As Prez Joe Biden attempted to address some of the concerns about his age and energy on Friday, his wife Jill, a political spouse who often seems to choose clothes that recede into the background, took her place by his side in a navy-blue crepe dress plastered with one word over and over again: “Vote”. Given the many post-debate reactions focused on viewers’ anxious feelings, it could not have been a coincidence.
This is the third time in the past four years that the first lady has worn a garment with a message written on it. In 2020, before the last presidential election, she wore a pair of knee-high boots that also read “vote.” And in 2021, at the first G7 meeting in Britain after the prez took office, she wore a jacket with the word “love” on the back. The choice was widely interpreted as a riposte to the jacket Melania Trump notoriously wore during her husband’s administration with the words “I Really Don’t Care, Do U?” scrawled on the back.
Now, the matchup is back, and so are words on clothing. It is, perhaps, only to be expected. Jill Biden is an English teacher. She knows exactly how much succinct language matters – even if it is on a dress.
This is the third time in the past four years that the first lady has worn a garment with a message written on it. In 2020, before the last presidential election, she wore a pair of knee-high boots that also read “vote.” And in 2021, at the first G7 meeting in Britain after the prez took office, she wore a jacket with the word “love” on the back. The choice was widely interpreted as a riposte to the jacket Melania Trump notoriously wore during her husband’s administration with the words “I Really Don’t Care, Do U?” scrawled on the back.
Now, the matchup is back, and so are words on clothing. It is, perhaps, only to be expected. Jill Biden is an English teacher. She knows exactly how much succinct language matters – even if it is on a dress.
