What $75,062 will buy you at Neiman Marcus

When we heard that the RNC racked up a $150,000 department store tab for Gov. Sarah Palin, it was hard to immediately put that in perspective. The most either of us has ever spent at one time on clothes or other personal items is under $1,000. But thanks to the beauty of online shopping, we're now very clear on what you can get for that kind of cash.  We just got done going on his and hers online shopping sprees at Neiman Marcus' website, where we each managed, after an undisclosed number of hours, to spend $75,062*, the precise amount that Palin et al. spent there.

Here's a screenshot of Maria's shopping cart, which contains 63 items.

Here's a screenshot of David's shopping cart, which contains 212 items.

Hers

We decided to see what that kind of cash could buy for Sarah Palin herself, sticking to the Republican vice presidential nominee's own sassy-conservative style. And, of couse, we stuck to American designers. Also, we steered away from prints, which seem to have become Michelle Obama's signature. Palin favors sober (but occasionally texture-y) solids.

In the pricey "Fine Apparel" category, it turns out Neiman Marcus is big on Euro designers like Armani and Escada, and they're full up on drapey, filmy and asymmetric dresses, so it was tough finding sober campaign-ready suits. (Thank heavens for their deep St. John inventory.) After scrolling through many screens of enticing but un-vice-presidential options, we found 13 appropriate jackets and 10 skirt-and-shirt combos or dresses to go under them, enough for two weeks of campaigning between trips to the cleaners.

Footwear-wise, we jettisoned the America-first principle, since she probably won't get asked whose shoes she's wearing. We got her four pairs of Manolos, a pair of Prada boots, winter white Marc Jacobs boots, and a big fuzzy Australian apres-ski-style pair.

At this point fatigue set in. We began to suspect that spending $75,000 at Neiman Marcus would mean shopping for more people than just one suit-wearing woman. Still, if we were going to jack up our total by buying things Palin could wear during the campaign, we decided to go with accessories -- a shortcut, essentially, with a few $8,000 necklaces and 10 pairs of $3,100 earrings. (Also, couldn't resist a $995 diamond Hello Kitty watch for Piper.)

His

Boy oh boy. Oh boy. You really have to WORK to spend that kind of cash -- especially if you're a guy. David walked away with the 11 most expensive Armani and Dolce & Gabana suits in the store,  7 pairs of Prada shoes, 4 primo leather jackets, 7 pairs of Seven jeans, 35 pairs of designer sunglasses, 100 gorgeous ties, plus a bunch of shirts, underwear, watches, rings, bracelets, two iPod speaker docks and something called a Hercules Fleur-de-Lis Dog Tag ($920). In an attempt to get the editors to actually pay for this motherlode, David insisted this would be about 10 years worth of clothes for him, and that he would work for free until St. Patrick's day.  No one was swayed.

(David wasn't trying for much verisimilitude.  Mostly he just wanted to go Brewster's Millions on this whole thing.) 

*virtual dollars

-- Maria Russo & David Sarno

Comments

[Doug]

Ok people, I guarantee you that Obama has spent a ton of money on his endless supply of custom Italian suits. Let's focus on how much Obama has spent on his total campaign and how much good that money would have done the poor people he pretends to represent. Oh I forgot, only the federal government can provide for the poor so they will owe those politicians with votes later. The Democrats are sick hypocrites.

[Deortrious]

You guys are on Crack!!

Always talking down about people.

Why don't you explain how Obama plans to extend term limits with the 66% Congress he will have. Introduce Socialism...yes I said National Socialism or Nazi in the short...Control the Media... Take away our guns and absorb our 401K. While he continues to disarm America????? How can a person raise our budget from $2.8 trillion to $3.7 trillion while our economy has been damaged by the ObamBush program? Especially with the "Stimulus Check" we borrowed from China to buy crap at Wal-Mar which is made in China?

Wake up people and pay attention to the facts. We are headed towards another Holocaust and the next great Depression!! Thanks to THE Obama thinking.

