Trainers are now allowed in the US Senate – so why on earth can’t I wear them to a party? | Emma Brockes

Thanks to self-described slob John Fetterman, standards are slipping for US politicians. If only the rest of society could follow suit

It was John Fetterman, the Democratic senator for Pennsylvania with a penchant for unapologetically wearing shorts" while on duty in the Senate, who seems to have broken the system. Last week, when the majority leader, Chuck Schumer, announced a relaxing of the dress code on the Senate floor, he didn't mention Fetterman. But nobody was fooled. For weeks, Fetterman has been attracting attention in his baggy shorts, shapeless hoodie and massive, scruffy trainers - and now look what he's done. Stepping up to provide journalists with the mandatory quote on these sorts of occasions, Republican senator Roger Marshall observed gravely that it was a sad day in the Senate".

When questioned on the matter, Fetterman remarked that the clothes, which he started wearing after a spell in hospital for depression earlier this year, made him more comfortable. There's probably a pandemic hangover at work here, too - and possibly, given the state of the world, some fiddling-while-Rome-burns displacement. Traditionally, the Senate's sergeant-at-arms would pull up male senators for appearing tieless on the floor, and out of respect they would vote from the doorways. The understanding is that, from now on, they may be emboldened to take their place alongside colleagues in something more casual.

Emma Brockes is a Guardian columnist