US Vice-Presidential debate 2020: Harris, Pence dodge question about Biden and Trump’s age

As the US vice presidential debate opened on October 8, both, Republican nominee Mike Pence and Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, ignored questions about the age of their running mates and whether they’d discuss safeguards should President Donald Trump or Joe Biden’s health decline. Moderator Susan Page noted that Trump is 74 and Biden will be 78 come  Inauguration Day and that both would be the oldest president to be sworn in next year. 

While referring to Trump’s bout with coronavirus, Page said, "That already has raised concerns among some voters, concerns that have been sharpened by President Trump’s hospitalisation in recent days”. 

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As the question went on to Pence, he ignored the remarks on Trump’s age and his role as US Vice President. Instead, he went back to the vaccine comments made by Harris. Pence said he wanted ‘to go back’ to a previous comment from Harris in which she said she would question the safety of a coronavirus vaccine if Trump were the one couching for it. 

Pence said, “Stop playing with people’s lives”. He then went on to criticise the Obama administration’s handling of the swine flue outbreak in 2009, pointing to comments from Biden aide Ronald Klain that America was fortunate not to see more deaths. 

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Harris dodges question on age of Biden 

The moderator then asked the same question to the Democratic nominee, asking if she and Biden have had a conversation or reached an agreement about safeguards or procedures when it comes to ‘presidential disability’. The US Senator then recounted the day Biden asked her to be his running mate and toured her experience as a former district attorney and as the second Black woman elected to the Senate. 

Harris said, “Joe and I were raised in a very similar way”, she added, “We were raised with values that are about hard work, about the value and the dignity of public service and about the importance of fighting for the dignity for all people”. 

Both the leaders ignored the question about the age of their running mates event though it has become even more of a focus with Trump contracting COVID-19. The US President was hospitalised and required supplemental oxygen over the weekend. At the age of 74, the president is at higher risk for serious complications from the disease. Trump campaign, on the other hand, has openly attempted to sow doubt about Biden’s mental fitness, questioning if he is physically or mentally sharp enough to take on the rigours of the job. 

(Image: AP) 

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