Dress codes are often a way to police standards that surround race and gender, so it's no wonder the Republicans are upset about the end of dress codes on the Senate floor. In the ensuing dust-up, social media expert Sen. John Fetterman (D) of Pennsylvania, who was previously stuck voting from chamber doorways while wearing his signature hoodie and basketball shorts, has taken the opportunity to dunk on pissy Republicans from the stratosphere.
In 2023, only about 3% of American men and women regularly wear “business” attire, like suits, to work; another poll revealed that almost 60% of respondents said shorts, like Fetterman’s, are fine at work “at least some of the time.” (Not mentioned in much of the coverage of this story: The policy change applies only to senators, not to staffers, who are still expected to adhere to a dress code.)
After the announcement that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer moved to end enforcement of the informal dress code on the Senate floor, Republicans sort of went berserk, much of their discontent directed toward Fetterman; though Schumer didn't give a reason, they're convinced Fetterman is to blame.
Some Democrats felt similarly, like Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) – shocker! They claim dressing in more casual clothing undermines the sanctity of the Senate floor, as opposed to all the other actually consequential things senators do that make them look unserious, not to mention the number of scandals regularly facing the Republican party, suit or no suit. One conservative commentator called Fetterman “a revolting slob” over the change.
“They’re freaking out. I don’t understand it,” Fetterman told the AP on September 18. “Like, aren’t there more important things we should be working on right now instead of, you know, that I might be dressing like a slob?” Tongue in cheek, Fetterman offered to “save democracy by wearing a suit on the Senate floor next week” if the House avoids a shutdown, currently a possibility due to the House’s inability to agree on funding.
In response to Republicans' complaints and personal attacks on him, Fetterman was happy to play ball: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) claimed “this guy from Pennsylvania” was “dumbing down” America’s standards; Fetterman replied, “I dress like he campaigns.” (DeSantis is currently floundering “on life support” in the New Hampshire presidential primary polls.)
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) said the policy change, which she called “disgraceful,” was “to appease Fetterman.” He quote-tweeted, responding, “Thankfully, the nation's lower chamber lives by a higher code of conduct: displaying ding-a-ling pics in public hearings.” The joke was a reference to Greene displaying explicit photos of Hunter Biden to a congressional committee over the summer.
In response to a Fox News tweet that blamed Fetterman for “lowering the bar” with the policy, and with a nod to Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert’s (R) current scandal over vaping and groping her seatmate at a Colorado performance of Beetlejuice, Fetterman wrote, “I figure if I take up vaping and grabbing the hog during a live musical, they'll make me a folk hero.”
Fetterman also launched merch this week that pokes fun at a right-wing conspiracy theory that he’s been replaced by a body double. (Yes, seriously.)
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