Everyone is talking about Sarah Palin's $150,000 in clothing and accessories from department stores like Saks and Neiman Marcus. To echo my colleague, Palin is a woman who presumably had few television-worthy outfits (or accessories or makeup or haircuts), nor the personal income to buy them herself. In Alaska, Palin shopped at consignment stores and wore $89 pumps, so it's not as if she is an extravagant woman (see Michelle Malkin for pre-makeover photos).

As Glamour's fashion blog notes, Palin's look is "that difficult combination of pretty, polished, down-to-earth, professional, and most importantly, electable." And like it or not, a woman in the spotlight like Palin needs to maintain that look.

But is $150,000 unreasonable? New York magazine's fashion blog breaks down outfit costs from Saks and Neiman Marcus and discovers that just six outfit combinations alone cost over $16,000. For $150,000, Palin could purchase approximately 34 outfits. Fashion blogger Amy Odell concludes,

Now, McCain picked Palin on August 29. That's 67 days of campaigning until November 4, so in theory she has enough clothes to repeat outfits just once, maybe twice as we get closer to Election Day--or, with smart mixing, maybe she doesn't need to repeat at all! After all, she's giving televised speeches daily and being photographed, so wearing repeats is a no-no...

In conclusion: A $150,000 clothes budget might not be the wisest use of campaign money. But given the demands of Palin's job, the figure is not as outrageous as it seems at first.

After all, have Michelle Obama, Cindy McCain, or Hillary Clinton worn the same dress or pantsuit for more than one major appearance yet?

FoxNews:

McCain: Palin's Wardrobe Will Be Donated to Charity

John McCain said Wednesday that Sarah Palin's posh wardrobe will be donated to charity, after it was disclosed that the Republican National Committee spent about $150,000 on her clothing, hair styling, makeup and other "campaign accessories" in September. 

"They will be giving all that back to charity, donating all of that to charity when the campaign is over," the Republican presidential nominee told MyFox Philadelphia Wednesday. "That is the appropriate way to handle it." 

The campaign said earlier that it was the intent all along to donate Palin's wardrobe to charity after the race ends. 

Politico.com first reported on the clothing bill Tuesday evening. 

The expenses include $75,062 spent at Neiman Marcus in Minneapolis and $41,850 in St. Louis in early September. The committee also reported spending $4,100 for makeup and hair consulting. 

The RNC also spent $4,902 at Atelier, a stylish men's clothing store in New York. Other purchases included a $92 romper and matching hat with ears for Palin's baby, Trig, at Pacifier, a baby store in Minneapolis. 

McCain announced Palin as his running mate on Aug. 29, just before the Republican National Convention, held Sept. 1 to 4 in St. Paul, Minn. 

Most of the expenses were initially incurred by Jeff Larson, a Republican consultant who was the CEO of the host committee for the Republican National Convention in early September. Federal Election Commission records show that the RNC reimbursed Larson for the expenses -- a total of $132,457. 

Larson is a partner with FLS Connect, a firm that has been retained by the McCain campaign and the RNC to undertake a phone calling campaign on behalf of McCain. Media reports have linked the firm to negative calls aimed at Democratic nominee Barack Obama. Larson's previous company worked for George W. Bush's 2000 campaign, conducting phone calls in South Carolina opposing McCain. 

Larson's office referred calls to the RNC. A committee spokesman said only that the RNC has acted properly in reimbursing Larson for the costs.