Any time in politics you end your day having to defend being white is a bad, bad day at the office.
With all the focus on Muller’s TVNZ Breakfast and Q+A train-wreck interviews, Ryan Bridges devastating interview on the AM Show was missed which was a shame because it was probably the best of the worst.
Bridges challenged Muller on his claim that National are the Party for small businesses by pointing out the startling fact that barely 20% of his Cabinet have any Business experience, watching Muller drown during that question is almost too much pain for even a masochist to endure.
But the whole race issue was handled even more appallingly…
Todd Muller quizzed on Māori MP rankings, says nothing wrong with being white
Muller was asked by The AM Show host Ryan Bridge whether he picked his team on merit or race.
“The National Party always picks on merit. When you look at that shadow Cabinet, it is extraordinarily strong, particularly when you compare against this Cabinet where you have three or four heavy-lifters and about 15 empty seats,” he said.
He was also questioned on whether he believed there was anything wrong with being white.
“Of course there is not. You just need to be who you are in this country and what is phenomenal about this country is that we accept people for who they are, for the essence of themselves and their values and what they bring to the country. Both people who have lived here for a long time, Māori, and those who are migrants who have turned up more recently.”
…it’s almost as if National’s new Leadership team simply didn’t expect to be challenged on it.
Look, I don’t think Muller collecting a MAGA hat is racist, unlike my woke comrades, I don’t see the MAGA hat as a literal burning cross, and Muller being a political geek enough to collect one was at least mildly interesting but his capitulation to dump it and his lack of defending it suggested he was blindsided by his own privilege.
Similarly with the shadow cabinet being whiter than white. It’s not that they selected a dozen white volk , it’s that they had no idea how that looked to everyone else.
If you are gong to stand for meritocracy, then box that corner, but if you are going to select a dozen white people and then flay around trying to define Paula Goldsmith as Māori to defend that decision, then you have highlighted your own prejudice, you haven’t challenged the charge of bias.
Likewise Judith Collins hilarious claim that she’s “sick of being demonised’ for her ethnicity”, really girlfriend? Ask Māori, Pacifica and Asian-NZers how sick they are of being demonised for their ethnicity.
It’s not that National are card carrying members of the KKK, it’s just that they are so privileged that they utterly fail to acknowledge ambition that isn’t white.
This coup was driven by self interest and the fear of unemployment – as such it has no real political depth or value other than self preservation and with their very white decisions, National have said more about the true nature of their selfishness and narrow view of the world they inhabit than anything the Left can paint them out as.
National is for the few, Labour is for the many.
National don’t deserve 29%, they deserve 20%.
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I bet their ‘election song’ is “A Whiter Shade of Pale” 1967 single by Procol Harum?????
https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=z0vCwGUZe1I&list=RDAMVMz0vCwGUZe1I
Come on CleanGreen, let’s not drag a fantastic piece of music down into the shallows of the Nats.
Procul Harem’s song derives from a great Bach composition, and it debases musicians to suggest that this bunch have any affinity with either greatness, or innovative creativity.
The emotion of “A whiter Shade of Pale” is sorrow, and any sorrow felt by the panicking politicians is probably too trite to be represented by good music – there’ll be archived advertising jargon somewhere which suits them – maybe from 1950’s radio land – or some old tv comedy – ‘The Two Ronnies’; ‘Steptoe and Daughter ‘; ‘The Avengers’? Whoopee.
That damn hat was nothing, except that most small town folk don’t take their OE trinkets into work with them – it looked immature – most tourist stuff ends up junking up the den or the garage.
The shocking thing, the most blatantly shocking thing, was, as you say, fear of their own unemployment, something which thousands of much poorer people live with on a daily basis. It must have been a big enough panic to blind them to the optics of the self-serving situation which they created – and was politically dumb.
Half-decent politicos would have bent over backwards to try to be seen to be rustling up a team representative of the diverse community which – theoretically – they profess to represent, but they couldn’t even manage to do that. We can just be enormously grateful that they were not in power when the pandemic hit, when they cannot even handle their own internal crises with any degree of competence.
I personally doubt whether many myopic rightists know or care about the extent to which ordinary people’s lives have been massively curtailed by the coronavirus pandemic; most of us have behaved in an exemplary way without the buffers which cushion the lives of the few – and their time is well and truly over. Kaput.
So Labours for the many? Hows that square with this?
https://www.victorharbortimes.com.au/story/6770169/secret-nz-border-exemptions-revealed/
Right okay. The National Party picks on merit. So they back stabbed Simon and Paula because ummmm, Maori blood and heredity has no merit. What a hilarious colossal cluster fuck karma is. Simon for all his flaws and Paula for all her bitchiness- both of them were more in tune with New Zealanders then these train wrecks could ever hope to be. Simon was indeed in an impossible position as opposition leader- how does he oppose the peoples will? He couldn’t. All he could of and should have done is expose and question the budget created and the spending. But then again perhaps he couldn’t even do that, can anyone?
