To the White House, it is. And invited guest Volodymyr Zelenskyy learned it the hard way

Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House for a doomed meeting with the U.S. president. Screen shot: Wfaa8 (ABC)/YouTube

Did not turning up in a suit cost Volodymyr Zelenskyy the deal Donald Trump was desperate to sign? The Ukrainian president made the anticipated trip to Washington D.C. and turned up at the White House today. When he emerged from the SUV to greet the POTUS and took the later’s hand, his host said to him gleefully: “Ooh, you’re all dressed up.” In case the waiting members of the media did not hear the remark, Mr Trump turned to them and said, in a whad’ya-know tone of voice: “He’s all dressed up today.” The sacarsm set the tone for the hospitality Mr Zelenskyy was to receive. The man wasn’t dressed well enough for the White House, not with the current occupant in it. Was Mr Trump surprised? No, he was not. Was he ready to pounce? Yes, he was.

Mr Zelenskyy did not appear at the White House steps looking especially under-dressed or adversarial. He has mostly been seen looking this way. He was togged out in a fitted, black, buttoned-up Henley pullover, black cargos (they could be dark green. It was hard to tell from the news broadcasts that we saw), and black boots. The left breast of his top was embroidered in silver with a trident—a three-pronged weapon that is a symbol of his country. The near-military look is a familiar one, adopted on home turf and when he traverses the globe to canvas support and when he appears on Zoom calls with world leaders. It is, as widely reported, used to stand in solidarity with his fellow countrymen still fighting a war not started by the Ukrainians, as the world saw.

The man wasn’t dressed well enough for the White House, not with the current occupant in it

Trump truly judges a person by the way he dresses. That’s why his bevy of sycophants are attired like him. And question those who do not. One senses that Mr Trump looked down on his guest the minute he saw what the latter wore as he alighted from the car at the White House portico. Mr Zelenskyy was no mini JD Vance, who is now quite the fashionista. The Ukranian’s turnout was beneath the president. Mr Trump bothered to be suited for the occasion, his guest should too. It did not occur to Mr Trump that, with Ukraine still under attack, Mr Zelenskyy had no time nor the inclination to fuss over what he shall wear to secure the safety of his country against aggressors. He was not there for cultural exchange talks. It is tempting to wonder if we were better honoured when Mr Zelenskyy wore a shirt (!) to meet president Tharman Shanmugaratnam (and other ministers) at the Istana last June.

The “make a deal” meeting in the White House quickly devolved into a scolding by Trump and his viper-VP/hit-out dog JD Vance, who, in 2016, happily called his boss an “idiot”. But before that, one MAGA flag-bearer was already playing the President’s fashion police. Among the reporters in the Oval Office who witness the proceeding was right-wing TV channel Real America’s Voice anchor Brian Glenn. Also the beau of Mr Trump’s trusted supporter and another fashionista, Marjorie Taylor-Green, Mr Glenn asked Mr Zelenskyy: “You’re at the highest level in this country’s office and you refuse to wear a suit. Just want to see, do you own a suit? A lot of Americans have problems with you disrespecting this office.” Did that question cross Mr Glenn’s mind when Elon Musk did not wear a suit to the White House two weeks ago? It was alright for Mr Musk to show up as if he was attending a SpaceX testing session, even bringing a child to “the highest level in this country’s office”. But, no disrespect there.

Mr Zelenskyy seated in the Oval Office. Photo: AP

Mr Zelenskyy was quick. “I’ll wear the kostyum (suit in Ukrainian) after the war will finished.” Then he added, “Maybe I’ll wear something like yours or something better.” You could hear sniggering from the the press corp. And finally: “Maybe something cheaper.” Mr Glenn was unhappy with that (likely unaware that Mr Zelenskyy was not referring to ‘costume’). After his attempted belittling in the Oval Office failed, he took to X to rant further: “His wardrobe is a direct reflection of the lack of respect Zelensky* has for our country. Period.” It is not understood why he took what the Ukrainian president wore so personally and so disdainfully that he had to attack the guy’s “wardrobe”. Or why he thought clothing choice was critical in what was essentially to be peace negotiations. He added defiantly: “Critics can make fun of me all they want. I don’t care.”

One senses that Mr Trump did not plan for an amicable meeting with Mr Zelenskyy, who appeared to have walked into an ambush. By now you would have read that the meeting in the Oval Office turned into a “shouting match”, with Mr Trump and Mr Vance (emboldened by his proximity to his now-beloved man) mostly trying to talk over Mr Zelenskyy, whose possible misstep was not kowtowing—as other presidents and PMs have thus far—to the “leader of the free world”. He did not “dress up” to make his host look good. He came with no plan to propitiate, even when Ukraine is not at war with the U.S.. He had to, as a consequence, suffer very public humiliation. His clothes had nothing to do with the already disgruntled presidential position he had to unfortunately confront.

We didn’t think we’d wake up this cloudy morning to such disconcerting news and witness what was essentially tuckshop bullying. The U.S. president likely wanted to gloat in Mr Zelenskyy’s gratitude, but he was not able to, nor JD Vance. Under-dressed Zelenskyy was clearly outnumbered by the suits. It is hard to imagine that one’s seeming lack of seemly dressing could illicit such aggressive behaviour in what is arguably the world’s most famous political office space, watched by the world’s media. At some point, Donald Trump berated Volodymyr Zelenskyy: “You’re gambling with World War III.” If WWIII does break out, whose side, we wonder, would the well-dressed POTUS take?

*Note: we spell Zelenskyy (with the extra ‘y’) in accordance with the AP style guide