A story on Politico analyzes how John McCain’s age could become an issue in the general election by looking at how age affected two other campaigns: Ronald Reagan’s 1984 reelection and Bob Dole’s 1996 run against Bill Clinton.

The age issue wasn’t a big deal for Reagan - he won reelection by a landslide - because campaign aides strategically showed that the 73-year-old was still fit for the job, said Reagan’s 1984 campaign chief, Ed Rollins:

“We showed him as very active — lifting weights, swimming, riding his horse and chopping wood,” Rollins said, recalling a Parade magazine cover story in early 1984 that detailed the president’s workout regimen.

And as he did with many troublesome questions, Reagan used his own wit and impeccable timing to defuse the age issue. He invited the topic — and then promptly disposed of it by showing just how sharp he still was.

On the other hand, Dole, also 73 during his campaign, was no match for Bill Clinton. Clinton’s campaign painted Dole as being “irrelevant for the 21st century,” and Dole’s image suffered from his own gaffes and falling off a stage after a rally.

So how will the age issue play out for 71-year-old McCain?

It will definitely have a lot to do with his Democratic opponent. The Politico piece says Obama’s top spokesman, Robert Gibbs, has said that the Obama campaign will not bring up McCain’s age - their focus instead is “his vision of a third George Bush term.”

However, Obama may not have to say much about McCain’s age for voters to take it into consideration. Politico points out:

The 25-year difference between the two major candidates would be the most pronounced in the country’s history and would be unavoidable should they be paired together on the debate stage this fall.

“Your either going to see a guy who looks old and tired versus a guy who looks young and fresh,” Beckel said. “Or it will be [John] Edwards versus [Dick] Cheney where Edwards looked like a kid.”

The question that may arise in an Obama vs. McCain scenario is just about the same as the one that voters are asking while deciding between Obama and Clinton: Do we want “change” or “experience”?

Politico doesn’t mention how Hillary Clinton would stack up against McCain if age were to become a major issue, but at 60 years old, Clinton’s age would not contrast with McCain’s as much as Obama’s 46 years would. In a Clinton vs. McCain matchup, gender would probably be a bigger issue.

In any event, each candidate will be a year older by Election Day - McCain and Obama have birthdays in August, and Clinton’s is in October. With McCain as the only certain nominee, I imagine his August 29 birthday will push the issue of his age to the forefront of the race - if it’s not there already.