President Joe Biden reflected on his age at a Hanukkah menorah lighting ceremony at the White House on Wednesday.
Biden recalled speaking to some younger people on his staff before the event about his many trips to Israel.
“All of a sudden, I realize, ‘God you’re getting old, Biden,” he said, recalling that he had known every Israeli prime minister “well” since Golda Meir.
Biden celebrated his 79th birthday on Saturday, as the oldest person to occupy the White House.
Biden was introduced at the event by Vice President Kamala Harris, who spoke of Biden in glowing terms.
“To our great, phenomenal president Joe Biden, to our phenomenal first lady Jill Biden, thank you for welcoming all of us and what you do every day,” she said.
Harris’s husband, Doug Emhoff, is Jewish and was invited to speak at the event and light the menorah.
Other prominent figures at the event included Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Attorney General Merrick Garland, and Department of Homeland Security Sec. Alejandro Mayorkas.
Harris described the Hanukkah story as a lesson on “the power of the people” and the “possibility of the future.”
“Even in despair there is hope, even in darkness there is light,” she said.
The vice president described Biden as a “man of deep faith” who is “guided by the light always” before the two embraced prior to Biden’s remarks.
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