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Former White House Chief of Staff Criticizes Lax Obama Dress Code

by Terri Potratz | February 6, 2009 at 10:56 am

391 views | 2 Recommendations | 2 comments

Former White House Chief of Staff Andrew H. Card Jr. criticized President Obama and the more casual dress code he's implemented in the Oval Office in an interview on Inside Edition this week.

Obama has consistently been seen jacketless while conducting meetings and briefings in the White House, and has also encouraged his staff and colleagues to ease up on the strict dress code of the Bush administration.

Card is the first to publicly criticize President Obama for this 'relaxed' dress code, revealing in the interview that he wanted to tell Obama to "put a suit jacket on."

“The Oval Office symbolizes…the Constitution, the hopes and dreams, and I’m going to say democracy. And when you have a dress code in the Supreme Court and a dress code on the floor of the Senate, floor of the House, I think it’s appropriate to have an expectation that there will be a dress code that respects the office of the President.”

Mr. Card went on to add that, while he would not criticize Mr. Obama for his appearance, “I do expect him to send the message that people who are going to be in the Oval Office should treat the office with the respect that it has earned over history.”

While Card is quick to criticize Obama, the new president is not the first to eschew a suit jacket within the walls of the Oval Office. In fact, George W. Bush, renowned for his strict rules regarding White House attire, was photographed sans jacket just 2 days after his own inauguration.

The Huffington Post compiled a photo gallery of numerous presidents snapped without their proper and 'respectful' jackets on - my personal favourite is Clinton in a colourful plaid shirt. Now that is casual.

While my personal opinion is that it's neither disrespectful nor improper to lighten up on White House dress code rules, I don't exactly see what the brouhaha is in Obama's case either. It's not like he's showing up in jeans and a t-shirt - and even if he was, as long as he's doing his job running the country does it really matter what hes wearing? Let the man take his jacket off at work, I think he's earned it.

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Trevor Ellestad (not verified)

at 12:48 on February 6th, 2009

We all got to take our jackets off once in a while. It's amazing the drama people cook up.

p.s. Your use of the word 'brouhaha' has brought an airy breeze to my otherwise stagnant morning, sort of like taking my jacket off on a warm day.

Emezie

at 14:43 on February 6th, 2009

Guess what.... Pictures of past Presidents including Reagan and even Bush in the Oval office with no jacket and tie(Reagan) What an hypocrite.....Mr. Card should apologize to President Obama.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/02/05/bush-jacketless-in-oval-o_n_164513.html