Dick Durbin, Senate Majority Whip, charges against Schumer and Fetterman for the dress code: "We need to have standards"
With the change in dress code, senators can now choose how to dress to attend the chamber, breaking with the tradition of attending elegantly.
Sen. John Fetterman's (D-PA) controversial casual attire is causing controversy among the Senate's highest-profile Democrats.
This Thursday, Dick Durbin, Senate Majority Whip, that is the second highest ranking member of the Democratic party in the Senate, charged against the Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), for failing to enforce the dress code in the legislative headquarters benefiting Fetterman, known for wearing shorts, sweatshirts and casual attire instead of a jacket and tie.
“I’m concerned about it. The senator in question from Pennsylvania is a personal friend, but I think we need to have standards," Durbin said in an interview on "The Briefing with Steve Scully" on SiriusXM.
When asked about Schumer's reasons for not enforcing the dress code, Durbin, apparently bewildered, responded that he couldn't "understand exactly what he was thinking at that point".
And then he added: "I want to give him the benefit of the doubt until I speak to him but I think the Senate needs to act on this."
With the change in the dress code, senators can now choose how to dress to attend the chamber, breaking with the tradition of attending elegantly.
Not even a couple of days passed after the measure was made official for Fetterman to begin taking advantage of the rule change, wearing a dark-colored short-sleeved T-shirt, knee-length pants, and sneakers on Wednesday.
Fetterman's outfit is generating strong criticism against the Pennsylvania senator and Schumer himself.
“Honest question: why would a mentally healthy person want to dress like this on the Senate floor? I’m a tshirts & shorts guy, I don’t like to dress up, but I’d be embarrassed to show up at a funeral or wedding in tshirt & shorts. Senate floor too. This is very strange behavior,” wrote attorney and author Clay Travis.
Editor Ben Domenech was even harsher against the Pennsylvania senator: “Just keep in mind John Fetterman favors the violent taxpayer funded death of unborn children with Down's Syndrome, roughly the same level of disability that he believes entitles him to be allowed to wear shorts on the Senate floor.”