Jennifer Rauchet, wife of Pete Hegseth, caused partisan uproar by supposedly wearing a bargain dress to the formal event – but what it says about our attitudes to fast fashion is more interesting
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lthough far less important than the political violence at the White House correspondent’s dinner in Washington over the weekend, the sartorial choices of the Maga administration are now getting airtime – and one dress is causing a particular furore.
It is being reported that Jennifer Rauchet, wife of the US secretary of defence, Pete Hegseth, wore what appeared to resemble a gown listed on Shein for $42 (and similar to another on Temu for half the price).
Naturally, some backlash has been inevitable. Shein is a gargantuan Chinese fast-fashion marketplace, and Temu is the country’s answer to Amazon – while Hegseth champions nationalism and “America first”. The US also continues to engage in a trade war with China, and Rauchet’s husband has been outspoken on the threat he sees the nation posing to the world. While we should never tar a woman with the same brush as her husband, there’s reason to believe that Rauchet, a former Fox News executive producer, may have beliefs that aren’t too dissimilar.
