Is John Fetterman fit for office? His health challenges shouldn't be off-limits.

Way back in 2008, when Republican John McCain was running against Democrat Barack Obama for the White House, my fellow journalists had no trouble questioning whether the Arizona senator still had the mental capacity to serve as president.

CBS News, for example, after McCain said "Iraq" when he should have said "Afghanistan" and mixed up the names of a couple NFL teams, wrote, "The mistakes raise a serious, if uncomfortable question: Are the gaffes the result of his age? And what could that mean in the Oval Office? Voters, thinking about their own relatives, can be expected to scrutinize McCain's debate performances for signs of slippage."

Slate posted this inquisitive headline – "McCain’s Brain: How might the senator’s mind deteriorate over the next eight years?"

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Reuters resorted to the old "experts say" tactic: "Experts say people of McCain’s age are subject to possible increased memory loss, lower energy and a greater vulnerability to aches, pains and a host of illnesses."

McCain, by the way, was all of 72 years old on Election Day 2008. The current occupant of the Oval Office will turn 80 next month.

Mainstream news outlets have gingerly addressed the potential effects of President Joe Biden's age. And Biden, to his credit, recently acknowledged that his age is a legitimate issue for voters to consider.

Focus on job performance, not age

But I'd rather see Biden judged on his job performance as president, not his age. I happen to think he has done an awful job; others will disagree. And that's what makes America great.

Something else that makes America great: honest conversations about our political candidates' strengths and weaknesses.

Yet when it comes to questions about whether Pennsylvania's Democratic Senate candidate John Fetterman is physically ready to serve a six-year term five months after a debilitating stroke, many journalists have suddenly gotten squeamish:

►This month, FiveThirtyEight published a story about all the mean people asking questions about a political candidate's fitness for high office: "What Attacks On John Fetterman’s Health Reveal About Disability And Politics."

►MSNBC sought to teach unenlightened Americans a lesson: "Why Fetterman's Senate campaign is a teaching moment greater than this election."

►Teen Vogue weighed in with an after-school special: "John Fetterman’s Stroke Has Led to Ableist Criticism From Media, Politicians."

Opinion series on conservatism: Is GOP's 'big tent' shrinking? Traditional conservatives find themselves without a home.

Fetterman refuses to release health records

Let me get this straight: It was fine for journalists to speculate about how a war hero's mind might deteriorate if he were to be elected president. But it's not OK to ask whether a Senate candidate could serve effectively not long after suffering from a major neurological incident, especially since that candidate has refused to release his full health records.

Two weeks ago, NBC News reporter Dasha Burns reported on what she observed at an interview with Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. Fetterman, his first on-camera since the stroke. The Senate candidate, Burns said, appeared to struggle with "small talk."

The pushback against Burns was fast and furious. Fellow journalists attacked Burns for doing her job. Fetterman's wife, Gisele, demanded that the reporter apologize and called Burns "ableist."

The message was clear: Questions about Fetterman's ability to serve in office are off-limits, and anyone who dares to raise the issue should brace for attack.

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Then on Tuesday came the first and only debate between Fetterman and his Republican opponent, Dr. Mehmet Oz – after more than half a million votes already had been cast. The lieutenant governor struggled badly to communicate his position on issues such as fracking, and Pennsylvania voters could finally see and judge for themselves whether Fetterman is ready for the demands of the U.S. Senate.

Even then, much of the news coverage centered on whether Fetterman's camp should have agreed to the debate. “He should not have debated," a Democratic strategist told NBC News. "Anyone on his team who agreed to a debate should be fired, or never work again, because that debate may have tanked his campaign."

Do political debates even matter?: Was Ryan or Vance, Walker or Warnock tougher? Who cares? Political debates are overrated.

I am not trying to discount the harm caused by ableism, ageism or any other ism. But a candidate running for the U.S. Senate shouldn't be shielded from hard questions, including whether they would have the physical ability to serve if elected.

If you want to argue that the public doesn't have a need to know about a Senate candidate's health, then fine. But be consistent.

I also know that we're less than two weeks out from the most important election of our lifetimes. And that democracy will collapse and life on the planet as we know it will crumble if the wrong party (read Republican) wins. But can we talk about a candidate's fitness for office without trying to shame each other into silence? Can we agree that a candidate's health still matters?

And if not, then can those who argue for a lack of transparency be at least a little bit more circumspect in their desire to help John Fetterman across the finish line?

Tim Swarens is deputy opinion editor for USA TODAY.

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Democrats are failing across the board. All signs point to a red wave on Election Day.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: After Fetterman, Dr. Oz debate, we need to talk about Lt. Gov's health