Total dick move by Donald Trump Jr
Soon after the tragic news broke about President Joe Biden’s cancer diagnosis, Don Jr. wasted no time posting a nonsensical, pathetic attack against former First Lady Jill Biden. “What I want to know is how did Dr. Jill Biden miss stage five metastatic cancer or is this yet another coverup???” he posted on X. The “Dr.” honorific was not an attempt to show respect but a play to a certain audience that already believes the Bidens are corrupt frauds.
Dr. Jill Biden holds a Doctor of Education degree (in addition to two master’s). Don Jr. is acting as if being called “Dr.” is reserved for medical professionals. Also, he no doubt wants people to believe that she doesn’t deserve her title or is somehow being deceptive about it. His short post suggests Biden has committed medical malpractice with a coverup, which is laughably impossible given her impressive—yet non-medical—background.
Don Jr.’s other “mistake” is calling President Biden’s cancer “stage five,” which does not even exist. The New York Times reported that such a cancer, with a Gleason score of 9, Grade Group 5, with metastasis to the bone, according to a statement issued by Biden’s team, corresponds to Stage 4 prostate cancer. So, while Biden’s staging is serious, it does not deserve this sloppy—if not deceptive—characterization from Don Jr. in a lame attempt to bolster his phony “Dr.” confusion claim.
This is not the first time Dr. Biden has been belittled for using the proper honorific associated with her high degree. In a Wall Street Journal opinion piece in 2020, which received swift backlash on account of its overt sexism, Joseph Epstein claimed Biden should drop the “Dr.” because it “feels fraudulent,” calling her “kiddo.”
This latest episode with Don Jr. reminds us just how low Donald Trump and his minions will go to weaponize a cancer diagnosis while creating confusion, in the hope of scoring political points. Twisting science, medicine, and an advanced-stage cancer diagnosis into an offensively flawed smear campaign is the kind of shameless move we’ve come to expect from Don Jr.
Ron Leshnower is a lawyer and the author of several books, including President Trump’s Month