(ConservativeSense.com) – New research suggests lawmakers over the age of 70 are a security risk to the country due to their risk of developing dementia as they continue to age.
It’s become a national conversation over the last few years, especially considering that President Joe Biden is now the oldest president in American history at 80 years old.
A study by Rand Corp. shows that people who currently hold or once “held a security clearance” and were responsible for handling “classified material” may become a national security risk “if they develop dementia,” which could cause them to “unwittingly share government secrets.”
The study set out to propose “a framework to assess the risk” of dementia “to global and national security.” The researchers also noted a particular risk for the intelligence and national security communities because they tend to hire veterans, and veterans tend to have an increased risk of developing conditions like dementia due to higher rates of brain injury from warfare.
With Biden’s continuous “gaffes” and falls, the general public grows more and more concerned about his ability to remain in office, let alone to serve a second term if he wins in 2024. His rival, former President Donald Trump, has also criticized Biden’s slip-ups and questioned his mental capabilities. When he was president, Trump took a cognitive ability test himself, which he did well on.
Polls also show that a majority of Americans, Democrats and Republicans, believe Biden is too old to be commander-in-chief.
The study said that new challenges related to “cognitive impairment in the workplace” have to be addressed in a modern society where “people live longer and retire later,” and that the limited amount of such research suggests “an emergency security blind spot.”
The researchers believe it’s “important” to conduct more studies of the risks and strategies to mitigate them, “considering the potential consequences of” a “security breach” caused by “cognitive impairment.”
Copyright 2023, ConservativeSense.com
