Zsa Zsa's leg

He looks decent in his 60 minutes interview with Lesley Stahl (who looks and sounds amazing at 83 herself). Still sounds really sharp and does not look as blue and pasty as he has in recent years.

I would not. The poor thing seems like she can barely breathe. It almost seems cruel for people to breed dogs like that.

Newly-inaugurated US Senator Jim Justice of West Virginia, 73, has been rolling around the capitol in a motorized scooter. He has been severely overweight and often out of breath while speaking since he entered politics, but the chair is new. I recall Senator Paul questioning if Justice was the best candidate the Republicans could run given various "health issues" he was aware of. Not sure if he was just stating the obvious or knew of something more specific. It is definitely a possibility he does not last the entirety of his six year term.

My definition of "lifer" was staying in office until one dies, like Feinstein or Robert Byrd, while knowing they were far too ill to function in office. I remember reading a story where one of Byrd's staffers at a Democratic Caucus meeting tried to tell Harry Reid what Byrd thought about a bill. Reid, seeing through the bullshit as Byrd had lost his mind long before his death, said something along the lines of "that was great, but we all know Robert Byrd didn't say that." As far as I know, Sanders and Grassley have not had serious illnesses that would preclude them from doing their job. If Sanders were to retire at 89, he could reasonably live a few years on. I don't think he is determined to stay in office until he dies. I agree with your broader point though.

I remember Dianne Feinstein doing the same thing in advance of the 2024 campaign, which she obviously did not end up living long enough to see. Bernie was the last Senator in the 2024 cycle to make a decision to run for re-election. I'm pretty certain this is his last term, he's not a lifer. He'll retire in his 80s like his longterm colleague Pat Leahy.

Late addition to my shadow list. I did not even know she was ill until shortly before the new year. Her mother, Ann Richards, was the former Governor of Texas and died of cancer herself in 2006 at just 73.

I think his absence can be explained in the same way that Michelle Obama and Karen Pence's absences are. Trump made a post about his daughter facing a military tribunal ffs. Ex-presidents generally have an unspoken obligation to attend inaugurations when they are in good health. For first ladies and VPs, it's less strict.

Starmer-Smith

Clinton started to really look and sound rough in the last year. He was trembling a lot during his DNC speech and he generally seemed unwell. Nevertheless, he was still super active campaigning for Harris across the country. I think Clinton/Biden/Trump probably go around the same time in about 10 years or so

Just saw a clip of Jane Goodall accepting the presidential medal of freedom the other day. She looks excellent and is turning 91 this year. I'd feel comfortable saying she probably (and hopefully) has at least a few years left.

One of the best Trump posts of all time. Their falling out is going to be amazing.

Jan 23

Harvey Weinstein

I mean, he is 94. It seems to be a more active flu season than average in the US so I don't blame people his age for staying home at this time. However, It does seem that he has slowed down in the last year or so. I don't even think I've seen new pictures of him since the ones his son posted in 2023.

Representative Virginia Foxx, 81-year-old Republican of North Carolina, reportedly takes a nasty fall on capitol hill, resulting in "lots of blood"