For years, the media brushed off the obvious signals of Joe Biden’s physical and mental decline, and scolded anyone who dared raise the issue as “ageist.” Then, a fantastic thing unfolded during last year’s presidential race. After Kamala Harris stepped in to replace him, the tone shifted instantly. The guardrails vanished. Suddenly, questioning Trump’s stamina and highlighting his age was fair game, and the same people who spent years defending Biden treated those attacks as completely acceptable.
That same playbook continues into Trump’s second term, as there’s a concerted effort to turn Trump into the next Joe Biden. The difference is that the facts won't cooperate this time, and even the media can't ignore the obvious contrast between the two men.
For years, the press insisted Biden was sharp and energetic, dismissing what Americans could plainly see with their own eyes. That charade finally collapsed during his disastrous June 2024 debate performance, forcing the media to admit what had been obvious all along — at least in conservative media.
I get why the left is furious about Joe Biden. They blame him for Kamala Harris’s failed campaign, and insist that if he’d bowed out earlier or skipped a second-term bid, the outcome would look very different. Now they’re convinced they can turn the age issue into a weapon against Trump and squeeze some political advantage out of it. The New York Times published a hit piece arguing that Trump's second-term schedule is lighter and starts later in the day, suggesting that he is experiencing age-related fatigue.
The problem with this strategy is that Trump remains constantly available to the press, and frequently engages with reporters in ways Biden never did. Even MS NOW host Katy Tur, obviously no fan of the president, felt compelled to push back against the Times' characterization during an appearance on The Daily Beast Podcast. "I think — not to get on the bandwagon and to push back a little bit — he is doing much more than, certainly Joe Biden did," Tur said. She added that Trump "is out there in a way that past presidents haven't even been out there. He does give access. He's constantly on television.”
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Tur acknowledged that Trump "might be slowing down for him, and slowing down because he's getting up there in age," but she emphasized that "he is still very much mobile.”
Her conclusion was clear: Trump "is very much still engaged.” The fact that Tur felt compelled to defend how much Trump accomplishes in a single day shows just how badly this new anti-Trump narrative is going to fail.
The contrast with Biden couldn't be starker. Biden's team was constantly calling early lids and shipping him off to Delaware for days at a time to recover. Tur herself recounted attending a Christmas party during the Biden years, where the former president addressed journalists around eight o'clock at night. "You could not understand a word he was saying," she said flatly. "It's different.”
MS Now’s Katy Tur concedes: President Trump is “doing much more than Joe Biden did. He is out there in a way that past Presidents haven’t been out there. He does give access, he’s constantly on television.” pic.twitter.com/iQMqEErzMi
— TV News Now (@TVNewsNow) November 28, 2025
Trump may have surpassed Biden's record as the oldest elected president, but his energy level and accessibility are in a whole other league compared to Biden, and his critics in the media can’t deny it.
It was obvious from the beginning that the media’s attempt to portray Trump as the next Biden would fail. Voters notice the difference. Even his harshest critics acknowledge that the president demonstrates real stamina and maintains a full schedule, which undermines the story before it gains momentum. The public sees what is right in front of them, and no spin from the New York Times can change that reality.
