Joe Biden will be thanking his lucky stars as he narrowly avoided yet another embarrassing gaffe while making his way down the Air Force One stairs.
The US President used the lower stairs of the jet in Michigan to meet with striking auto workers only to suffer a near miss.
The 80-year-old came close to adding another stumble to his collection, having taken a dramatic tumble at the Air Force Academy when encountering a sandbag.
Biden has also fallen while boarding Air Force One and tripped on various stair cases.
Joe Biden suffered a near miss
POOL
Polls show that an increasing number of American voters are growing more concerned about his age, with many doubting he has the cognitive ability to serve another term as president.
Biden’s team is said to be taking extra steps to prevent him from stumbling in public, according to Axios, suggesting they are concerned about what another trip could do for his already declining stature among the US public.
The 80-year-old is the oldest president in American history, and would be 86 upon completion of a second term should he successfully secure one.
He has been seen wearing sneakers and using shorter stairs on Air Force One as he bids to avoid embarrassment while stepping off the plane.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
The smaller stair case is about half the size of the usual stair case that is used to access the upper part of the plane.
The precautions were close to be thrown into question on Tuesday, as the president came close to another embarrassing fall.
Biden’s press secretary has defended her boss’ age, suggesting “80 is the new 40” while speaking to reporters earlier in the month.
“I get asked this question about once a week, I don’t know, I lose track”, she said.
Joe Biden is the oldest-ever President to hold officePA“This is a president, if you think about it - in 2019, he got the same criticism, in 2020, he got the same criticism, in 2022, he got the same criticism. And every time he beats the naysayers.”
“You look at his record, you look at how he's been able to bring both sides together, to get some really important things done. That matters,” she continued.
Jean-Pierre added that Biden garnered 80 million votes in 2020, noting he and Vice President Kamala Harris won more votes than “any other ticket in history”.
The second largest vote-getter in history is President Donald Trump, who is hot on the heels of his successor as he bids for a second term.
Trump appears to be the clear favourite for the Republican nomination, with other big name candidates such as Ron DeSantis failing to make any significant inroads in the latest polling.
The latest nationwide general election survey by Fox News has Trump leading Biden by two points, but swing state polls are better when it comes to predicting an eventual winner.
Asked why Biden’s age is seen as such an issue, she admitted to “getting” the concern.
“What we're going to continue to talk about is the record that this president has had, it's been a historic record,' Jean-Pierre said.
“You know, I can't speak to every American out there and their concerns,” she continued.
“What I can speak to is what this president has done, right? I can speak to his experience, I can speak to the wisdom that he has, I can speak to his record.”