PS - I went to Catholic School, I have learned about Jesus Christ and Obama isn't the next Messiah! If anything he might be the anti...no that could not happen. Not during my life. Could it?

[dragonfly777]

If she were black and spending millions on a stadium and Greek columns, you would have nothing to say. It is your increasing pathetic one-sided view that keep my money going to the Republicans. Obama is just an Affirmative action for President from WAPO. You will rue the day you jerks.

[Maximus Do]

Spend your timi writing on something else more useful. She's the VP candidate and she's deserved it. Even if it costs 100K, it's still acceptable. Go and get a life

[KS Dallas]

I think it is ridiculous that she did not buy her own clothes. She was a Governor - didn't she already have suits??? I am sure as Governor she had to make a decent salary. She could have bought her own clothes. Oh wait - she has to take care of her of her large family, an infant with a permanent medical condition and I am sure she will have to take care of the illegitimate child her daughter is carrying.

We are in the middle of a HUGE economic crisis and she is blowing $150k on clothes not just for her but for her whole family! I wish I could afford 1 thing at Neimans. But I am a REAL American and I live on a budget. I have bills to pay and food to put on the table. I am grateful I can pay my bills - many Americans are losing their homes and jobs right now. NOT a good example of someone that is supposed to lead us out of this mess.

I am just really glad that my hard earned money didn't go to buy her baby that several hundred dollar jumper and matching hat set from Pacifier that was obviously so important to the Presidential campaign.

What a joke!

[$150,000 shopping spree]

An 8 week VP campaign job. $15,000 a week for clothes. Running as a fiscal conservative, Priceless

[Jane]

Very good. Now let's try dressing Palin the Populist at JC Penney and see what happens to her image.

[C Nelson]

It says something unflattering about the mainstream media when they view the cost of Sarah Palin's wardrobe as more relevant than Barack Obama's past associations with racists, hate-mongers, terrorists, and criminals .

[palin pig]

what no lipstick in that shopping cart?

[Web Smith]

With all of this bashing by an impartial press, Palin will soon turn into a victim. Small town mom makes good. She only needs to dress Joe the Plumber up and do a photo op. "Joe's dream is my dream", she might say with Joe dressed in a tux holding a spanner. "This is what I want for All of you." "Let's get 'er done."

"They can dress me up and take me out of the small town, but they can't take the small town outa me."

Can we get back to the issues?

http://ewebsmith.com/Finance/notlistening.html

[Steve]

The sad part is . . if Obama becomes president, the tax on this purchase would have far exceeded $4,700 and therefore the purchaser would have bought less.

[Steven]

I'd like to see what the dollar figure is for the same number of comparable items at JC Penney or Kohl's or even Macy's, which is where "real", "pro America" "hockey moms" shop.

[Robert Martin]

Where is the story here? How much are the other 3 spending on suits ties and shirts? Clinton held up flights to get a haircut when he was president.

Good Grief no wonder the LA Times has to keep laying off reporters.

[GetReal]

I guess good old Sara just couldn't say "thanks, but no thanks" when they offered her that wardrobe to nowhere.

[Eleutheria]

LOL - Michelle Obama's dresses cost $148. The high range for Obama's suits is $1,500. I wonder what McCain wears? He probably can't count how many suits he has - you need a ready wardrobe in each house.

[Al]

This is so biased! How much has Obama and Biden spent on their clothes? I don't think Obama buys his suits at Target.

[TK]

I want to know who gets the $100,000 tax write off when everything "given" to charity.

[Sandra S]

You neocon blowholes are beyond belief. Every word out of your mouth is a lie. Every word typed in to the blogs is a lie. Indicative of people without morals, without integrity and without loyalty to any country. Sheeple of the Republican National Cult. You are disguating examples of humanity.

[dsw]

I love how the pro-Palenites here can only retort with the lame "Yeah, but what about how much the Obamas spend???", and saying it like they know that they are hiding something. Actually, we already know a little about what they spend and where they shop. Months ago when Michelle Obama went on The View, she was asked about her snappy dress and it turned out to be a very affordable $148 cut from some mid-level chain.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25280708/
Likewise Barack Obama's custom tailored suit in which he delivered his acceptance speech at the DNC. I read then that it was from a Chicago firm known for supplying the local businessmen and lawyers when they need a custom jacket. The price was $1400, which is a fair price for a really sharp looking suit.

