Taking a Powder

Carol Platt Liebau | January 21, 2009 10:47 PM

Remember Robin Givhan, the once-snarky fashion writer for the Washington Post?

It seems that she'll be taking a powder in the Obama years. Don't expect anything but kudos in days to come, no matter what the new First Lady wears.

Givhan did an online chat about Michelle Obama's inauguration dresses, and her usual diet of catty comments was magically transformed into a symphony of purrs when it came to Mrs. Obama's choices. She even included the hoary cliche "Frankly, I think all that matters is that SHE liked what she wore." (Now that's damning with faint praise, if I ever heard it).

Huh. This from a woman who has likened Condoleezza Rice's boots to dominatrix attire and sniped about the clothes of Chief Justice Roberts' children, for heaven's sake. She's harshed on John Bolton, Dick Cheney and Katherine Harris, as well.

Are there different fashion standards, depending upon whether one shares Givhan's political sympathies? You decide . . .