Manchin moves to reverse Senate dress code changes

West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin has floated a proposal to reverse changes to the Senate dress code that permit members of the upper chamber to dress as they please.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer confirmed this week that senators, but not their staffers or reporters, would no longer be subject to dress requirements. The move appeared to accommodate Pennsylvania Democratic Sen. John Fetterman, who prefers to dress in athletic shorts and a hoodie.

The change prompted scoffs from lawmakers, especially Republicans, and Manchin now seeks to revert the dress code to its prior regulations. The proposal reportedly would set the dress code to align with the rules that immediately predated Schumer's changes, The Hill reported.

It remains unclear how many lawmakers have endorsed the proposal, though Democratic and Republican senators such as John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Dick Durbin, D-Ill., have both expressed support for revising the dress standards.

Cornyn dubbed the group of lawmakers averse to relaxing the dress code "the coalition of the rational," per The Hill.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter.