Trump's Attacks On Biden's Age Come Full Circle Amid Campaign Trail Absences

For years, Donald Trump has attacked Joe Biden for either being too old or lacking the stamina to be president.  But now it's Trump's age that has become a major talking point ever since President Biden dropped out of the presidential race. In fact, Trump is now the oldest person to ever run for president. His upcoming campaign schedule is in stark comparison to Vice-President Kamala Harris', which isn't doing much to help counter the criticism that his age and ability should be a serious consideration in the election. It's actually making things worse.

Low energy, @realdonaldtrump? pic.twitter.com/r7jw6zSeHh

— Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) August 5, 2024

Harris's campaign shared a clip from "Good Morning America" on X, formerly known as Twitter, in which journalist Selina Wang pointed out that Trump wasn't doing any campaigning in any battleground states this week. The campaign also shared a post comparing Harris' schedule to Trump's for early August. Trump is going to Montana, a solidly red state, while Harris is criss-crossing the country and visiting six states in five days, including Arizona, Nevada, and Michigan, which are all swing states. Senator J.D. Vance, Trump's somewhat left field VP pick, will be going to more states than Trump in the same time period, visiting many of the same locations as VP Harris. 

People on social media have taken that schedule difference between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump and used it as an example of how one of Trump's classic insults — "low energy" — now applies to him. One person wrote on X, "So Trump has managed all of One event for this whole week and he's sending his boy out to follow Harris around because he apparently doesn't have the energy to keep up with Harris!" Another person said, "The laziness of Trump's schedule is one of the most undercovered stories this year."

Others have compared Harris' visit to Atlanta with Trump's visit to the same venue just a few days later — Trump certainly seemed to have some empty seats while Harris did not. During his first two presidential campaigns, Trump used the phrase "low energy" to goad his opponents. He used it with Joe Biden in 2020. He used it on Jeb Bush in 2016. He also used a variation on the same theme, referring to Biden as "Sleepy Joe," in 2024. Now, that line of attack is coming back to bite Trump.

While we haven't yet heard Trump clap back about this particular rumor about his energy levels and campaign schedule, the "Trump War Room" account on X has commented. In response to NBC News reporter Jake Traylor's post about the schedule difference (and with a personal insult against Traylor), they wrote, "Fake news, bass mouth. President Trump's schedule this week is filled with events, rallies, media interviews, and fundraisers."