OxBlog

# Posted 8:23 AM by Ariel David Adesnik

THE UNKINDEST CUT -- EDWARDS' $400 STYLIST SPEAKS OUT: Joseph Torrenueva thought that he was friends with John Edwards. But once the cost of Torrenueva's haircuts became public knowledge, the candidate acted as if Torrenueva was a stranger:

In the days after the $400 haircut first caused a stir, Torrenueva did not give many details about his client to reporters who called or came by his Beverly Hills salon. But Torrenueva says he was hurt by Edwards's response to all the flap.

"I'm disappointed and I do feel bad. If I know someone, I'm not going to say I don't know them," he said. "When he called me 'that guy,' that hit my ears. It hurt." He paused and then added, "I still like him. . . . I don't want to hurt him."

Torrenueva said he normally charges men $175 when they come to his salon for a haircut. But the cost for Edwards went up because the stylist had to leave his shop and go on the road to do his haircuts.

That's right. Edwards paid Torrenueva to travel cross-country and give the candidate a haircut. The cost?

Torrenueva has cut Edwards's hair at least 16 times.

At first, the haircuts were free. But because Torrenueva often had to fly somewhere on the campaign trail to meet his client, he began charging $300 to $500 for each cut, plus the cost of airfare and hotels when he had to travel outside California.

Torrenueva said one haircut during the 2004 presidential race cost $1,250 because he traveled to Atlanta and lost two days of work.

On the bright side, Edwards isn't the only candidate who has found it necessary to import a stylist:

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) had her own minor version of the Edwards treatment after her Senate campaign spent nearly $3,000 in fees and travel for two sessions with stylist Isabelle Goetz.

Word on the street is that Obama is now looking for a stylist who will charge at least $5,000. But the real problem here is that money plays too much of a role in presidential campaigns. The time has come for the federal government to appoint a personal stylist for each candidate.

Labels: Haircuts, John Edwards

(10) opinions -- Add your opinion