Can seersucker unite the rift in American politics?

Sen. Feinstein follows bipartisan ‘Seersucker Thursday’ tradition for Comey hearing.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Caif., got a lot of attention during former FBI Director James Comey’s hearing last Thursday, and it wasn’t just for her questioning.

Standing out in a sea of dark, serious suits, Feinstein’s bright blue-and-white seersucker jacket wasn’t just sartorially pleasing, it was also part of a longstanding practice of historic and fashion significance.

She was celebrating the bipartisan “Seersucker Thursday.”

Could a fabric unite the divided factions of American politics?

Perhaps — and Feinstein wasn’t the only one wearing it during Thursday’s highprofile hearing. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La.; Sen. Roger Wicke, R-Miss.; and Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., also carried on the tradition.

“Seersucker Thursday” harkens back to a time before the Capitol was air-conditioned, requiring lawmakers to find a way to keep cool in the sweltering D.C. summers.

In 1996, former Mississippi Republican and seersucker fan Trent Lott instituted the tradition of National Seersucker Day. It was discontinued in 2012 but revived in

Feinstein herself reportedly pioneered the look among her fellow female senators in 2004, saying “I would watch the men preening in the Senate, and I figured we should give them a little bit of a horse race,” according to the Hollywood

came

APPLEWHITE / AP PHOTO J. SCOTT Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., listens as former FBI Director James Comey testifies before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, on Capitol Hill in Washington on Thursday.

BROOKS BROTHERS CONTRIBUTED BY The Brooks Brothers classic seersucker suit.