan or Chief of Staff Jeff Zients (and his predecessor Ron Klein), it was a chance to continue their work. a vision of a world without the obstacles one would expect from a fully alert and intelligent president.
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In the past I is worried about the US becoming a gerontocracy. But now it is clear that gerontocracy is only half of the problem. Gerontocracy itself creates the conditions for a horrific form of elder abuse, where aged and decrepit leaders are used as puppets by unelected officials.
Democrats have tried unsuccessfully to make Donald Trump’s threat to democracy a central theme of the presidential campaign. One reason this gambit failed is that Democrats painted too narrow and unconvincing a portrait of the threat. It is true that Trump, an authoritarian demagogue, is a threat to democracy. But its growth is symptomatic of a larger breakdown in the system that also includes the dangers of gerontocracy and elder abuse. Indeed, Trump, entering office as the oldest president-elect and a weather vane easily swayed by his advisers, also exemplifies these problems.
Unfortunately, Democrats — guilty of gerontocracy and elder abuse themselves — lack the credibility to claim support as a solution to this serious problem. Once again, Trump can win thanks to the helplessness of the Democratic Party establishment.
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