(ProsperNews.net) – Presidential candidate Nikki Haley has repeated her concerns surrounding the age of politicians on Capitol Hill. She said not only should politicians undergo mental fitness tests, but adds that there must be limits on how long a Member of Congress can serve. She was speaking in the wake of the latest health scare involving a senior lawmaker. GOP Senate leader Mitch McConnell froze mid-sentence when speaking to reporters in Congress recently, and then appeared to stare blankly into space before being led away. He returned around 10 minutes later saying he was fit to continue.
Similarly, on the Democrat side of the aisle, Senator Dianne Feinstein, who was away from Congress for months in the early part of the year due to ill health, was prompted by an aide to vote at a committee hearing. The 90-year-old was told “Just say aye” by colleagues who noted her apparent confusion and failure to respond.
The Washington Post has since described Congress as one of the oldest in the history of the country. The Senate has the highest median age in US history at 65, although this is younger in the House of Representatives at 59. In detail, 48% of Congress Members are aged between 58 and 77, 33% are between 42 and 57, 12% are aged 29 to 42, and 6% are over 78 years old.
Nikki Haley, who is 51, said the heart of the problem is loyalty to the old guard which is keeping people in place who are too old to continue, and who often face health concerns that undermine their ability to carry out their jobs effectively. “We’ve got to stop electing people because we like them and they’ve been there a long time. That’s actually the problem,” she said.
The former South Carolina Governor added, “We need new generational leaders. We appreciate your service. We appreciate what you’ve done. But this is why we will fight for term limits.”
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