Jonah Goldberg weighs in on National Review about whether or not to call Mrs. Biden "Dr. Biden." His comment is relatively brief and I invite you to read it. What follows it my take on the subject.
First, back in the day it was common to call Henry Kissinger "Dr. Kissinger" or "Dr. K." As I know from my days in Washington, Ph.D.s are quite common and often called Dr. This or Dr. That.
My federal agency made a point of referring to me as "Dr. Cotton" in formal settings or when introducing me. So, for my money it's Dr. Biden, although I don't agree with her husband's politics.
All of that said, there is a right and a wrong way to use the term "doctor." Used before a name "Doctor" is a title, indicating the person has earned some form of doctorate: MD, PhD, EdD, etc.
When applied to non-physicians it is correctly used as a replacement for Mr. or Ms. as in "Dr. Jones" replacing ""Ms. Jones." Used without a name it is only a synonym for physician, any other use is incorrect. This was a distinction my students found difficult to grasp.
