Labour Party Conference 2013: The speech that will terrify National

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The wags will suggest that sick children were being lined up for David Cunliffe to heal as he made his big entrance at the 2013 Labour Conference but the biblical truth is that Cunliffe took to the stage as Labour Leader after turning blood into water.

Let’s just reflect on a year in politics shall we? Last year, the mainstream media completely mistook the genuine desire within the affiliates and the members to democratize the Party as a leadership challenge by Cunliffe. This manufactured coup led to the Anyone But Cunliffe faction to viciously and publicly dump David into the backbenches. After another sagging year of polls under Shearer, the Caucus finally accepted the inevitable and started a leadership contest that most of the Wellington Press Gallery misread as badly as the Caucus did, and pow, polls jump and Cunliffe gives them a 6% bump.

Cunliffe has walked that walk to the stage as leader of the Labour Party in his minds eye far too many times to not nail this speech, and honestly, it was the best political speech I’ve ever seen.

Cunliffe looked incredibly comfortable on the stage, he threw convention by walking around the podium, confident & looking every inch the PM. He engaged with the audience in a unique manner and the content and range of manifesto presented was articulate with an intelligence that wasn’t aloof or arrogant, it was honest and authentic.

So much for Labour’s step to the left being cosmetic, the pundits will be choking on his words. They honestly can’t understand that Cunliffe isn’t trying to win over National Party voters, he’s trying to win over the 800 000 who didn’t vote.

‘Building a future for all’. I think David Cunliffe just became the next Prime Minister

21 COMMENTS

  1. One word. Obama. “Yes We Can”? Don’t be fooled. Yes, we can, and we don’t need show ponies like Cunliffe, or the rest of the menagerie of opportunists warming Labour seats.

    “We need to move beyond oil. We need to do it fast, and we need to do it creatively. We Can.” – Vandana Shiva, ‘Soil Not Oil’

    “I am enlisting your support, and your commitment to help this party return to government in 2014” – David Cunliffe

    I know which I find more inspiring.

    • I get slightly annoyed by comments like yours because you so obviously support another party so why not state it. Face it the job of getting national out falls to labour. Your choice (obviously the greens) WILL NOT DO IT. So you can have all the green desires in the world BUT if you want to start printing money willy nilly you WILL NOT WIN therefore you will have no power to implement said green policies.

      • I remember getting rid of Labour in 1990. Hurray. 14 years on, what’s the point getting rid of National if their replacement carry on with business as usual, as National did in the 90s, and as Obama has?

        Funny that I should get accused of being a Greens shill when I’ve openly stated on this site that I am a Board member of the Pirate Party. But you’ve missed my point completely. Political parties operating within a parliamentary framework are playing a game designed by and for the 1%. No parliamentary party can fix the mess we’re in. As I’ve said here before, the only excusable reasons for going into parliament is to blockade it and prevent it being used to make things worse for our communities.

      • Why do you get annoyed if he supports another party? Given the reality of our political system one of the two main political parties is likely to dictate the policy direction of government when in power so it would make sense for everyone to be interested in what they do.

        • I’m not annoyed by that. I am new to this column and maybe should have known he belonged to the pirate party. But I didn’t call him a shill as I don’t know what one is. I don’t think it’s helpful at a time, when it’s important to get national out, for green to be in opposition to Labour. As I said I stand corrected. My apologies to Danyl Strype.

      • I’m a Green Party supporter, but I like Cunliffe and am glad to see Labour slowly getting its mojo back (plus I voted for the Labour candidate at the last election). When Labour finally finds its true identity again through unequivocal positions on most things,, I suspect it and the Green Party will have more in common than not – the Greens are at this stage still stronger on workers rights, helping those on low incomes and benefits, the environment and not signing bad trade deals, just to start with. I’m 100 percent certain that Labour will catch up on all of these, and am pleased about.that (still a bit of fence sitting going on as you would expect of the major opposition party).

        But just as Avenging Angel gets annoyed about people commenting on Labour who don’t support it, AA is a bit annoying in latching on to one short lived policy that has now been discarded and trying to beat the Greens over the head with it. That’s no better than the fear mongering that National does.

  2. David Cunliffe you little beauty!!! This is the first time since before that treacherous bunch in the 1980’s, that I have been excited by the Labour party. I had stopped voting for them but started again 2 elections ago to try to keep Key and cronies out of office. Now I feel true Labour has come back and I couldn’t be happier. I agree with you Bomber it is the best political speech I’ve heard. He covered everything I wanted to hear and more. It even made me forget about the ridiculous female quota bullshit. Roll on 2014!!!!

  3. Martyn, I appreciate you are trying to build enthusiasm for this slight-leftward movement by the Labour Party, but I find your triumphalist posts to be clouding the real fact here: Labour remains a capitalist party that will defend the status quo.

    A victory by Cunliffe in 2014 will slow the relentless stupefication of the masses by capitalist ‘rationality’, but it will not stop it. Meaningful social change will not be sustainable if the system remains capitalist, and capitalist certainly won’t fall over because of KiwiAssure. Does it matter if Labour beat National? Very slightly, but hardly worth the acclaim that you continue to give Cunliffe.

  4. Awesome
    Thanks for the updates and info as it comes to hand Martyn
    You rock

    I havent been back home for long after 15 yrs away but by Christ I will help fight for our country

  5. Yes, David Cunliffe can speak well, and he did a good job with his conference speech on Saturday.

    While this is a marked improvement from the former leader, we will need to watch that space, what will actually eventually be delivered as clear policy goals. Some sounds promising, other bits are missing.

    I suppose the “social security” and “environmental” policies have intentionally not been over emphasized, i.e. only referred to in very general and brief terms, so the Greens can look after those areas.

    Labour seems intent on gaining the votes from the “centre”, including some of the non voters last time, and the Greens are left to fend for the more “left of centre” voting potential.

    Perhaps this is not such a stupid plan. Nevertheless given their tradition, I expected something definite about the gruesome, mean spirited welfare reforms by this Nat led government going to be reversed and amended. But we got none there from Labour, apart from general speak.

  6. This is a Labour party that will be worth supporting, and a mission that the country has needed to undertake for a long long time.

    A country going forward has the capacity to surmount obstacles like the petrochemical curve balls and market crisies, more so if it is concentrating on a strongly diversified mixed economy.

    Under this leadership, at last, Labour has someone ready to confront the country’s problems. The incumbent lacklustre pack of profiteers are not going to enjoy the comparison.

  7. Good post Martyn. After the conference this weekend, it seems Labour via Cunliffe is intent on putting NZ back on track to being once more, a nation belonging to Kiwis.

    I’m waiting to hear the following statement after next year’s election – “Ladies and gentlemen, the Prime Minister of NZ, David Cunliffe.”

    Once those words have been uttered, ALL Kiwis will know they are on the road to a much better and positive future.

  8. Sure, there is hope. But remember Obama, and Lange! How do we keep them honest? Sorting out this mess is a huge, complex task. If you DC, do the right thing, the Corporates will be after you, even some within your own party. So take care, and Kia Kaha DC.

  9. The problem I have with David Cunliffe is that his eyes say one thing while his mouth says another.
    I read people very well as it is part of my job and there is somewhat of a disconnect with this man.
    I have to say David Shearer was at least to be trusted.
    Thank you for reading

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