Rep. Maxine Waters declined to endorse age limits for elected officials during a Capitol Hill exchange Thursday, insisting voters — not arbitrary age thresholds — should decide who remains in office. The 87-year-old California Democrat was approached by TMZ producer Jacob Wasserman following a Working Families press conference and asked whether younger Americans have a point when they argue some leaders are simply too old to remain in power.
When Wasserman suggested voters should focus on what politicians actually accomplish rather than their age, Waters agreed
What can you document? What can you give them credit for?
What can you criticize them for? ” Waters said.
“If you do what it takes to evaluate, then you can decide. ”
“Performance and effectiveness,” she said.
The conversation then shifted toward President Donald Trump after Wasserman asked whether an 80-year-old commander in chief might be too old, referencing prior public concerns over former President Joe Biden’s age.
“The president of the United States is destroying our democracy,” Waters said.
“He’s made unkept promises. ”
Waters also accused Trump of trying to consolidate power.
“He is absolutely committed to empowering himself,” she said.
“I think some people are having buyer’s remorse, and we see it in the polls,” she said.
Waters declined to directly engage on Trump’s age and instead launched into criticism of the president’s leadership
“In the final analysis, it is the people who will finally determine that this president is dangerous and divisive. ”
Waters again rejected the premise. “People should be evaluated and thought of in terms of what they do,” she said.
He pressed further, asking whether even a hypothetical 100-year-old “fighter” should still be allowed to serve in office.
The exchange comes as age remains a growing issue in national politics, with questions about the age and health of elected officials frequently surfacing across both parties.
At 87, Waters is among the oldest serving members of Congress, though several lawmakers in both the House and Senate are well into their 70s and 80s, The New York Post reported.
Supporters of age restrictions argue that leadership turnover is necessary to reflect younger generations and modern political realities.
Opponents counter that experience, effectiveness, and voter choice matter more than numerical age, as Waters made clear exactly where she stands in that debate.
“What I see here at the detention center are people exercising their constitutional rights,” Waters said while standing in front of officers wearing riot gear, Fox News reported. “And, of course, they’re now trying to tear gas everybody. It’s in the air, but people are not moving.
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Thousands of protesters gathered outside City Hall Friday afternoon before many marched to the detention facility, where a group of agitators pushed a large construction dumpster and blocked the entrance to the building’s loading dock, according to police
The LAPD shared video of the unrest on social media and said officers deployed pepper balls and tear gas to disperse the crowd.
