Fashion's Power Play - A Politician's Sartorial Satire

For a politician to be in a position that bears the privilege to represent a nation, one’s “style” should be considered as an important factor of assessment, but NOT the only factor.

Compared to Men in politics, Women are faced with a wide array of sartorial choices and their position as a leader of the feminine world requires them to make certain calculated decisions when it comes to fashion. There is a constant debate questioning if a woman would be taken seriously as a leader if she decided to give a little importance to what she was wearing.

“Will Americans want to watch a woman get older before their eyes on a daily basis? And that woman, by the way, is not going to want to look like she’s getting older, because it will impact poll numbers. It will impact perceptions. In politics, perceptions are reality.”

– Rush Limbaugh to Hillary Clinton during 2008 Presidential Campaigns.

Hillary Clinton has been, for a very long time, a constant target of critique in terms of what she wears. Her colorful pant suits are talked about everywhere, and still one needs to wonder if it really has anything to do with her professional standpoint. According to Robin Givhan, Clinton states that she’d reached a stage in life when she felt empowered to dress as she pleased. Not to flout civility and good manners, but to make choices that more honestly represented her. Indeed, admitting that she had made a considered decision about her appearance — and decided to ignore all the unwritten rules — was a kind of victory for personal style in the political realm. Maybe this aspect of Hillary Clinton's style of "power dressing" is a subliminal message for women to be embodiments of substance and vigil.

But how about men employed in politics? Should their general outlook be a subject of conversation?

Take for example, 2016’s Republican Presidential Candidate Donald Trump. His hair has constantly been the root of every political joke that has ever been made against him (Pun Intended). Hair, in subject of appearance, hasn’t been kind to our presidents as well, notably how media has covered the graying of our nation’s leaders during their respective terms. Does this really prove how hard our leaders are working?

Obama was known to mention “You’ll see I wear only gray or blue suits. I’m trying to pare down decisions. I don’t want to make decisions about what I’m eating or wearing. Because I have too many other decisions to make.” – later being seen wearing a khaki suit while discussing world crises at a news conference. There was a whirl of scrutiny by the media, guessing if this drastic decision was a form of representation of the country's army.

(from left) Hillary Clinton is known for donning Ralph Lauren ensembles to promote the concept of the American Dream and Obama wearing his taupe suit at the National Security Council's news conference.

To be honest, given the very repetitive and monotonous uniform male politics display, fashion evidently takes a step back. Scrutiny becomes unnecessary in the absence of suitable grounds of criticism.

Spotting the difference at the Presidential debates -

Fashion icons in politics, unlike Hillary, become more open to scrutiny. This is because, these leaders show their obvious interest in couture. Their fashion choices instigate a cult following. One such icon is the Duchess of Cambridge or better known as Kate Middleton. She is widely known for her fashion choices, often blurring the line between conservative and risque fashion. Also, Middleton is known to recycle her clothes, wearing them multiple times in public and also supports fast fashion brands such as Topshop, Zara and Whistles making her an icon with a relatable sense of fashion for women all over.

In reality, clothes do define a person. In a political world, fashion merely assists one's candidature and nothing more. Hence, criticism beyond a certain degree simply reverts to being illogical and unnecessary. In politics, actions prevail appearance.

Sources -

Eric Wilson, "Style Over Substance: A Fashion Review of the First GOP Debate", 7 Aug 2015, InStyle.com, Web, 5 Nov 2015, http://www.instyle.com/news/eric-wilson-gop-debate-fashion-parody

Vanessa Friedman, "Why It Matters That Hillary Clinton Wore Ralph Lauren", 15 June 2015, nytimes.com, Web, 5 Nov 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/16/fashion/why-it-matters-that-hillary-clinton-wore-ralph-lauren.html

Robin Givhan, "Hillary Clinton is owning the joke about her fashion choices — and it’s working", 16 June 2015, thewashingtonpost.com, Web, 5 Nov 2015, https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2015/06/16/hillary-clinton-is-owning-the-joke-about-her-fashion-choices-and-its-working/

Vanessa Friedman, "Obama Wore a Tan Suit (and Spoke About World Crises)", 28 Aug 2014, nytimes.com, 5 Nov 2015, http://runway.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/08/28/obama-wore-a-tan-suit-and-spoke-about-world-crises/?_r=1