Vivek Ramaswamy said he doesn’t think there should be mental competency tests for lawmakers despite the recent slew of health issues with members of Congress.

The 2024 hopeful told DailyMail.com Monday that he thinks it’s up to the voters to decide who governs them.

But Ramaswamy has suggested he would support term limits in Congress, which could solve the health-related issue many lawmakers and politicians are running into when they reach their mid to late 70s.

Most recently Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, 81, froze for 30 seconds last week during a press conference in Kentucky. It was an eerily similar incident to a month prior where he stopped moving and speaking while speaking to reporters at the Capitol.

McConnell’s office and the Capitol Physician say the events were connected to lightheadedness from a concussion he suffered in March after falling at the Waldorf Astoria in Washington, D.C.

Former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, who is also running in the 2024 Republican primary, said Sunday that there needs to be mental competency tests for everyone running for Congress – incumbent and newcomer alike.

‘I tend to leave it to the voters,’ Ramaswamy said when asked how he feels about this proposal. ‘So I think that we should trust the voters of this country when it comes to deciding who actually governs.’

‘I don’t favor eliminating people for running for office because I’d rather trust the voters with it,’ he told DailyMail.com.

‘It goes for age as well,’ he added. ‘I’ve been very consistent on that.’

At the age of 38, Ramaswamy is by far the youngest candidate in the 2024 race. He’s followed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, 44.

While he has not gone publicly on record to speak about term limits for Congress, Ramaswamy, who said Monday he wants to cut the federal workforce by 75 percent, thinks there should be eight-year term limits for unelected federal bureaucrats.

This, he said, would be similar to term limits in Congress.

Ramaswamy has identified multiple agencies he wants to abolish completely, including the FBI and Department of Education. 

Ramaswamy was one of five candidates who spoke at the Salem GOP Labor Day picnic in New Hampshire on Monday.

He spoke on the same stage Monday afternoon was in order: Former Vice President Mike Pence; former Texas Rep. Will Hurd; former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson; and former Cranston, Rhode Island Mayor Steve Laffey.

Pence was met with a lone protester sitting front-and-center waving a t-shirt with Donald Trump’s mugshot with the message: ‘Never Surrender.’

Trump’s first mugshot was released last month when he turned himself over to authorities in Fulton County, Georgia after his fourth and latest indictment in the scheme to overturn the 2020 election results.

The mugshot was immediately embraced by his supporters – as evident by it’s use on the t-shirt to protest Pence on Monday.

By far the fan-favorite at the Salem GOP Labor Day Picnic was Ramaswamy, who made a splash at the first Republican debate in Milwaukee, Wisconsin last month. Pence was also one of the eight candidates on that stage, which was noticeably absent of Trump.

Pence has faced hecklers and protesters several times in the past, specifically those die-hard Trump supporters who think the former vice president is a traitor for refusing to block Congress from certifying the 2020 presidential election results.

The ex-VP has stood by his actions that day, claiming that he took a vow to uphold the Constitution – and did so by overseeing certification of the Electoral College votes on January 6, 2021.

Despite holding arguably one of the highest name recognitions of the other about a dozen candidates below Trump, Pence is struggling to gain ground in polls and has remained in the middle of the pack.

By Ted Thornhill, Mailonline Travel Editor

Published: 07:18 EDT, 10 August 2023 | Updated: 08:23 EDT, 10 August 2023

Big brand and expensive sunscreens may not offer the protection against skin damage they profess to on the label, it is claimed.

The alarming findings come from safety experts at Which?, who found a number of cheaper supermarket alternatives offer strong protection.

The consumer champion said that one Avon product ‘did not come close’ to hitting its claimed SPF30 protection in tests.

Most suncreams carry an SPF – Sun Protection Factor – and a UVA rating which are measures of protection against the rays associated with skin damage and cancer.

People rely on the information to guide them on how long they can safely stay out in the sun during heatwaves.

Which? tested 19 popular suncreams, with one being identified as a ‘don’t buy’ because it failed safety protection tests.

It said Avon’s Refreshing 3-in-1 Face and Body Sun Lotion SPF30 (£5.75/150ml) ‘did not come close to hitting its claimed SPF30 in tests’.

Which? said: ‘Consumers are advised to avoid this product. By not living up to its SPF claims, it does not offer adequate sun protection, meaning people using them could unwittingly put themselves at risk.

‘With parts of Britain in the grip of a heatwave, it is vital people protect themselves from harmful UVA and UVB rays that could lead to skin damage and cause skin cancer.’ 

The group said products with good protection do not have to break the bank.

For example, several of Asda’s products passed sun protection tests and earned a Which? Great Value badge for their low prices.

These included Asda Protect Moisturising Sun Lotion SPF30 at just £3 for 200ml. Testers said it was absorbed easily without being greasy or sticky and did not leave white marks on skin.

Among slightly more expensive spray products, testers found Asda’s Protect Refreshing Clear Sun Spray at £4 for 200ml was easy to apply, not tacky to touch and did not leave any visible residue. Most importantly, it gave the required SPF and UVA protection in lab tests.

The Asda products outshone premium Ultrasun Family SPF30, which was over seven times more expensive at £26 for 150ml. Both were highly effective against UV, however Ultrasun was not as easily absorbed.

Boots also fared well in the testing and earned a Which? Great Value badge for its low price. Its Soltan Protect & Moisturise Lotion (SPF30) at £4 for 200ml delivered all the protection required.

