Washington Post fashion writer Robin Givhan, who's often slashed at the fractured fashions of Team Bush, and who in 2004 hailed the hair of John Edwards (it "cries out to be tousled"), surprised readers on Friday by finding Edwards guilty of "primping" with his $400 haircuts. She doesn't go the whole way and mock his rich vs. poor "Two Americas" talk, but it's bubbling under the surface. Early on, she notes a "Bush loyalist" called Edwards a "Breck Girl," (um, isn't "Rush Limbaugh" a better tag for who started that?) and then Judge Robin ruled:

Edwards considers triple-digit grooming expenses a part of campaigning. He listed his salon and spa bills under "consulting/events," after all...But there is a line between grooming and primping. Brushing your teeth is grooming. Giving yourself a big Chiclet smile with veneers is primping. Having an adept barber come around to the hotel to give a busy candidate a trim is grooming. Getting the owner of an expensive Beverly Hills salon to come over, knowing full well that the cost is going to be 10 times what the average Joe is likely to pay for a haircut . . . that's a Breck girl move.

Political candidates of all stripes want to show off their big ideas, superior intellect, uncommon leadership skills. But they also spend a lot of time making clear their ability to relate to the average man. That's what all the diner visits, rolled-up sleeves and folksy talk are meant to do. A $400 haircut isn't folksy. And it doesn't matter who's paying for it.

Givhan also earns points for at least mentioning the "I Feel Pretty" YouTube video of Edwards. Before she learned of the titanic tabs for the Edwards haircuts, back in 2004, Givhan raved over the mane of the Silky Pony (that's Laura Ingraham's nom de coif):

He has a precise haircut with artfully clipped layers. His hair is a beautiful shade of chocolate brown with honey-colored highlights. It is not particularly long, but it is smooth and shiny. It is boyish hair not because of the style but because it looks so healthy and buoyant and practically cries out to be tousled the same way a well-groomed golden retriever demands to be nuzzled.

—Tim Graham is Director of Media Analysis at the Media Research Center