Just read the standards offering on this same topic.
I sense a large own goal for the left going all identity politics on the race issue.
Keepcalmcarryon: “I sense a large own goal for the left going all identity politics on the race issue.”
Exactly. For heaven’s sake: white supremacist! Is it even possible to have a sillier headline to a post?
I’m inclined to agree and assert that this particular line of travel is pulled back as soon as possible. It is not a good look, and could cost votes come election time if too many people start hammering on it.
It just encourages the offended ‘spite’ vote.
Something for which this COL cannot afford.
If we can get off racial abuse in NZ for a moment, we might also be able to look at other discrimination happening and some wins as well as a lot of lost ground, happening around the world.
The First Degree: Woman Is First Person With Down Syndrome To Graduate From Rowan University
https://www.forbes.com/sites/allisonnorlian/2020/05/21/the-first-degree-woman-is-first-person-with-down-syndrome-to-graduate-from-rowan-university/#7af05ba62e6d
45 and unemployable – warning to Kiwis that ‘ageism is alive and well’
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/money/106856517/jobs-warning-to-over-45s
Sexism in the justice system alive and well, if they bothered looking at sentencing I bet women are more likely to be sentenced harshly for non violent offences in NZ…. in addition it was found a shocking number of rapes in NZ are not reported and do not get a criminal conviction…. roast busters also comes to mind as why this might be happening.
I don’t think fear of members’ unemployment was the issue. It was fear of being rendered redundant by centrist political party that has gazumped the Nats fiefdom. Labour running a small dependent neo- colony with finesse navigating between the rock and the hard place of US and China, while riding with no hands over the bloody virus, opening the rainy day slush fund to give business life support while keeping workers on starvation rations, doesn’t give National a whole lot of reason to exist.
So to reset itself it has transfigured into the realm of the imagination and returned to the 19th century along with MEGA – Make England Great Again of Boris and Raf as the little antipodean better Brits of the kith and kin in the hope of inducing a white nationalist reflux.
The commentators will fall into line – du Fresne already has the Maori separatism angle in Stuff. Kiiw not iwi is on a comeback.
IF John Tamihere can convince enough Māori that Peene Henare will get in on the list with such high Labour Party Polling then I think Tamihere has enough skills to convince them to vote stretgically so electoral vote Tamihere and party vote Labour. That is the way.
Māori party won’t take Ikaroa, they won’t take Waiariki, they won’t take Waikato, not even the South Island, they won’t roll Kelvin, and you’re dreaming if you think packer is going to win. With a huge push the whole lot can get John Tamihere in for the Māori party with an extreme chance of coattailing one more. And if you want to be president of the Māori party then be the god damn presedint. But if your goal is to be the face of the Māori Party then put your Karakea away and run as a candidate.
And all those other so called Iwi leaders better shut the fuck up about there little fiefdoms and sit the fuck down. They need to go back and read those settlement agreements again and look for the words “you are officially a crown agent.” It’s not always in those words but it’s in all agreements. That’s means stop whinging and stop being a know it all and play the god dam game those lot signed up to and play to fucking win.
Wow – you sound bitter and hateful. Māori do know how to read nowadays and it’s not them that needs to read the fine print – it’s pākehā that needs to read their own contract! And go have a cry to your own elite who are too busy handing back land to tāngata whenua to give a damn about your white supremacist rants!
Great blog Martyn. However, can I make a comment (not a criticism) about your reference to Muller bringing his MAGA cap with him into his brand new office. I accept that I can and will be labelled as a ‘Woke’ but the stir about the MAGA cap is not about whether Muller is racist or not. Rather it is about perception – how it looks to everyone else which is what you say in your comment about the shadow cabinet being whiter than white. You quite rightly said – “It’s not that they selected a dozen white volk, its that they had no idea how that looked to everyone else”. The same goes for the MAGA hat, which in my opinion nevertheless represents bigotry, racism and misogyny – perfect epithets for those who wear them.
How did it look to everyone else then? And who is this everyone that Martyn asserts. Is it everyone left leaning?
I simply thought that Muller had picked his best team. But no, these days one has to pick on racial quota it seems. You MUST have Maori or Pacifica in there, even if they are not qualified. Having ‘New Zealanders’ is just not good enough.
Is that how it works? No, I don’t believe so. I think what happening here is that the lefties and their media are making a negative story out of everything, no matter how irrelevant. And they are doing a great job, including Martyn. It’s working, the guy is totally and utterly rattled.
His answers should have been short and assertive:
Q: Will you put away the MAGA hat.
A: No. It’s memorabilia, it means nothing, it will live next to the Hillary badge. Next question.
