The vapid emptiness of National’s 2020 election campaign is not an election winner because there’s nothing there to vote for.
John Key had an anti-intellectual vacant optimism that reverberated with negative-egalitarian muddle Nu Zilind and Key’s pump and dump economic model that saw the housing crisis create a speculative bubble kept the middle classes voting National.
Bridges has promised to bring back the housing crisis to make those middle class voters feel rich again and he’s followed that up with the usual bash the filthy bennies and gang members social policy, but it’s still not enough.
National are calculating on playing culture war backlash politics using social media to trigger older white males who don’t vote into voting and that’s it.
There is no vision, no actual statement of who we are, just a promise to exploit the inequality they fuelled for a decade to make the propertied class feel richer while beating up on groups their voting rump loath – Maori, beneficiaries, Maori, prisoners, Maori, gang members and Maori.
If NZ elect National based on nothing more than the promise to beat up on vulnerable people and make middle class property speculators feel rich again, then as a people we deserve all the damage that type of politics brings.
I’d say National were a joke, but a jokes take skill and good timing, this is just blunt force trauma.
Of course in NZ governments get voted out, not new ones voted in.
This means the Nats just have to offer something alternative as an option, it doesn’t need to be earth shaking.
The fact labour/green/nz first are in danger of getting turfed out after one term tells us more about their (many, many) failings than the Nats miserable alternative.
Keepcalmcarryon,
Pretty clear to see Labour promised more than they could deliver in the time frame they gave themselves. Nothing unusual in that when it comes to politicians in election campaigns. We have some epic differences however with this Government.
1) For 95% of the time between the 2014 and 2017 elections, Labour was being led by Andrew Little. At no point during his 30 odd months at Labour’s helm did he ever get any traction that even remotely suggested he could topple John Key who had a free unchallenged run as PM. Even the most optimistic Labour supporter didn’t expect them to be Government in 2017. Andrew Little’s rating for preferred PM actually dropped even further when John Key stood down. They were a very weak opposition and were light years away from being ready to Govern. Then, along comes Ardern. Her arrival shook thousands of Labour supporters from their slumber. My take was that at least now we will have a decent opposition led by Ardern. She may have had a role in developing policy prior to Andrew Little caving in but his mark was all over Labour policy. Ardern’s job at the eleventh hour was to get Labour over the line, not to go changing key policy.
2) The Government has made solid progress but it hasn’t been at the speed they promised. There has been no acknowledgement whatsoever of the things the Government has got right and they have been woeful at blowing their own trumpet which has gifted a free ride to the considerable vested interest ridiculing and undermining campaign going on around them. They present as sitting ducks. The last 30 months has been the most negative, misogynistic divisive politics I’ve ever witnessed in NZ. The 1981 Springbok tour was a divisive time for NZ but even that level of divisiveness has been eclipsed by the present “them and us”. That campaign is being led by the most vile and untrustworthy National Party leader I’ve ever seen in Simon Bridges. The perfect storm there is his second in charge being the appalling Paula Bennett. There is a blue army out there hammering the message all day every day that this Government is a disaster for NZ and is lurching from one epic disaster to another. Total and absolute bullshit. We’ve seen ongoing gross misrepresentations of facts with a Government that has been to fucking nice to take the gloves off and fight back. We’ve had calls for Ardern to resign as PM after Bennett’s campaign that Ardern had considerable knowledge of sexual abuse and covered it up. That is despite there being absolutely ZERO evidence against Ardern and huge question marks over the alleged farcical sexual abuse. That matters not one jot. Truth goes out the window and is 100% replaced with “perception”. As long as the Latrine Rodent Party is “scoring hits”, nothing else matters. What a disgraceful and diabolical reflection on the dirty politics of National and that situation finding a home in NZ.
Adding to this perfect storm is the media. Reporting on facts and news is virtually relevant. Many NZ journalists have complete contempt for Ardern and this Government and are waging their own campaign to oust Ardern’s Government by incessantly running interference for National. We have several revengeful journalists who despise Winston Peters and are very bitter that he had the audacity to choose labour and has routinely run rings around them. They are targeting him and NZF to not only justify their own position and win support from the large “in crowd” of NZ journalists but to also assist National. Yesterday, that disgusting Duncan Garner joined in the misogynistic online trolling campaign against an incredibly intelligent Ardern who is most definitely NOT an “AIRHEAD” as the gits adamantly proclaim. .Garner on his breakfast TV show with upcoming National Party candidate Mark Richardson at his side stated , She dodges questions and doesn’t say what she really thinks – “IF SHE THINKS ANYTHING AT ALL”. How the fuck can that git know what someone else is thinking and how can he get away with running interference for National that even degenerates to misogynistic personal abuse?
You have a long list of Ardern and Government haters masquerading as broadcasters / journalists in NZ running interference for National. Even includes husband and wife tag teams. Barry Soper and his partner HDA, narcissistic slime-ball Mike Hosking and his wife etc etc etc etc etc. Opinion pieces and personal contempt / hatred / revenge / total bias has now replaced the news.
