Win McNamee - GETTY
Callista Gingrich, wife of GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich, has created a buzz with her blond bob and its distinctive swoop. It has been described as "eerily flawless" and indicative of a "meticulous, polished person."
Yes, there are pressing issues facing the nation, from unemployment to foreclosures. But there is still room, it seems, to contemplate the fixed pale-blond halo framing the delicate head of Callista Gingrich.
Newt Gingrich's wife has been asked about her hairdo "at every stop," said Kellyanne Conway, a senior strategist for the Gingrich campaign. "Men say, 'I love your hair,' women compliment her and then say, 'How do you keep it so perfect?' "
Callista Gingrich's bob is the latest addition to a distinguished roster of political hair to be parsed for meaning, from Hillary Clinton's headbands to John Edwards's $400 trim to the Sarah Palin up-do that even many Democrats grudgingly admired. Cindi Leive, editor-in-chief of Glamour magazine, said it's unfair to judge campaign hair, which exists "in its own realm," by runway and real-world barometers.
Always the same
In Gingrich's case, Leive said: "I'm just kind of fascinated by the aerodynamic properties involved, and how she gets it to do the exact same thing every time."
So what does the flaxen bob convey? Gingrich is "a very fastidious, meticulous, polished person, and that is reflected in her hair," Conway said.
Others have been less generous. On The Daily Beast, fashion critic Robin Givhan wrote that Gingrich's "eerily flawless" hairdo, along with other elements of her style, exuded "an excruciating prissiness." Stylists across the country have also taken notice. In interviews, several expressed a longing to see her hair an inch or so longer, perhaps with some layering. Many said they would add "depth" to her color, to make it more varied. Mostly, they were mystified.
"Not getting political, because I don't mind Newt, but gosh, I wish she'd lighten up a little bit," said Jeffrey McQuithy, owner of Vis-à-vis, an upscale salon in Atlanta. "If I could just reach through the television and kind of shake her hair a little bit, that would be great."
In a way, Gingrich's hairstyle is an interesting departure from the traditional role of a first-lady hopeful: to humanize her husband and be his more relaxed, down-to-earth half. On the other hand, perhaps some candidates need less humanizing than others. Has anyone ever accused Newt Gingrich of being too controlled?
