Nancy Pelosi’s hairstylist says video of her maskless at California salon was ‘setup’
Nancy Pelosi’s hairstylist says the House speaker was set up by a California salon owner when she was videotaped inside the business while not wearing a mask.
Jonathan DeNardo released a statement through his attorney on Wednesday, refuting comments from the owner of eSalon in San Francisco who said the incident was not set up.
Pelosi, a California Democrat, said Wednesday the salon owes her an apology, The Los Angeles TImes reported.
“It was clearly a setup,” she said. “I take responsibility for falling for a setup by a neighborhood salon I’ve gone to for many years.”
Pelosi has faced criticism for her maskless salon visit Monday, including from President Trump.
Hair salons have been closed in San Francisco since March and were allowed to reopen on Sept. 1 for outdoor services, according to Forbes.
Pelosi made mask-wearing mandatory in July for all lawmakers on the chamber floor.
The owner of eSalon, Erica Kious, said Wednesday on “Tucker Carlson Tonight” that Pelosi’s comments were “hurtful.”
“There was no way I could’ve set that up,” Kious said, according to Fox News. “I’ve had a camera system in there for five years. I mean, I didn’t go in there and turn cameras on as soon as she walked in and set her up. So that is absolutely false.”
Surveillance footage of Pelosi with wet hair and a mask around her neck on Wednesday was originally released by Fox News.
Kious previously told Fox News that Pelosi’s visit was a “slap in the face.”
“It was a slap in the face that she went in, you know, that she feels that she can just go and get her stuff done while no one else can go in, and I can’t work,” Kious said, adding that she “can’t believe” Pelosi wasn’t wearing a mask.
Pelosi’s spokesperson Drew Hammill told Fox News that Pelosi was following rules.
“The Speaker always wears a mask and complies with local COVID requirements. This business offered for the Speaker to come in on Monday and told her they were allowed by the city to have one customer at a time in the business. The Speaker complied with the rules as presented to her by this establishment,” he said.
In his statement, DeNardo defended Pelosi and criticized the salon owner.
“The fact that Ms. Kious is now objecting to Speaker Pelosi’s presence at eSalon, and from a simple surface-level review of Ms. Kious’ political leanings, it appears Ms. Kious is furthering a set-up of Speaker Pelosi for her own vain aspirations,” he wrote.
San Francisco Mayor London Breed has said indoor hair salons and barber shops will be allowed to reopen with limited capacity by the end of September. She voiced support for Pelosi.
“[It’s] blown up in the way that it has distracted us from the real issue,” Breed said, according to Kron4. “The fact is, we don’t have good solid federal leadership that is helping to facilitate. Over 180,000 Americans have died as a result of this virus and had we had what we needed from day one from this federal administration then we would probably not be in as bad a situation as we are.”
Trump said on Twitter that Pelosi was being “decimated.”
“Crazy Nancy Pelosi is being decimated for having a beauty parlor opened, when all others are closed, and for not wearing a Mask - despite constantly lecturing everyone else. We will almost certainly take back the House, and send Nancy packing!”
