Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) slammed Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley on Sunday for calling for “competency test” for politicians older than 75.
“I think that’s absurd,” Sanders told CBS’ Face The Nation. “We are fighting racism, we’re fighting sexism, we’re fighting homophobia, I think we should also be fighting ageism.”
“Trust people, look at people and say, ‘You know, this person is competent, this person is not competent.’ There are a lot of 40-year-olds out there who ain’t particularly competent,” Sanders added.
Haley’s call for competency tests is seen as a shot at Joe Biden, 80, and former President Donald Trump, 76.
However Sanders, 81, argued that voters should look at where candidates stand on key issues instead of their age.
“Look at what they do, what they believe in,” Sanders said. “What are they fighting for? What does Donald Trump stand for? Do you believe in that? Well, I certainly don’t. What does Joe Biden stand for? What is he doing? Look at him in that way, not on age.”
“I think there’s a general consensus right now that President Biden has done, not everything we would like, he has done a good job,” Sanders added. “And again, I can’t speak for anybody else. But what I have said is, if he runs, announces that he is going to run, I will support him.”
