Congressional Style

Today, the New York Times wrote a fluff piece on the fashion of the women of the 110th Congress and Speaker Pelosi's personal style.

Since when is Nancy Pelosi a fashion icon?! It is very true that Members of Congress are not known for their sense of fashion, but saying that the St. James uniform is overplayed and ugly does not suddenly turn Mary Bono into Joan Rivers!

I have a very hard time taking seriously the fashion choices of anybody in Congress. When I was an intern working in the House of Representatives, I saw a photo printed in one of the rags (Roll Call or Congressional Quarterly, probably) pointing out that one particular day had apparently been seersucker suit day. On that specific summer day, several members wore full seersucker suits and posed for a picture on the Senate side to show off their silly sense of dress. My office promptly cut out the picture and posted it on a bulletin board to laugh at it daily.

Perhaps the fashion sense of the 110th Congress is far better than that of year's past. Even still, I don't think that Nancy Pelosi has had any effect on the Tahitian pearl industry. While it is true that she frequently wears them, they are not half as iconic as Barbara Bush and her white pearls. The real reason women are buying Tahitian pearls is that they are exotic, attractive, and currently very stylish. Besides, although women frequently admire Pelosi's power and status, I know of none that actually wants to look like her.