Politics and Money

[lesgetrich]

On review, I admit that my post was misleading but not entirely. I live in Sunnyvale about 50 miles south of San Francisco. I personally received a haircut on Tuesday, September 1st here in Sunnyvale where salons were permitted to open on that day and work on customers indoors. San Francisco also relaxed their rules starting last Tuesday, however, their rules only allow salons to cut hair outdoors. Pelosi received her haircut on Monday. It's also unclear whether the customer can be in violation or only the salon owner. In any event, it's understandable that someone in the Bay Area could be confused by the rule changes. Moreover, Pelosi claims, with some evidence, that she was set up by the salon owner...

Nancy Pelosi’s stylist backs speaker’s claim she was ‘set up’ by salon

“It was a setup, and I take responsibility for falling for a setup,” Pelosi told reporters during a visit Wednesday to Mission Education Center Elementary School.

“I take responsibility for trusting the word of the neighborhood salon that I’ve been to over the years many times when they said, ‘We’re able to accommodate people one person at a time.’ “

It wasn’t clear how Fox News obtained Monday’s security camera video from eSalon on Union Street, showing Pelosi — unmasked, and with wet hair — walking through the salon followed by a man with a mask, apparently the stylist. On Wednesday evening, Pelosi’s hair stylist accused the owner of the salon of having it in for Pelosi.

Indoor operations resumed Monday at hair salons and barbershops in some Bay Area counties — but not San Francisco, which only gave the green light for salons to open outdoors, starting Tuesday.

When the scandal broke, eSalon owner Erica Kious told Fox News that she was outraged to learn of Pelosi’s visit with a stylist who rented space from her salon. “It was a slap in the face that she went in, you know, that she feels that she can just go and get her stuff done while no one else can go in, and I can’t work,” Kious told Fox News.

But a law firm representing Pelosi’s stylist, Jonathan DeNardo, released a statement accusing Kious of having encouraged stylists for months to operate in defiance of shutdown orders. When DeNardo called the salon owner Sunday night to ask if he could bring in Pelosi, the statement said, Kious “made several vitriolic and incendiary comments about Speaker Pelosi” but ultimately approved.

For months, salon owners have been forced to shutter their businesses and, in some cases, close them permanently. In May, the Professional Beauty Federation of California sued Gov. Gavin Newsom over the shutdowns.

Pelosi was also criticized because she wasn’t wearing a mask when she was caught on camera.

“I don’t wear a mask when I’m washing my hair,” she said. “Do you wear a mask when you’re washing your hair? I always wear a mask. That picture is when I just came out of the bowl.”...

...“The speaker was invited by the owner and followed those rules,” said Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Dublin. “Also, no man would be subjected to this kind of fake-outrage attack from the right.”

Pelosi insisted that she’s been inundated with support since Salongate broke, including from hair dressers who say they appreciated the attention she’s brought to their industry and the need to get back to work.