Walz has worn buffalo plaid for years, as this 2015 photo demonstrates. Photo: Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call
"I said, you're probably going to get invited to the VP residence tomorrow, and I just want you to know this is real. Don't wear any plaid. Don't wear any flannel. Put on a damn suit."
— Cedric Richmond, a member of Kamala Harris' VP vetting committee, on what he told Gov. Tim Walz in the final stages of the search.
Driving the call: Richmond joked to Minnesota delegates at a DNC breakfast yesterday that he decided to dole out the fashion advice after Walz appeared to be"in his pajamas" — "I can promise you he wasn't in a suit," he added — during a video interview.
When he tried to explain to Walz that he actually had a shot at the job, the governor responded by praising the strengths of his veepstakes rivals, Richmond recalled.
Zoom out: Walz wore a suit to his big speech at the DNC, but his more casual sense of style — including the trademark buffalo plaid — got a shoutout on the stage from President Obama earlier in the week.