So how did Palin spend $150,000?! Even with a family to dress, that sounds like going way overboard, obscenely so, as only the out-of-touch Republicans can. No comparison to the Obamas.

[Herunar]

To answer some of the questions here:
The DNC spent NOTHING on Barack Obama, Michelle Obama or Joe Biden's wardrobe. Obama paid for it himself, and he's not exactly rich (his net worth is about 3% of McCain's, even after writing two bestsellers). By the way, a conservative blog Townhall found that Obama spent less than $6500 on clothes that they found him wearing in the last three months. That's certainly not all, because Obama pays for it himself and thus does not need to disclose the amount. But that is nothing compared to $150k.

[1suzyq1]

Sarah Palin goes to small towns and tells people she understands them, and her adoring fans thinks she is "one of them". I wonder what they think about her $150,000 wardrobe? Probably worth three years of their annual income. People need to wake up and smell the hypocrisy.

[Roger]

How much does Hillary spend a year? How much does Steisand, Madonna, spend a year. Anyone in the public eye. especially one who is shown on national television daily, say Katie Coric or Barbwa Wawa? I don't believe she chose to spend that money, she was TOLD to utilize a wardrobe to be selected for her by an expert.

[Mark]

The story here, Robert Martin, is that Palin hangs out the working class I-know-you-have-it-so-tough hockey mom, while running around in $150k worth of clothes. That is very hypocritical and that is a story.

[ModConserve]

Al, you think it's biased to report that 'the people's governor' the everyday Soccer Mom, the one that charges the state of Alaska to live in her own house, wears $3,000 pantsuits? Are you really serious? I don't know what Biden spends on suits, but it an't $150,000! Michelle O'bama spends about $155 on a dress worn on national TV - Sarah wears $3,000 pant-suits from Saks and Nieman Marcus! Om God, oh my God!! This is incredible!!!!! To the 'clever' woman who mentioned O'Bama's columns - I don't think he wears them! And I bet they didn't cost $150,000! LOL The neocon fake conservatives that support Palin are so precious, folks. Bless 'em - and God, in heaven, please save America from them. Every Day, please save us from them.

[JoeyL]

For the record, Barack and Michelle's wardrobe costs HAVE been published, and it was barely anything compared to this embarrassingly inept candidate's costs. Barack admitted he wears the same 7 or 8 suits over again and just switches up the ties.

Is it a coincidence that practically every single intelligent, knowledgeable, successful individual I know (hundreds of people) is going for Barack Obama while the only people who are against him are people of average or below-average intellect who use the most twisted, flawed logic in their irrational arguments? The laughable, inferior people who use his middle name think (or at least attempt to think) that because someone gave him that name at birth, this means that there are some subliminal sinister ulterior motives behind his intentions? These people who blatantly lack any concrete intelligence really believe that they see something that the millions of people 100x smarter than them can't see. They really think they're a step ahead of the rest of us, and I can't get over how pitiful they are. They truly are oblivious to how stupid they are. But then again, part of being stupid is that you don't know that you're stupid; so dumb people will continue to say dumb things and think they're making sense while the rest of us laugh at them. These people should analyze their lives and maybe they'll realize that the fact that they've never attained any real success in their life, have a dead-end job, etc, is a direct result of not being intelligent. Therefore the fact that their lives have never amounted to anything should lead them to believe that they should not even consider themselves capable of making any sort of assessment about Barack. But they're not even smart enough to do that. Such a pity.

Good judges of character can see right through how disgustingly embarrassing and inept Sarah Palin is. Dumb people can't see this - their brains don't allow them to. As a conservative, I'm truly ashamed and embarrassed that I use to respect John McCain after using the most sleazy, dishonorable tactics in the history of campaigns.