ELECTION 08: On underwear, magic or otherwise: a transatlantic issue

With underpants proving a decisive issue of the day, Richard Madeley stepped forward with his no-nonsense ten cents, one-upping Jeremy Paxman by claiming that modern underwear is simply too restrictive – he prefers the ‘freedom and the feel of air’ of going commando, and finds otherwise that his groinal region gets ‘incredibly hot’. With those studio lights beating down, one can see where he is coming from. (Read 'his' blog here.)

Britain is not alone in its fascination for men’s undergarments. Indeed, the revelations about ‘magic’ Mormon underpants have lead many Americans to wonder about the support lead to Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, not least in the three states that have so far fallen to his charm.

Why this sudden concern? It is close to the coldest point of the year, and close after Christmas, so one would expect middle-aged men to be awash with fresh new underwear. One could see it as a sign of national fever, or perhaps as an indicator that things aren’t all that bad if so many column inches can be filled with harmless tales about pants, even if it’s about how they aren’t what they used to be.

The ever-intensifying media focus on the US election trail – which, one must remember, has yet to produce two clear candidates – will surely, eventually, run out of policy comparisons and be reduced to critiquing the fashion nous of the hopefuls’ undergarments.

‘While John McCain favours standard-issue Y-fronts, Barack Obama has been spotted sporting stylish snug fit boxers, becoming the candidate of choice for ladies with a keen interest in firm social justice. Elsewhere on the campaign trail, while Hillary Clinton’s sartorial sense is best known as functional, some sources have it that she is more forward than backward when it comes to top of the line lingerie – a report that must hold some water over the woman who snagged saxophone sexpot Slick Willie back in the day.’

Considering the tackiness of some of the campaign merchandise, monogrammed underwear is only a heartbeat away.