Joe Biden will bump Ronald Reagan, who was just 78 years old when he left the White House in 1989, as the oldest U.S. president ever when he is sworn in on Wednesday.
Mr. Biden, whose doctor said at the end of 2019 that he was physically fit to serve as president, will be older on his first day in office than Mr. Reagan was on his last day. Mr. Biden, who turned 78 in November, will also replace President Trump as the oldest to assume the presidency.
He is still younger than many of the best positions in Washington. Working beyond the ordinary retirement age is one of the few points of dual agreement in the country’s capital.
Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California is the oldest member of the Senate at 87, while Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa is less than three months older than her. Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky is 78.
Republican Rep. Don Young of Alaska, the oldest person in the U.S. House and a member of Congress since the Nixon administration, is 87. The three top Democratic leaders of his chamber are not far behind: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California and South Carolina House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn is 80, while Maryland House leader Steny Hoyer is 81.