Edward Markey

A desperate, win-at-all costs Seth Moulton is going too low, too far in his primary bid to unseat Sen. Ed Markey — this time demanding his 80-year-old Democratic opponent’s private medical records.

What’s next? Markey’s therapist’s notes? His cholesterol? Can he break an 8-minute mile?

If we’re going there, how about a personality test for Moulton, such as does he have one? Or test his pupils for damage from CNN studio lights.

Moulton is raising the specter that Markey could be another Mitch McConnell or Joe Biden, hobbled by declining health and in jeopardy of losing his seat in the Senate.

“Voters have a right to total transparency about whether the leaders they elect have the capacity to serve a full six-year term and fight for our rights,” Moulton said. “I’m urging Senator Markey to immediately join me in releasing his health records and calling on all senators and Senate candidates to do the same so voters can make an informed choice.”

This argument comes despite a complete lack of evidence that Markey has any serious health problems — physical or mental.

Markey has not collapsed in public or shown any signs of mental decline, unless you count whatever convinced him to put 84-year-old Bernie Sanders in his terrible new TV ad.

It’s fair to question whether there should be an age cutoff for Senate but to raise medical issues without cause for cheap political points is unfair. And many older voters would likely agree.

U.S. Sen. Sam Ervin was 77 years old when he led the Watergate Committee. The problem is not age, it’s old school ideas. If Moulton wins, it will take a crane to extract him from his Senate seat.

Yes, Markey has been in Congress way too long — some five decades — but not because of any health decline. And he’s not doing himself any favors with his Sanders endorsement TV ad. Markey’s media consultant should be fired based on that ad alone.

But the Massachusetts senator can still rip off a lame, overly partisan sound bite just like he did when he was in his 30’s. Markey is one of the few politicians who will actually stop in the middle of a long sentence and go back and rework it for a 10-second recorded quote for the 5 o’clock news.

And Moulton is absolutely shameless in how low he will go for a TV interview show. The North Shore congressman will say or do anything for his beloved CNN.

The reality for Moulton is that he’s fighting an uphill battle trying to unseat an incumbent senator in a Massachusetts primary. Just ask Joe Kennedy III.

With the Sept. 1 primary quickly approaching, Moulton’s campaign is on speed, spiraling out of control, spinning to the media, with no substance to speak of. It’s been one stunt after another.

If Moulton really wants to win, he should run an above board campaign based on the issues, not some health canard. So far his primary bid has been solely about Markey’s age, not any differences on the issues.

Moulton does not represent the future, as he claims, with a campaign like this.

He’s doing a disservice to Massachusetts voters, who deserve a choice based on a real debate over policy and politics. Right now they’re not getting one.