The U.S. Senate will no longer enforce a dress code for members of the upper house elected by those they serve.
“However, others entering the chamber must comply with the dress code. Coats/ties for men. Business attire for women,” tweeted Chad Pergram, Fox News senior congressional correspondent.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., quietly sent the directive to the Senate’s sergeant at arms, news website Axios reported.
The change allows Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., to continue to wear his trademark hooded sweatshirts and gym shorts while working for Americans.
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Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., is shown in his office on June 22, 2023, in Washington, D.C. (Ricky Carioti / Washington Post via Getty Images)
Fetterman was previously praised for “turning heads” and “redefining fashion in the stuffy Senate” during his recovery after a six-week stay at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he was treated for “clinical depression” and “fitted for hearing aids for hearing loss that had made it harder for him to communicate,” according to an AP story from May.
The senator even found a workaround to the legislative body’s dress code rules by voting from the doorway of the Democrat cloakroom or the side entrance, making sure his vote is recorded before ducking out, per the AP report.
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Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on May 18, 2023. (Alex Wong / Getty Images)
“He’s setting a new dress code,” Democrat Vermont Sen. Peter Welch joked to AP in May. “He was struggling. And now he’s a joyful person to be around.”
Fetterman faced some backlash against his casual dress code, even from his own staff, according to AP, who “had originally asked him to always wear suits, which he famously hates.”
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“Senators are able to choose what they wear on the Senate floor. I will continue to wear a suit,” Schumer said in a statement to Axios. The news website added that Senate officials said the updated rule will go into effect this week.
Fox News’ Jeffrey Clark and Patrick Hauf contributed to this report.
