Welcome back to our weekly recap of the latest news related to the 2024 US presidential election. This week, we’re diving into what seems to be Joe Biden’s new secret weapon: a 26-year-old North Carolinian shaking up the political scene. Next, we’ll be zooming in on the current President’s recent warning to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu following a deadly strike on World Central Kitchen aid workers. And finally, we’ll wrap things up with a new petition that’s been making the rounds, which urges medical professionals to diagnose Donald Trump with dementia.

Now, stepping into the spotlight is Anderson Clayton, a powerhouse leading the Democratic charge in this pivotal battleground with Gen Z enthusiasm in high demand. Clayton’s passion and drive are sparking a whole new wave of political fervour.

The youngest state chair in the country, Clayton may just hold the key for the Biden-Harris campaign as they grapple with rallying enthusiasm among the 41 million Gen Z voters eligible to cast their ballots in 2024. With Democrats rolling out surrogates for the president, our journey took us to North Carolina to gauge the pulse of young voters amid what is deemed the oldest presidential election in history.

“We need to wake people the f*ck up this year,” Clayton told the Independent.

While the rest of the country may not fully grasp the significance, this 26-year-old is currently at the helm of the Democratic Party in North Carolina—a weighty responsibility, regardless of age. Yet, for attendees at the Young Democrats of North Carolina Convention, she represents not just the present but also the future of the party.

Clayton’s energy sets her apart—she effortlessly cracks jokes, throws in a curse word or two, and even has her own “rizz” terminology when it comes to rallying the troops. If politics doesn’t work out, maybe Tom Holland should consider taking a few classes from her because a charisma coach might be in her cards.

Clayton has a strategy to turn North Carolina blue, a state where Biden narrowly lost to Trump in 2020. Her plan involves leveraging the influence of colleges and universities across North Carolina and ensuring a presence even in the most conservative rural areas of the state.

Personally committed to visiting all 100 counties by the end of the year, Clayton emphasises a key statistic repeatedly: in 2022, Democrats lost 44 state legislative seats to Republicans without fielding a candidate. She adamantly declares that history will not repeat itself.

“I was just in Brunswick County—which is one of the reddest counties in the state that we got—and a guy named Charles Jones, who’s a Black union member, looked at me and said, ‘I’m running for office because I heard you on the radio’,” Clayton recounts in an interview. “‘We’re not taking it anymore’ is a battle cry.”

You see, Clayton’s vibrant enthusiasm is precisely what makes her an impeccable ambassador for the Biden-Harris campaign. She excels in rallying young individuals to participate in the electoral process actively.

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Interestingly, ongoing discussions have surfaced regarding whether young voters will turn out for Democrats in November or if there’s been a shift in allegiance away from President Biden and the party that historically relies on their support as a crucial segment of its base.

Recent polling indicates that such a scenario is plausible, fueled by growing frustration over the prospect of a Biden-Trump rematch and the President’s stance on issues like Israel amid the ongoing war in Gaza.

Biden, however, delivered a strong message to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a lengthy phone call on Thursday, demanding an immediate ceasefire.

Biden effectively issued an ultimatum, cautioning that Israel must take decisive steps to safeguard civilians in Gaza or face potential repercussions, as the recent spate of killings increased.

However, despite these challenges, Clayton remains undeterred, rallying her fellow Democrats to focus on the issues that matter most.

During an exclusive interview with Daily Mail prior to Super Tuesday, the 26-year-old politician, delivered a fiery message, emphasising that this election isn’t about age but about critical issues like abortion rights, workers’ rights, and climate justice. She criticised the notion of ‘Bidenomics’ as ineffective in a state like North Carolina, where the minimum wage remains stagnant due to state legislature decisions.

Asserting her no-nonsense approach, Clayton declared that she was not here to play games but to “blue map the b*tch.”

Meanwhile, the political landscape takes a surreal turn as concerns mount over Donald Trump’s mental faculties. Leading psychiatrists warn of dementia, citing numerous cognitive lapses and gaffes during his recent campaign events. As the former president continues his bid for a second term, experts draw attention to his apparent cognitive decline and susceptibility to manipulation.

Dr. Dodes, a supervising analyst emeritus of the Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute, didn’t mince words when assessing Trump’s cognitive state, particularly noting his tendency to mix up Biden and Obama. He warned, “Unlike normal ageing, which might involve forgetting names or words, Trump repeatedly exhibits something very different: confusion about reality.”

Interestingly, this theory sparked considerable conversation, prompting another renowned psychologist, John Gartner, to initiate a viral petition urging medical professionals to diagnose Trump with dementia. According to the Mirror, Gartner remarked: “He appears strong, but pay no attention to that demented man behind the curtain.” This analogy underscores Trump’s cognitive frailty, implying he’s not merely unfit for the job but wholly incapable.

Montage of 32 clips from Trump’s two speeches yesterday where he mispronounced words, got confused, mixed up names, forgot names, and babbled insane nonsense. pic.twitter.com/SQeURo2zhd

— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) March 3, 2024

In response, Trump’s senior campaign advisor, Jason Miller, stated to Newsweek: “Joe Biden is clearly suffering from cognitive decline and couldn’t answer the first five questions of a cognitive test or any other test for that matter.” He added a challenge for Biden to take the test alongside Trump, who has “aced this test twice.”

Amid the swirl of political theatrics and cognitive calamities, one thing stands out like a neon sign in a blackout: Trump and Biden may both be showing signs of ageing, but while Biden’s occasional memory blips get a pass as part of the ageing process, Trump’s brain fumbles have us all wondering if he’s playing with a full deck. But fear not, in this chaotic arena, there might be a glimmer of hope in the form of Anderson Clayton, the 26-year-old dynamo from rural Roxboro, North Carolina.