No Congress for Old Men - Poster of the Week
No Congress for Old Men
Fighting Words Designs
Digital, 2019
New York, NY
Pictured L to R: Senator Lindsey Graham (71), R, South Carolina; Senator Mitch McConnell (84), R, Kentucky; Senator Chuck Grassley (92), R, Iowa
Last week, while the country awaited news on whether 84-year-old Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell was still alive, 71-year-old South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham died of a sudden illness. Graham and McConnell have been two of the most vocally vile and demonstrably destructive U.S. lawmakers in recent memory.
Graham’s political legacy is one of warmongering and detestable principles. He supported the National Security Agency surveilling foreign nationals and U.S. citizens. He called birthright citizenship “a mistake.” He opposed the Affordable Care Act and spent much of his tenure trying to get the ACA amended, including a proposed amendment that would have given states permission to remove protections for people with preexisting conditions. He advocated for constant U.S. presence in Afghanistan and Iran, and was instrumental in convincing President Trump to start the current U.S. war on Iran. In October 2023, he said that Gaza should be “flattened” and that “no limit” of Palestinian civilian deaths would make him question Israel’s actions. Despite being one of Trump’s biggest critiques a decade ago, last month Graham stated Trump was “not far behind God.”
McConnell–who has confirmed he is still alive and planning to serve out the rest of his term–has been one of the most powerful leaders of the Republican party for decades. He led opposition to the Affordable Care Act, and has opposed regulations to gun ownership, efforts to mitigate climate change, and the right to marriage equality. He transformed the Senate into a chamber of immobile hyperpartisanship by uniting Republicans in opposition to any Democrat-led piece of legislation.
Graham and McConnell are not only representative of the anti-democratic politicians that dominate modern conservatism, but also of the geriatric leaning of U.S. leadership. Twenty-four members of Congress are 80 or older, and more than half have run for reelection this year. Nearly two-thirds of U.S. Senators are past retirement age, and only 15% of the House of Representatives are Millennials, despite Millennials currently being the largest adult generation in the U.S. The past two presidents (Trump and Joe Biden) have been the oldest in U.S. history and the subject of intense speculation about their physical and mental agility.
This is not to say that elders cannot lead or have nothing to offer. Elders are severely undervalued and abandoned in American society. But having the majority of our lawmakers work until they die is not indicative of a healthy society and a representative government. The risks that come with advanced age have to be taken seriously when aging politicians make decisions for the most powerful country in the world that have lasting consequences for multiple generations. Recent examples include: Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg dying in office, Presidents Biden and Trump showing signs of cognitive decline, and policymakers being completely out of touch on emerging issues like the unregulated frontiers of social media, AI, and surveillance companies.
Respect our elders and the generations who must live with their policy decisions:
Term Limits Now!
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