California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) made a simple yet gnarly response to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s odd suggestion that airline passengers should dress better to enhance their travel experience.
“Sometimes you just have to ask people, ’Hey, let’s go back to an era where we didn’t wear our pajamas to the airport. We actually might dress up a little bit,” Duffy said on Fox Business promoting a new “civility” campaign.
Duffy’s advice on how to bring back civility at the airport became the center of mockery ― and users online used his comments to slam President Donald Trump.
Others pointed out that there are bigger issues than how people are dressed at airports.
Duffy reiterated his campaign for air travel civility at a press conference Monday, urging passengers to dress “with some respect.”
“You know, whether it’s a pair of jeans and a decent shirt, I would encourage people to maybe dress a little better, which encourages us to maybe behave a little better,” Duffy said. “Let’s try not to wear slippers and pajamas as we come to the airport. I think that’s positive.”
“Don’t take your shoes off and put your feet on the chair ahead of you,” he continued.
Newsom’s press office responded to Duffy’s comments with a photograph of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. walking down the aisle of a plane, dressed casually, but not wearing shoes or footwear and exposing his bare feet to other passengers.
The photograph of RFK Jr.’s feet was first shared in 2023. In a short clip shared by TMZ at the time, the now Trump official addressed the incident as “inexcusable” before the camera pans out to show his bare feet again, touching the airport floor.