Politico retains worst fashion columnist ever

Tim Gunn, TV personality and fashion expert, didn't become famous by knowing nothing. But Politico, a D.C.-based political news outlet, couldn't have done any worse in selecting him to co-write a column evaluating the dress of high-profile politicians.

Photo by Paul A. Hebert/Invision/AP

In his debut column, Gunn's critiques are almost universally bad for Republicans and nearly all glowing for Democrats.

Maybe Republicans, in general, are less stylish than Democrats. Who's to say? But Gunn's expert opinion is completely undercut by some past comments.

In the early days of President Obama's first term, Gunn was invited to the White House and he met first lady Michelle Obama. When asked about it, here's what he said: "I have been invited in the past but I’ve never gone because I didn’t want to go to the Bush White House. So this year it was like, 'Oh, my God.  I’m going.'  I was at her table."

After Obama's second inauguration in January, Gunn said of Michelle's steely gown: "On a scale of 1 to 10, I give her a 100."

Here's a sample of what Gunn had to say about some of the Republicans in his first column:

Ted Cruz: "Ted Cruz's suits are often ill-fitting and wrinkled, making him seem disheveled and distracted."

Michele Bachmann: "She does an overall good job of projecting a polished front-office image, but those pearls say 1956, not 2016."

Scott Walker: "The Republican Wisconsin governor’s jacket is always bunching up around the shoulders, as if it were trying to cover him up. Is his jacket ashamed of him?"

And here are some of his comments on Democrats:

Hillary Clinton: "[G]lamorous Hillary is back. For starters, reportedly at Oscar De La Renta’s urging, she has a new shorter, sleeker hairstyle—a big improvement over her final days at the State Department..." (To be fair, Gunn has been harshly critical of Clinton's pantsuits in the past)

Joe Biden: "His extra-crisp white dress shirts and extra-pinched blue ties show he’s working extra-hard to keep his natural exuberance in check.

Cory Booker(seen in an accompanying photo wearing a wrinkled orange and black tie that comes down three inches below his belt): "Confident enough to take small risks, Booker comes off as someone who may come up with creative solutions without trying to reinvent the wheel. He is ready for primetime."

We've Susan Glasser, Politico's magazine editor, if readers can expect more predictable commentary like this from Gunn in future columns. "From my point of view, it's an exercise in fashion commentary not political analysis, and pretty clearly labeled as such," Glasser said.

@eScarry