There has been much coverage in the past few days of the revelation that the Republican National Committee spent more than $150,000 to clothe and accessorize Sarah Palin and her family. Politico pointed out the expenditures and said that the legality of the expenditures has been questioned by campaign finance experts who cite the Federal Election Commission's opposition to campaign money being used to buy items for personal use. Federal campaign finance law prohibits the use of campaign funds for personal use, which it defines as any expense that would exist irrespective of the candidate's campaign or duties as a federal officeholder. (http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1008/14805.html)

Besides the legal question, the other question that has emerged at the front of the coverage on the issue is how Palin can refer to herself as a "hockey mom" that shops at Walmart when she is spending this much for clothing, accessories, hair stylists and makeup artists. A New York Times article, “$150,000 Wardrobe for Palin May Alter Tailor-Made Image,” makes this point. The article begins: “Sarah Palin’s wardrobe joined the ranks of symbolic political excess on Wednesday, alongside John McCain’s multiple houses and John Edwards’s $400 haircut, as Republicans expressed fear that weeks of tailoring Ms. Palin as an average “hockey mom” would fray amid revelations that the Republican Party outfitted her with expensive clothing from high-end stores.” (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/23/us/politics/23palin.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=Palin's%20wardrobe&st=cse&oref=slogin)

That excerpt makes one other interesting point about this issue. Palin is not the only political candidate who has been questioned over fashion expenditures. That article refers to John McCain’s seven houses and John Edwards $400 haircut, while the previously mentioned Politico article made note of criticisms of Hillary Clinton for spending $3000 on two hair styling sessions and John McCain for having $520 black leather Ferragamo shoes.

The media seem to have covered all the major aspects of this issue. They have looked at the legal questions as well as those of personality traits and have compared this to the past coverage of other candidates. They should not state their personal opinions of Palin, but I think it is important to point out how this could affect the image she has created of herself. Likewise, the fashion expenditures of candidates may seem to be of entertainment value but they are not when they are being paid for with campaign money.