That's a good one

August 22, 2001

"Thomas Jefferson once said, 'We should never judge a president by his age, only by his works.' And ever since he told me that, I stopped worrying."

Ronald Reagan, 40th President, 1981-1989

Remarks at a White House Briefing for the National Alliance of Senior Citizens February 29, 1984 You know, I've been around awhile myself. [Laughter] One of my favorite quotations about age comes from Thomas Jefferson. He said that we should never judge a President by his age, only by his work. And ever since he told me that -- I've stopped worrying. And just to show you how youthful I am, I intend to campaign in all 13 States. [Laughter] But in our society, senior citizens play a vital role. Senior citizens provide invaluable skill, talent, and wisdom that can come only with years. I always remember that Winston Churchill was almost 65 when World War II broke out, but he carried England through all those bitter years and on to victory. And I think, if I remember correctly, that Adenauer, when he was bringing about economic recovery in West Germany after the war, was 80 or better. Reagan was the oldest U.S. President and frequently made jokes and references about his age, most times turning a challenging question to his advantage. Thanks to video technology and utube, we still have a large amount of material still available.