Bill Clinton’s Fashion Challenge: How To Dress When You’re No Longer Center Of Attention

Bill Clinton is sorting out what it means to wear the uniform of power but not possess it. He is settling into the role of backup performer — that silent, onstage partner whose gaze must always be loving and engaged — no matter how familiar those applause lines may be. Who made your suit, Bill? Make sure you know, because the label will matter. Is it American-made or some fancy European import? Did it originate in a big corporation, or is it the work of an independent firm — a much-vaunted small-business owner of the sort that the political establishment loves to woo?

Your clothes have always mattered, because the fashion industry matters. And over the years, you have worn suits by Brooklyn’s Martin Greenfield and Donna Karan (back when she made menswear). But if this presidential campaign works out for Madame Secretary, your clothes will gain greater significance, because the clothes will now speak for you. They will have to, because unless protocol is ignored and tradition upended you will not be delivering an address at the swearing-in or a toast at a state dinner. Read more at The Washington Post.