In the children’s category at products with an SPF of 50+, first place went to Asda’s Kids Sun Lotion Spray, at £3.60 for 200ml.

Another another great value option was Boots Soltan Kids Protect & Moisturise Lotion, at £4 for 200ml.

The Which? Head of Home Products and Services, Natalie Hitchens, said: ‘It is great to see cheaper sunscreen options available on the high street and in supermarkets at a time where consumers need affordable options.

‘However, it’s a concern to find a big brand product on the market that has failed our testing and did not offer the level of protection claimed on the packaging.

‘Our advice is to stick to a tried and tested suncream. Do not be fooled into thinking that paying a higher price will definitely mean a better or safer product as our testing proved a supermarket own brand product can do the job well.

‘We’ve found plenty of highly effective, cheap sunscreens available on the high street, so there’s no need to splash out to keep you and your loved ones safe in the sun.’

Avon said it stands behind its product, but promised an investigation. It said: ‘The safety of our customers is our priority and that’s why our expert skincare team produces the most effective sun care formulas.

‘Upon hearing from Which? Avon has engaged its quality and research and development teams to investigate the specific batch of product that Which? tested.

‘Avon stands behind its data and that of the independent labs which conduct our testing.’

It does not get any more emphatic than this. There can have been few more one-sided games in the long history of Test cricket. England have simply destroyed Ireland.

Such has been England’s brutal superiority at Lord’s that the benefits of this whole futile exercise for the much more important business to come can only be negligible.

Certainly, this one-off game will bear no relation to what faces England when they come up against an Australia side with much more thorough preparation for the Ashes in the form of next week’s World Test Championship final against India under their belts.

But England can hardly be blamed for that, nor for the pitifully weak state of an Ireland team who left their best bowler in Josh Little out of this Test and instead fielded an attack barely up to county standard.

In the absence of meaningful opposition England did what this England team have done for the last year, blitzed the opposition with both ball and bat over the first two days to leave themselves in sight today of their 11th win in 13 matches under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum. And by some distance the easiest and most predictable of them.

Yet instead of dwelling on Ireland’s inadequacy let’s celebrate the fastest double hundred by anyone in a Test in England from Ollie Pope. 

Plus an equally swashbuckling century from Ben Duckett in his first Test innings on home soil.

Then there was the single just before tea that took Joe Root to 11,000 runs in Test cricket, only the second Englishman to do so, with just Sir Alastair Cook ahead of him.

And, finally, before Ireland closed on 97 for three, a mere 255 behind, there were two wickets in his first over in the Ireland second innings and three in all, his first victims in Test cricket, for a bowler in Josh Tongue making a huge impression on debut here.

Nothing summed up this mauling more than the rare feat of both Pope and Duckett scoring more than a hundred runs in a single session.

Duckett cruised along with ease to that landmark in the morning and the new vice-captain did the same in the afternoon, as Ireland wilted in the face of an assault they could do absolutely nothing to withstand.

Only when Ireland managed to get an out of shape ball changed, with England on the small matter of 353 for one off just 59 overs, did they manage to even get past England’s broad bats, the replacement starting to swing and Duckett falling for 182 off 178 balls.

This was the best contribution yet for an opener in Duckett for so long appeared lost to the highest level because of his off-field indiscipline but who has matured and flourished like few others under the uber-positive Stokes and McCullum regime.

When Duckett was bowled by Graham Hume Pope simply carried on, racing along to his fourth Test century and his third since he rang Stokes ahead of last summer and asked to bat in the problem No3 position that has now brought the very best out of him.

There was the possibility of an England declaration with Pope unbeaten on 197 at tea but Stokes rightly let him reach the magical milestone of a Test double century at Lord’s, Pope advancing to smash Andy McBrine for six to get there before falling off the next ball.

That was the key for Stokes to withdraw in search of the two-day finish he quietly targeted ahead of this Test, with England on a monumental 524 for four off just 82.4 overs, racing along at more than six an over and never really seeming to get out of second gear.

The biggest minus for England is that Stokes and Jonny Bairstow did not get a bat and Harry Brook faced just seven balls, meaning all three will go into the Ashes with little red-ball practice behind them. 

But there was then another big plus in the form of Tongue.

What another excellent decision the selection of Tongue here ahead of Chris Woakes has been and what another brilliant piece of captaincy there was from Stokes when he brought the debutant on for just the seventh over of the Ireland second innings.

Clearly the captain wanted Tongue to feel he belonged and he did so by trapping Peter Moor plumb with his first ball and then forcing Andy Balbirnie to edge a cut through to a tumbling Bairstow, again keeping well on his return to the side.

Tongue was the bowler when James McCollum tried to take evasive action and managed to badly twist his ankle when falling in a heap, forcing him to retire hurt.

But it was Tongue, putting himself very much in the Ashes frame, who struck again when Paul Stirling gloved one down the legside to Bairstow and departed after a review.

It should not take long for England to wrap things up on Saturday – and then all thoughts really will turn to what will surely be a much more competitive contest.

‘London’s fastest airport security’: Travel expert tests ‘fancy’ new scanners at City Airport that don’t require passengers to remove laptops and liquids from bags

By Ailbhe Macmahon For Mailonline

Updated: 13:08 EDT, 25 May 2023