Thursday, July 05, 2007

It is some kind of commentary on the state of American politics that as Edwards has campaigned for president, vice president and now president again, his hair seems to have attracted as much attention as, say, his position on health care. But when his campaign reported in April that it had paid for two of his haircuts at $400 each, the political damage was immediate. With each punch line on late night TV his image as a self-styled populist making poverty his signature issue was further eroded.

After Edwards became Sen. John F. Kerry's vice presidential running mate in summer 2004, Torrenueva started charging. There was one cut for $300 in mid-July in Los Angeles, shortly before the Democratic National Convention, the one for $1,250 in August in Atlanta, another in Washington in early October before a debate with Vice President Cheney, and the last was in Ohio shortly before the election.

After the 2004 election, Torrenueva said he cut Edwards's hair three times in 2005 and 2006 during business trips to California. As Edwards began gearing up for his 2008 presidential campaign, Torrenueva said, the pace picked up. One haircut was in late November, another Jan. 9 and a third on Valentine's Day, and each cost $400.