Hair salon fall-out: Pelosi claims shewas ‘set up’
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday she was setupby a San Francisco salon where she was videotapednotwearingafacemask after getting her hairwashed, in violation of the city’s coronavirus restrictions.
“This salon owes me an apology,” Pelosi said in response to questions from reporters at the endof anews conferenceontheDemocrats’ proposed coronavirus relief act that is stalled in the Senate. “... Itwas clearlya set-up. I take responsibility for falling for a set-up by a neighborhood salon I’ve gone to for many years.”
Security camera footage from the eSalon showed Pelosi inside, passing by with wet hairandamaskwrapped around her neck and being trailed by a hair stylist who was wearing a mask. The footage from Monday was provided by the owner of the salon toFoxNews, which first reported the story Tuesday.
Theimagespromptedatorrent of criticismWednesday that Pelosi and other Democrats were hypocritical for placing restrictions onAmericans that they themselves are unwilling to follow.
President Donald Trump was among the Republicans who weighed in.
“Crazy Nancy Pelosi is being decimated for having abeautyparloropened,when all others are closed, and for notwearing aMask— despite constantly lecturing everyone else,” Trump tweeted Wednesday morning. “We will almost certainly take back the House, and send Nancy packing!”
Businesses such as hair salons are subject to a patchwork of regulations in California, based in part on how severe the coronavirus crisis is in the counties and cities where they are based. In San Francisco, hair salons were not allowed to do any business on Monday, but as of Tuesday, are allowed to offer services outdoors. The state requires Californians towear facemasks outside thehome when social distancing isn’t possible.
Trumplong showed reluctance to wearing a mask to combat coronavirus and has been seen wearing one in public just a handful of times. Republicans have routinely flouted public health guidelines aimed at slowing the pandemic, such as whenmorethan1,500mostly mask-less people crowded on the White House lawn last week to watch the president accept the Republican nomination.
But political observers say Pelosi getting her hair blown out inside a salon Monday is a problem nevertheless because her actions contradict her words.
Jessica Levinson, director ofLoyolaLawSchool’s Public Service Institute, compared the video to a “let them eat cake” moment.
“For all we know she had her mask down for 15 seconds and 4 feet, but the damage it does is enormous,” Levinson said. “It gives us all this great/horrible visual to look at and say, ‘NancyPelosi is an elitist who is totally unconcerned for working people and just cares about how she looks on national TVandDemocrats don’t feel your pain.’”
Pelosi said someone at the salon told her theywere allowed to accommodate one customer at a time, and that shewore a mask except forwhen her hairwas being washed.
“I justhadmyhairwashed.
Idon’twear amaskwhenI’m washingmyhair. Doyouwear a mask when you’re washing your hair?” Pelosi said. “And that picture is when I just came out of the bowl.”
A spokesman for Pelosi said normally, the House Speaker has a stylist come to her house to do her hair, but shewasn’t availableMonday. So the stylist suggested Pelosi’s team contact one of her former colleagues, who rents a chair at eSalon. An assistant to Pelosi called that stylist Sunday and asked him if he couldcometo Pelosi’s house. He said he could but also said the salon was allowed to have customers inside one at a time, so the speaker could come there.
Attempts to reach salon owner Erica Kious were unsuccessful. But she told Fox News that an independent stylistwho rents a chair from her provided the service.