You wage an incessant misinformation campaign like we have witnessed for the last two and a bit years, you will have a % of people believing it must be true.
I despise National and everything they stand for. Dirty Politics on an epic scale. They encourage selfishness and are incredibly divisive. They are the epitome of entitled arrogance. They stood by and profited from the housing crisis and even denied there was a crisis as it worsened. They created the biggest ever gap between the rich and poor that NZ has ever seen and they couldn’t possibly have cared less. Those struggling are the despised feral enemy anyway who will never vote National so just throw them on the shitheap where they belong. That is sure to be raw meat to feed National supporters. The only things that mattered were them being in power and $$$$.
Ardern’s biggest success story to my eye is redressing that balance. She has shown the NZ population that they are all human beings who are part of our country who gives a shit about them regardless of who they are and what they do. Inclusiveness is quintessential Ardern. Divisiveness is quintessential National.
People matter far more than $$$$$$ and our PM has had an enormous task of redressing balance and cleaning up the fucking mess left behind by the latrine rodents.
I’d choose a Government any day that is attempting to put things right over a party who denies there are huge issues, couldn’t possibly care less and instead spouts on about a “rock star economy” while epic numbers of none National Party voters are hurting badly.
Gini coefficient worse under Labour than National, child poverty going nowhere.
Jacindafan until recently I would have agreed with lofty ideals being better than the alternative.
But most of that partisanship you are noticing is coming from the woke.
Everything becomes a two tribe issue if you make it that.
And Labour decided to not fix foreign donations or mass migration or CGT or knock back the TPPA, water bottling or any real problems, what actual use are they?
And I’ve seen minister Nash and Ardern outright lie to the public over gun crime and gun confiscations, there is no excuse for turning on a sector of society out of ideology as they did.
They have allowed police to write the laws they enforce.
“They are us” but you aren’t us should be Labour/greens line.
Conservatism bad, police raids for christian guy (far right wing you know),but “ you are us” if you are Muslim and have very right wing conservative views, woman in the kitchen, head scarf ( I know a mosque survivor he’s a real nice bloke very devout, very conservative)
Davidson even blames all white blokes for Christchurch.
Either you govern for all of “us” or you play identity politics and set people against each other, which route did they take?
The politics of deplatforming and moral superiority is absolutely repulsive.
The left is not broad minded ir inclusive governing for everyone as you were sold, they are narrow, insular and actively govern against sectors of society they don’t like (farmers, white males, gun owners) and seek to enforce their world view on everyone rather than listening to many viewpoints.(hate speech laws inbound).
Let people be themselves if they aren’t bothering you. I’ll respect your right to safely do what you want if you respect mine. How hard is that to get right?
If I’m not “us” I guess the left clearly does not want my vote.
I hope labour/greens burn in electoral hell and I’ll be voting to try and make it happen 🙂
well put. It sums up this do nothing government . Nine years in opposite should have meant they hit the ground running. The Greens have been a real let down. What have they achieved?
JacindaFan, “Thank you!” for taking time and clear thought to bring out these points. I have copied/pasted your comment – it’s definitely a keeper. About the tragic state of our Dirty Politicking media for one thing… inbred creeps, some of them, who have sold their souls. So few people actually call them out. Yet so many read-and-believe, listen-and-believe. The radio jocks and the corporate media served up t-rump in the US, and they could yet give us the equivalent over here (once again). It takes effort to not just give-in and give-up sometimes…
like the reverse deportation policy announcement. it’s nothing new , at a quick search , 8 oZY’s since 3 years b4 2018 hav bn deported , thats 2.6 a year. hardly news u can use. all sizzle no sausage!
National’s offering is a competent government that builds things AND no Winston Peters. Add in no Woke Cancel Culture empowerment through new hate speech regs.
The worse the economy gets due to the CoVid-19 and the more the stench of NZFirst grows, the better the Nats will look.
I can’t believe that you used the word “competent” in the same sentence as “National”.
I said that’s what they are offering, doesn’t mean competency is what they would deliver.
It’s an election campaign.
Hear, hear Steve King and Ada’s excuse does not really change what she said
Yep like the Nats can stop the con virusLike Nick Smith can turn swimmable rivers into wadeable rivers .
I fell off my chair laughing when you said National competent and build things all in the same sentence.
You also fail to note the stench of the Nats donations that is going to trial.
For fucks sake some balance and perspective would come in handy.
See what ever you want to see Bert.
I know what the Nats will campaign on as their strengths, because I can read newspapers.
Having read your post Ada, I apologise, you are in fact only repeating what they were offering. I took exception more to the word stench, given Nationals history of dirty politics.I do see the bullshit, I see the dirty politics.
I don’t not read newspapers as they seem to be anti everything Labour, if they offered balance, I’d read them.
