Edwards: Hair Is His Lewinsky

At first, it just seemed like an indiscretion, a couple of $400 haircuts while he was away from home. But John Edwards’ passion for his hair is now a full-blown campaign issue with his Beverly Hills stylist telling all today to the Washington Post.

It started, as these things often do, with a few casual trims in 2003 and 2004 and no money changing hands. The stylist Joseph Torreneuva waived his usual $175 fee. "I was just doing it because I'm a Democrat," he recalled.

But since then it has gone on to expensive trysts in California hotels, Washington, Ohio and a $1250 session in Atlanta.

How will the affair of the hair affect Edwards’ presidential hopes? As always, it may be less about what actually happened than Edwards’ attempt to cover it up. When the $400 do’s went public, the candidate claimed his staff had arranged for them and he didn’t know how much they cost.

So far in all this, there is no suggestion of Edwards lying under oath, but it’s clear he is going to have a bad hair year.