TOI correspondent from Washington: Mystery continues to surround the health condition of powerful US Senator Mitch McConnell, whose prolonged absence from the Senate following hospitalization has once again revived an old Washington joke: The United States Senate is less an elite retirement community than a legislative chamber that can still move the world. While political traitors like Laura Loomer are declaring the 84-year-old McConnell “brain dead” even before he is loaded onto an ambulance stretcher for another round of hospitalizations this week, his current condition has prompted another round of national soul-searching over a unique feature of American democracy: The world’s most powerful legislature is also one of its oldest. The average age of US senators in the current Congress is 64 years. More than half of senators are over the age of 65, with a quarter over the age of 75. The average age of Congress as a whole (Senate+House) is approximately 59 years, the highest in modern history. In most workplaces, 65 is the retirement age; In the Senate, it’s practically an internship. Still in the room is Iowa Republican Chuck Grassley, who at 92 is old enough to remember World War II. Socialist Bernie Sanders is 84, Illinois Democrat Dick Durbin is 81, Idaho Republican Jim Risch is 81, and Maine independent Angus King is 82. The Senate had long been ruled by people who treated their offices like hereditary estates. Strom Thurmond, who ran for president on the pro-segregation Dixiecrat ticket in 1948, served until the age of 100 in the 1990s; Robert Byrd remained in office until his death at the age of 92, and Jesse Helms retired at the age of 80 after three decades in the chamber. Ted Kennedy was 77 when he died after serving in the Senate for half a century. Washington folklore states that senators typically achieve a position of political permanence and eventually become part of the establishment. The incident extends beyond the Senate. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is 86 years old and one of the most influential figures in the Democratic Party. President Trump himself is now 80 and upon returning to the White House, becomes the oldest person to be sworn in as US President. President Biden left office at the age of 83 after facing persistent questions about age and stamina. Then there is the Supreme Court, whose members enjoy lifetime tenure and hence have every incentive to think geopolitically rather than at election time. Justice Clarence Thomas is 78, Justice Samuel Alito is 76, while Sonia Sotomayor is 72. Chief Justice John Roberts is 71 years young. The average age of the current court is in the late 60s. However, unlike senators, judges neither face reelection nor do voters periodically wonder whether they can still climb the stairs before hearing arguments. In comparison, the average age of Supreme Court judges in India is around 60 years, as they are generally appointed around 60 and are required to retire at the age of 65 as per Article 124 of the Constitution.Collectively, America’s governing institutions are becoming more and more like a family reunion where everyone remembers where they were when Kennedy was assassinated. For a country that celebrates youth in almost every other area, America appears comfortable handing immense political power to leaders who qualify for senior discounts and assisted living. The contrast with much of Europe is hard to ignore. French President Emmanuel Macron is 48, incoming British Prime Minister Andy Burnham is 56, and Italy’s Giorgia Meloni is 49. Finnish leaders in recent years have included prime ministers in their 30s, and Iceland and the Netherlands currently have leaders under 40. Elderly politicians have their share in European politics, but the upper reaches of government generally look more like a board meeting than a World War II veterans reunion. Political scientists say there are structural reasons for America’s gerontocracy. Seniority is valued in Congress because it translates into committee chairmanships, ability to raise funds, institutional memory, and influence. Incumbents also enjoy huge electoral advantages, making it difficult for younger challengers to make headway. Many lawmakers argue that experience is an asset. McConnell himself spent decades mastering Senate procedure with the precision of a constitutional watchdog, Grassley remained a tireless observer of government agencies, and Byrd was revered as a walking encyclopedia of Senate rules.But the recurring health concerns of aging MPs have also raised uncomfortable questions. When elected officials become ill or disappear from the public eye, constituents inevitably ask whether their representatives can still discharge the important responsibilities of the office. McConnell’s current absence has brought those questions back into sharp focus. The Senate likes to call itself “the world’s largest deliberative body.” Critics have another description in mind: the world’s most consequential assisted-living facility, where experience is abundant, knowledge is often abundant, and retirement is a bipartisan idea that never dies.