Jim Geraghty, National Review
The good news for John Edwards' campaign: People will no longer be making jokes and asking questions about $400 haircuts.
The bad news for John Edwards' campaign: People will be making jokes and asking questions about $1,250 haircuts.
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.
To quote that noted ultra-conservative Edwards critic Markos Moulitsas, "I'm willing to bet that most of the small dollar donors Edwards has solicited don't have that much. For them, that $20 or $50 or even $100 contribution is a big sacrifice. Yet given the choice between taking out his own checkbook or having his campaign pay for the $400 the haircut cost, someone made the choice to put this on the contributors... People expect their money to be well spent by campaigns, not used as personal slush funds for whatever luxuries they may want." |