By Olivier Acuña Barba •
Published: 26 Apr 2025 • 16:35
• 2 minutes read
Donald Trump, who criticised the Ukrainian president for showing up in military attire to a White House meeting and who allows Elon Musk in a t-shirt inside the Oval Office, was slammed Saturday as disrespectful for breaking dress code at Pope Francis’ funeral.
The US president arrived at the funeral at the Vatican wearing a blue suit and blue tie, contrary to strict dress etiquette dictated by the Holy See, which requires men to wear a dark suit, a long black tie, and a white shirt. Shoes, socks, coats, and umbrellas, according to the Vatican’s dress code, have to be black.
On April 23rd, the Italian news outlet Il Messaggero published the strict dress code for Pope Francis’ funeral, as mandated by the Vatican. “For men, a dark suit with a long black tie and a button of the same color on the left lapel of the jacket, where only Vatican honors can be placed,” it wrote. “For women, a black dress, preferably long, of the same color as gloves and veil on the head, with the only allowed ornament being a string of pearls.”
Vatican’s dress code for the Pope’s funerals
The Messageri added: “These are the prescriptions for those attending the Pope’s funeral, according to well-established protocol manuals that also define the seating arrangement for dignitaries and heads of state.” This rule was also broken as the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, was sitting next to Trump.
Zelensky and former President Joe Biden broke the strict etiquette. The former wore no tie, while the latter wore a blue tie. Trump, Zelensky, and Biden were accused of being disrespectful as the rest of the world leaders dressed all in black.
Trump wore a pin on his suit jacket displaying the US flag, which also contravenes the Vatican’s rules for the Pope’s funerals. Zelensky wore an all-black combat-type coat over a black shirt and trousers.
Trump sticks out ‘like a sore thumb’
According to the Daily Mail, Trump “was blasted by onlookers today as they said he stuck out ‘like a sore thumb’ from other leaders.” The news outlet added: “One, Alison Graham, slammed the US premier, saying: ‘Why is Trump the only male world leader who is wearing a blue suit? Has he no sense of appropriacy? Shame on him.”
The dress code row at the Vatican comes just two months after the White House criticised Zelensky as disrespectful. Some news reports said Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance were irritated by the Ukrainian’s usual military attire during his visit to the Oval Office.
The discontent over Zelensky’s visit to the White House in military attire despite being told to wear a suit seems contradictory since Elon Musk is frequently seen in the Oval Office wearing a black t-shirt.
White House’s double standard
London news outlet, The Standard, which questioned why Musk is allowed in the White House in jeans and a t-shirt, added: “Defying convention in his dress code was the latest anti-tradition move by the headline-grabbing Mr Musk, who last month brought his son X to the Oval Office.”
“Musk shunned the suit and tie, and appeared wearing all black with a Make America Great Again baseball cap,” wrote the BBC’s Nomia Iqbal.
The UK’s Independent news outlet wrote: “White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt dodged questions about Elon Musk’s outfit choices when in the presence of President Donald Trump amid allegations of a double standard.”