Q: Why are there no Maori on the front bench?
A: We appoint on merit, not on race. I have the current 14 best people on that bench. Next question.
Q: Can you list one of your election policies for now?
A: You’ll have to be patient, I know it’s hard for you. In rugby terms, we’ve been playing for 5 minutes. Wait for the last 20 minutes! Next question.
For now Muller looks like a total tool, but once he gets the hang of it and he gets a spin team like JA has, and he learns those fake sympathy head nods….watch this space.
You make some good points Herman, especially around how Muller should have responded to the questions put to him. My point about perception applies across the board and not just to those with left leanings. I had a very hard right wing person say the same thing to me about perception although he disagreed with me about what I think the MAGA hat stands for.
Is it really the “lefties and their media making a negative story about everything”? No, I don’t think so when you see some of the right wing commentators making the same comments in the right wing media about Muller.
I like your alternative Muller response to the question about policies. Yes, the new team has only been on the field for five minutes and Muller should be given the chance to establish himself but he hasn’t made the best of starts and that seems to be the view of the right wingers too. So it all gets back to perception irrespective of what side of the political divide you align with.
The “pick on merit” quote is just a line for the benefit of voters. No successful party picks on merit, they pick on ability to get votes, something I thought the National party was well aware of.
A competent political leader would know to sprinkle a bit of colour into the cabinet, if only to placate centrist voters who feel a tad uneasy about these issues. Is Muller such an absolute political novice that he doesn’t get this?
Didn’t he notice how John Key used his back story of growing up in a state house to undercut the reality of his wealth, and how Paula Bennett’s back story was used to sell the welfare reforms?
I’m a bit stunned really.
Yes unlike Key or Bennett, Muller doesn’t cut it as a snake oiled salesman.
How has National become a white supremacist party in less than week?
It hasn’t – it was just a media beat-up sponsored to the tune of 50 million dollars by the government.
The *real* problem for National is that Muller was unable to handle some interrogative journalism. John Key in the same position would have owned the conversation and send the journo packing. This bodes ill for National – and unless they get their arse into gear they will get a thorough hammering in September.
Cheer up Andrew. Once Muller hits the turf you’ll get Luxon instead – “Praise the Lord! Glory glory hallelujah!”
That is the transition plan anyway, Muller is a transit fall guy.
We said that about Bridges when speculation was rife on TDB that Collins was waiting in the wings…it never happened.
Yet on average?- it seems to take around 3 leadership changes for a party to stabilize,… Muller is number two…
…’ John Key in the same position would have owned the conversation and send the journo packing’…
—————————
I believe you are right to a point. A few words or phrases like ”I’m comfortable with that” or ”most hard working New Zealanders think” etc etc would have diverted much of the heat…but then again, perhaps Muller is less a fast talking con man and more an opportunist as John Campbell implied…
However or whatever,… Muller is toast in the coming election.
key was a trained con man with a legacy of lies while in office, beyond 100+ for those who counted.
Sold billions worth of derivatives for allan greenspan to retirement funds and small govts that were worthless after 2008.
Hair tugging anyone.
Day 8. Where’s Todd Day or Nikki tries to wedge Day.
So Nats are ‘white supremacists’? You aint seen a real one then.
The “sick of being demonised for being white” remark raises all sorts of racist red flags. This is the kind of crap you read in the comments section on youtube and is strongly reminiscent of Lauren Southern’s “it’s ok to be white” schtick. Yeah well nobody’s actually “demonising” you so stop playing the victim you stupid honkey.
Wrong. Inverted racist yourself, Knarf.
Give yourself another 10 years to grow up.
There is no such thing as “inverted racism”, this is an excuse defensive racists use. (“But Maoris are racist too!”). No Maori are not racist because they don’t have the power to impose an alien system of values and social structure on us. Seeing racism only in terms of individual prejudice is simplistic.
Curious comment by Judith Collins in this whole mix-up. Missing – her husband is Asian.
We used to say better Red than dead. Are the Natz now saying better White than trite? Whatever, it’s feeble when ‘merit’ is a limp excuse for poorly considered politics which relegates Maori to the scrap heap.
Good to hear from Bomber that even Hosking & Co. are sussing out the foibles of their new misleader.
To me National will have this abbreviation of being the NEGA lot. NEGA being Never Ever Govern Again.
I am sure however supporters in the NZ National Party will apply that abbreviation to their own approach because in all reality they are an Opportunistic and Self Serving political party. And they are the Copy and Paste type.
It is likely some of the National MPs who are opportunistic and self-serving are nearing their “USED BY DATES” and hence their ‘need’ to remain on good terms with Muller. They don’t and haven’t given a toss about NZers even during the National government years and it’s unlikely they would ever care about NZers even whilst in Opposition.
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