Nancy Pelosi's About-Face

Experience is an advantage, until it's a condition

For some time, whenever she’s been asked about Joe Biden’s age, former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has been giving a version of the same answer. Invariably she notes Biden is “younger than I am,” says age is a “relative thing” (is it?), and invokes Biden’s wisdom, empathy, and judgment, often dismounting to “experience is an advantage.” Sometimes she counter-accuses Donald Trump of having dementia himself. At times, as with Anderson Cooper early this year, she engages on the issue at length, but she’s also snapped at a reporter for bothering her with “this frivolity.”

Today, in an interview with MSNBC, Pelosi gave the same answer, but with a new ending: “Now, again, I think it’s a legitimate question to say: is this an episode, or a condition?”

If Joe Biden is replaced atop the ticket, and comments like Pelosi’s (along with numerous other developments seemingly happening by the minute ) suggest the door to that is now open, every Democratic politician of profile is going to have a similar reel to explain. What a zoo this campaign season is becoming.