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San Francisco Weekly

Read the San Francisco Weekly Make Me Heal article online.

By Will Harper

Face It

Now that Nancy Pelosi is the face of the Democratic Party, we couldn't help but wonder about ... her face. The 66-year-old grandmother looks perpetually startled, and when she smiles it looks as if someone were reaching from behind her and pulling the skin around her mouth. The speaker of the House musta had a face-lift, an eye tuck, or some kind of plastic surgery, right? If so, it's kind of ironic, since the right wing is always bashing her for her "San Francisco values," even though San Franciscans generally value the natural look.

Last year, Wonkette conducted an informal Internet poll asking readers whether they thought Pelosi had gone under the knife (slightly more than half of those who responded said yes). More recently, the question has been raised on MakeMeHeal.com's celebrity gossip page and AwfulPlasticSurgery.us , which asked, "Nancy Pelosi lifts the gavel, how about the face?"

Pelosi denied ever having had a face-lift in an interview with the New York Times last May, saying, "I hear them say on TV that I've had face-lifts. I heard one woman say I've had a face-lift, but it looks terrible. ... Did you ever think that those two things cancel themselves out?"

Hmmmm. It's a fact that celebrities and politicians lie — especially when it comes to their surgical enhancements. Do you really believe Michael Jackson when he says he's had only two nose jobs, or practically any Hollywood actress who denies having had her breasts augmented?

We decided to consult an expert about Pelosi's face: Dr. Anthony Youn, a plastic surgeon from Michigan who boasts of having been quoted about celebrity boob jobs and face-lifts in reputable media outlets such as In Touch and Life & Style .

Youn hasn't treated Pelosi personally or examined before-and-after photos, but from watching her on television he says that the House speaker looks good — probably too good. He notes that Pelosi doesn't appear to suffer much from the hanging, loose skin that plagues most women in their mid-60s.

"Either she was blessed with great genes, or she had help from a plastic surgeon," opines Youn, who thinks it's likely the latter. "It's very unusual for someone her age to look that good."