Bill Clinton didn’t hold back during his speech at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday, August 21, when he took a swipe at Donald Trump’s age while endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz’s leadership. The former president, who celebrated his 78th birthday just two days prior, humorously remarked, “The only personal vanity that I want to assert is that I’m still younger than Donald Trump.”
Clinton’s comment drew laughter from the crowd, highlighting the ongoing discussion around age in the 2024 presidential race. Trump, born on June 14, 1946, is also 78 years old but holds a slight edge over Clinton in age, a fact that the former president playfully used to his advantage.
Beyond the quip, Clinton delivered a pointed critique of Trump’s presidency, contrasting it with the Democratic ticket’s vision for America. He referred to Trump’s infamous obsession with crowd sizes, a theme echoed by former President Barack Obama earlier in the convention. “Do you want to build a strong economy from the bottom, up, and the middle, out — or do you want to spend the next four years talking about crowd size?” Clinton asked the audience, reinforcing the Democrats’ focus on policies over personality.
Clinton’s speech also zeroed in on what he described as Trump’s self-centered leadership style, urging voters to pay attention to Trump’s language. “The next time you hear him, don’t count the lies. Count the I’s — his vendettas, his vengeance, his complaints, his conspiracies … he’s like a tenor trying to get his lungs open by singing, ‘me, me, me, me, me,’” Clinton said, drawing a clear distinction between Trump and Harris. “When Kamala Harris is president, every day will begin with you, you, you, you, you.”
As the 2024 election looms, Clinton’s speech serves as a rallying cry for Democrats, framing the choice as one between a leader focused on collective progress and a former president still consumed by personal grievances.
