Wall Street Journal editorial page editor Paul Gigot pushed back on the Biden Team’s criticism of an op-ed the paper recently published that called on Jill Biden to drop her use of “Dr.” since she’s not an M.D., saying she “can’t be off-limits for commentary.”
“The complaints began as a trickle but became a torrent after the Biden media team elevated Mr. Epstein’s work in what was clearly a political strategy,” Gigot says of the opinion piece by Joseph Epstein, “Is There a Doctor in the White House? Not if You Need an M.D.”
Epstein began his piece: “Madame First Lady—Mrs. Biden—Jill—kiddo: a bit of advice on what may seem like a small but I think is a not unimportant matter. Any chance you might drop the ‘Dr.’ before your name?”
Team Biden swiftly responded by calling it a “sexist attack” by the author and paper.
“Why go to such lengths to highlight a single op-ed on a relatively minor issue? My guess is that the Biden team concluded it was a chance to use the big gun of identity politics to send a message to critics as it prepares to take power,” Gigot said. “There’s nothing like playing the race or gender card to stifle criticism.”
Gigot also pointed out that criticism of Biden’s use of “Dr.” goes back to 2009, when the Los Angeles Times wrote a story on it, too.