San Francisco salon owner denies 'set up' of Pelosi, wanted to expose hypocrisy
Owner says Pelosi's visit is proof salons are safe to reopen; Claudia Cowan reports.
The GoFundMe page set up for San Francisco hair salon owner Erica Kious amid the controversy with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has raised $132,000 as of Friday.
The fundraising page for Kious said it was created just a day ago. Its goal is set at $300,000.
“Erica Kious, a single mother of two and owner of eSalon, where House Speaker Nancy Pelosi got her hair done on Monday, is now being forced to shut down and relocate her business and family due to outrage and threats she is receiving,” the page states, adding that “ALL donations will go directly to Erica to pay off any debts from the business that she is forced to shut down, expenses to relocate and reopen in a new location.”
The controversy began on Tuesday, when Fox News first reported that Pelosi, D-Calif., visited Kious’ shuttered salon Monday afternoon for a wash and blow-out, despite local ordinances keeping salons closed amid the coronavirus pandemic.
In security footage obtained by Fox News, time-stamped Monday at 3:08 p.m. Pacific Time, the California powerhouse is seen walking through ESalonSF in San Francisco with wet hair, and without a mask over her mouth or nose.
The stylist doing her hair can be seen following her wearing a black face mask.
Salons in San Francisco had been closed since March and were only notified they could reopen on Sept. 1 for outdoor hairstyling services only.
The story prompted reaction from President Trump, who slammed Pelosi for not wearing a mask and following local coronavirus rules while “constantly lecturing everyone else.”
Pelosi dug in over the controversy and claimed that she was “set up” at the hair salon, which she said she had been to “over the years many times.”
“I take responsibility for trusting the word of the neighborhood salon that I have been to many times,” Pelosi told reporters Wednesday. “When they said they could accommodate people one at a time, and we can set up that time, I trusted that.”
“The salon owes me an apology for setting me up,” she added.
Pelosi on Wednesday downplayed the fact that she didn’t wear a mask in the salon.
“I just had my hair washed. I don’t wear my mask when I’m washing my hair,” she said. “Do you wear one when you wash your hair?”
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But Kious fought back, decrying Pelosi’s accusation as “absolutely false.”
"There was no way I could've set that up," Kious fired back. "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."
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