It seems that, just as the political pundits have become disillusioned with Barack Obama’s effectiveness, the style set is over Michelle Obama as a fashion Influencer.
Hillary Clinton -- Getty Images
Why do I think this? Well, instead of MO’s best and worst outfits of 2010, BLTWY has given us Hillary’s Clinton’s 10 best and worst outfits , and it’s worth checking out, simply to see the evolution of the secretary of state’s hair, and the way she has veered between a professional uniform of bright trouser suits and off-duty feminine frills, both pretty literal costumes for her woman-in-the-boys-club day job, and it-takes-a-village self.
Whether you like what she wears or not, it’s hard not to acknowledge, when faced with the pictorial argument, that Mrs Clinton’s wardrobe is, indeed, increasingly eye-catching and considerably more aesthetically accessible (and thus possibly influential) than Mrs O’s rather more print-heavy, trendy pieces.
Hillary Clinton -- Getty Images
Meanwhile, at the Daily Beast, there’s an entire treatise about the emergence of Jill Biden as a trend setter, though I have to say I don’t find this one entirely convincing. Dr Biden clearly has her own style — she likes a sheath dress, preferably in a red or pink — but one of the criteria for any Best Dressed list is that those on it be people in the public eye, and thus in a position to affect the way other people dress; they have to be seen, literally, to qualify. And the occasional appearance on Larry King with her husband aside, I don’t think most women have any idea how Dr Biden dresses, which makes it hard to accept her as a viable alternative to Mrs O.
The Bidens -- Getty Images
If a tree falls in the woods, does anybody hear it? If a politician’s spouse looks really good in the background, does it still create a buzz?
Vanessa has been the FT’s fashion editor since 2003, and is based in New York, though she lived in London for 12 years.