John Fetterman says he’ll suit up as Senate unanimously adopts formal dress code

The shorts were short-lived.

The Senate on Wednesday unanimously passed a bill that requires members to follow a dress code that will include a coat, tie, and slacks for men, ending controversy triggered over Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman’s displaying his casual style on the floor.

“Though we’ve never had an official dress code, the events over the past week have made us all feel as though formalizing one is the right path forward,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement. “I deeply appreciate Senator Fetterman working with me to come to an agreement that we all find acceptable, and of course I appreciate Sen. Manchin and Sen. Romney’s leadership on this issue.”

The issue of a Senate dress code first came up after Schumer directed the Senate’s sergeant at arms to stop enforcing the unofficial dress code earlier this month. The rule change primarily impacted Fetterman, who had previously been casting votes from the cloakroom in shorts and a hoodie but not stepping onto the Senate floor in his signature casual look.

In the days following Schumer’s directive, Fetterman presided over the Senate in shorts and a black short sleeve button-up shirt, prompting continued outcry, largely from Republicans, who called it an insult to the decorum and tradition of the body.

The ditched dress code had been the most talked-about issue in Congress, even as a government shutdown lingers, something Fetterman had mocked as he observed the hullabaloo unfolding around him.

He even tried to use the promise of formal wear as political bait.

“If those jagoffs in the House stop trying to shut our government down, and fully support Ukraine, then I will save democracy by wearing a suit on the Senate floor next week,” he said last week.

Ultimately, Fetterman voted for the dress code legislation along with all of his colleagues, and he told CNN he will wear a suit and tie on the floor. Casual dress will still be permitted in the cloakroom at the edge of the chamber, where Fetterman and other members can stand to cast votes.

The bipartisan bill was cosponsored by Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Utah Republican Sen. Mitt Romney. It does not address what women should wear.