As an example why are N.Z. First donors all labelled today, whilst there is an investigation yet not all of Nationals donors are stated and yet that investigation is going to trial?
I can’t go on what a party campaigns on rather I look at what the achieved. National were poor in 9 years at delivering on what they promised, Labour have struggled with Kiwibuild, however so far have improved wages, benefits, and policy on improved living conditions. If, as has been released today, their reforms on the petrol industry drive down prices, then I believe that will be enough to win the election.
Bridges comments so far just resemble a barking dog and want’s to repeal a lot of the good work Labour has done. He’s fighting more for his leadership than anything else That doesn’t inspire a lot of hope.
I think if there was a better and more popular leader of the Nats we would be looking at September’s election with real fear.
The Nats are directly responsible for the Leaky Building crisis and the current disfunctional building industry due their past incompetence.
They are a disaster waiting every time
National is offering a corrupt government that enriches their donors at our expense. Just like last time.
And quite frankly, we could have Ebola virus sweeping the globe and the Mother of all Economic Recessions, and you couldn’t make the Nats any more appealing.
Despite a massive & ongoing dirty politics campaign (https://natlib.govt.nz/records/35098801?search%5Bi%5D%5Bcreator%5D=Hager%2C+Nicky%2C+author.&search%5Bpath%5D=items), fawning biased reporting by our supposedly independent 4th Estate (for example, https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/296489/media-biased-towards-key-in-2014-researcher), and a culture of bribery, greed and wanton lust for which they are in complete denial (https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/national-party-review-its-womens-safety-finished-but-mps-apparently-not-consulted), this assortment of corporate lackeys, bumbling oafs and sordid back stabbing liars full of vague promises and no detailed policies STILL cannot convince enough uncritical ill-informed Kiwi voters to give them a clear majority.
Imagine where they’d sit in the polls if reporting was unbiased and independent in this country.
Well akshully.
Most of these are just reconstituted from the last previous useless irresponsible Nat government way back in the 90s. Wealth via speculation, beneficerary bashing, attack on the average workers’ rights/pay rates, deregulation, free market nonsense. Proves just how mind numb and pure lazy they are. They just don’t care about the long term wellbeing of our country
Natz don’t have to do anything silly, they wait for COL to put their foot in it and if COL don’t (well we all know they will) Natz have a massive arsenal of dirty politics tricks up their sleeves and attack adds.
Natz have no shame, they are a party that spend a fortune giving away water rights to overseas interests and funding for more intensive cows in Canterbury while their man, Carter up North, failed to notice that it’s not cows running out of water under global warming, it’s kids!
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2020/02/northland-s-water-shortage-reaches-crisis-point-in-worst-drought-on-record.html?fbclid=IwAR1oBfm-Edq2lPykxaJswd_DO0UeRMJyAytGmvNAz_UIuC-7Imc6Q-nr4o8
Who cares about kids right! Cows are where the money is and that’s all that matters to the Natz.
Zero provisioning for council water seems to be a deliberate lack of planning, or at the very least, a known probability since the record population growth is not by natural means and droughts are predicted under climate change… https://www.stats.govt.nz/news/population-growth-fastest-in-northland-auckland-and-waikato
The Natz have also benefited from the woke voice which has divided the left and created the ‘too woke to vote” brigade that demand the world’s right, to have free entry into NZ and get more and more benefits here. It’s amazing how many commentators rant for 20 minutes about how terrible the government is or has been, before demanding that they will never vote unless their exact requirements are met…. One minute woke keyboard warriors are for undemocratic zoning changes in Auckland, the next minute they are protesting at Ihumatau when their zoning changes all goes wrong. The irony escapes them.
Individualism and impracticability as well as less and less critical thinkers, are more gifts to the right in NZ.
Well said Jacinda fan, too many people in our country are nasty, selfish and divisive it makes me so angry and sad that we have sunken too such low levels. And I get sick and tired of commentators on this site and others putting the boot into Jacinda when they forget she is in a fucken coalition its called MMP. She cannot speak for the other two parties and she cannot tell them what to do. She needs more votes and seats and she wont have to bother cause she won’t need them. National are inciting fear in people about gangs and getting tough on crime and yet in the 9 years they were in power this approach didn’t work in fact if anything nationals policies made our country even less safe, why because nationals policies exacerbated poverty creating a bigger pool of underclass desperate people. And what do desperate people do? Under national we would have spent a billion dollars to lock up more Maoris, gang members, and other NZers. This is not the NZ I want to live in and it is not the country my ancestors went to war and fought so bravely for and many died.
Nice, pithy article. Do you ever get the impression that nobody in his team is actually helping Soymin because a) they know he’s going to get knifed in a dark alley and so are conserving their loyalty for whoever wins the knife fight and b) they know they’re not going to win the upcoming election, so why waste ideas but rather keep them in their back pocket for a better day? Hence Soymins whole team share the same faraway vacant look.
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