A Celebrity SG:
President-elect Obama wants Dr. Sanjay Gupta of CNN and CBS News to be the next Surgeon General. [What? You thought this post was about the other SG?] According to Obama, Gupta "could be the highest-profile surgeon general in history and would have an expanded role in providing health policy advice," according to the Washington Post's sources. I'm sure Gupta is suitably qualified for the post. As Yuval Levin notes, it has been some time since the Surgeon General was anything more than a glorified, uniformed spokesperson for government medical authorities, our own Nanny-in-Chief.
[Note: Post edited for clarity.]
Related Posts (on one page):
- Gupta Draws Fire:
- A Celebrity SG:
Gupta's certainly qualified for the job. If nothing else, he brings an established credibility to the office.
Besides, Obama could easily have done worse. Remember the S.G. who wanted to teach teens to masturbate?
Surgeon Generals, like Attorneys General, can be addressed as "General." This little factoid is particularly interesting because the acting surgeon general is a Navy Rear Admiral, Steven Galson, perhaps the only person in America who can be addressed as either "General" or "Admiral."
But when there's an outbreak of an unknown virus in your neighborhood, feel free to send the EIS back to nannyville.
Agree with Sean O'Hara
Like Attorneys General, the plural form here is Surgeons General.
The other persons in the United States who are both Admirals and Generals:
The Surgeon General of the Navy holds the rank of Vice Admiral.
The Judge Advocate General of the Navy (if a Naval officer and not a Marine) holds the rank of Vice Admiral.
The Judge Advocate General of the Coast Guard is a Rear Admiral.
I knew it was Surgeons General. My stupidity for getting it wrong.
I hadn't considered the top JAGs of the Navy and Coast Guard and you are right that technically, those people could be referred to as "General." However, I doubt the Navy Judge Advocate General has ever been called "General" unless he was a Marine General. I doubt the Coast Guard Judge Advocate General ever has been.
On the other hand, I have heard various Surgeons General, particularly C. Everett Koop, referred to as General Koop.
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