| The thing I dread most about Halloween — even more than the possibility that one of those giant inflatable yard werewolves will collapse and crush me as I'm walking by — is the pressure to find a costume. Thankfully, since I shave my head and own a closetful of hoodies and gym shorts, this year's is a no-brainer: My spooky John Fetterman costume pretty much assembles itself. I don't know why Fetterman has to wear this particular ensemble basically all the time, and I have no sartorial problem with it. But over the years, I've grown generally suspicious of candidates who feel the need to wear some kind of signature costume — something meant to distance them from the default uniform of a bland suit or jewel-tone dress. Maybe it started, for me, with Lamar Alexander (or "Lamar!," as his signs always said), who never took off his cringey plaid shirt when he ran for president in 1996. (I got to know Alexander later, and found that his actual, cerebral self was far more likable than the lumberjack version.) Sometimes the political costume represents a conscious effort at image-making, as with Al Gore's infamous earth tones. Other times — Rick Santorum's sweater vest comes to mind — it betrays a certain rigidity. Then you have a case like Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who disguised himself as a laid-back suburban dad in his fleece vest, which probably should have been our first clue that he was actually a maniacally ambitious office-seeker with no obvious moral center. This is often the problem with political dress-up: It hints at neediness. People with a strong sense of self don't feel the need to wear a look-at-me getup every time they step into public view. Fetterman's debate performance last week was mostly dissected for his halting speech, the temporary result of a recent stroke. But I'm guessing that, even with the sound off, Fetterman would have disappointed some voters. Standing before the cameras in a suit and tie at last, the tattooed hero suddenly seemed like exactly what he is and ought to be: a politician running for office, just like any other. I'm not saying Fetterman isn't the better or more authentic Senate candidate than his opponent, Mehmet Oz. There's nothing on Earth more craven, in my experience, than a TV host in search of ratings, and Republicans this year haven't done anything to suggest they deserve control of the Senate. I just think candidates should worry about the clarity of their arguments, and leave the trick-or-treating to the kids. | 
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