Democratic candidates down to five. The Magnificent Five? Not really.

We're getting there gradually. One more Democratic candidate has dropped out. Pete Buttigieg, trying to do a white Obama and looking pretty good especially after Iowa where it seemed possible a huge upset could be about to hit the Democratic race to the White House. But it wasn't to be. Perhaps no real surprise. So now the voters are left with two women and three old men. I say "old" with respect. Bernie, Joe and Bloomberg are all well over 70 and closer to 80. Roughly the same in age, 76/77. That doesn't mean they shouldn't be president of the United States but if one of them wins in November and then goes on to serve two terms in office, he will complete his presidency at the age of 86. You've only got to look at past presidents to see that a President Sanders or Biden or Bloomberg would be way much older after two terms of four years than any other American president. For example, Eisenhower was 70 at the end of his presidency, Reagan was 77, George HW Bush, 68, Bill Clinton, 54, George W Bush, 62, and Obama, 55. Whereas President Warren, after eight years, would be 79, and President Klobuchar, 68. Age is not everything, young or old, but it's something to think about. Of course Trump is pretty old, too. If he wins a second term he will be 78 by the time he leaves office. It's difficult to think of the five remaining Democratic candidates as The Magnificent Five (with due respect to the greatest film ever released, The Magnificent Seven, the original one starring Yul Brynner and Steve McQueen). There's not a lot that's hugely magnificent about any of them but five is a lot easier to handle than the 23 or so who started out in the race. Much will depend now on who they have in mind for their vice presidential running mate. It could make all the difference. What is for sure is that they will all have learned the McCain lesson. You will recall that Senator John McCain, the exceptional and much-missed former Republican presidential candidate in 2008 selected out of a list of at least 20 people the Alaska governor Sarah Palin. It was a bold and inspiring and disastrous decision on his part. No one, and I mean no one, felt they could risk having that charming lady just a heartbeat away from becoming president. It pretty well kiboshed McCain's chances of winning the presidential election and the voters turned instead to one Barak Obama who selected dear old Joe Biden to be his running mate. So there'll be no Sarah Palins on the ticket this time round. But perhaps Pete Buttigieg or Senator Kamala Harris or George Clooney (just joking althougb he does love his politics)?