So the National Party were talking to America's Republicans before the election. What a shock. And in other news, Tony Blair and Helen Clark exchanged phone calls, New Zealand's Greens and Australia's Greens sent each other Christmas cards, and Rodney Hide was invited to speak at the Mont Pelerin Society. In other words, of course they were.
This is not news, and certainly not scandal. Once again Winston Peters talks big -- "I have emails that will rock the National Party!" he's been saying for months -- and once again when it comes time to front with the evidence, all he has is a squib. A wet one. The only wonder is how this wet, flaccid blowhard contines to get away with it, and continues to earn support.
The fact is, he wasn't talking to you and me (well, maybe to you); he wasn't talking to the Parliament; he wasn't even talking to anyone with an active brain. Who he was talking to his supporters -- those people with neither memory nor judgement nor any critical faculty worth a damn; those diminishing few who still think the Cook Strait ferry ran aground, that the Russians sent a cruise ship here on a spy mission, that Saddam Hussein's former Ministers are enjoying NZ hospitality, and that the envy-ridden waste of time and space called the Winebox Inquiry actually found anything to answer for.
Who he's always been talking to is people who can just manage to scan a headline and a heroic photograph, but who will never read beyond to the small print. Those are Winston's people. And to them, he's just scored another success. To the rest of us, this is just more evidence that to Winston -- and also to his new student Trevor Mallard -- truth is less important than a headline.
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LINKS: Nats election email leaked to Peters - TVNZ
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TAGS: Politics-NZ, Politics-Winston_First, Politics-National
2 comments:
Isn't this just another example of the petty politics we've been witness to for the last 17 months!
A number of parties went into election-campaign mode the day after the last election.
I think this is what we can expect for the remainder if this term. I think I'll stay drunk.
The importance of Brash not being upfront about this is about the same scale as whether Brash admits to having eggs and bacon or cornflakes for breakfast - ooooooh he's not upfront and honest.
If this is where NZ politics has got to then no wonder it is hard to attract any talent into the major parties.
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