It’s not often the National Party earns plaudits these days but the move by Chris Bishop in Parliament on Tuesday, basically on behalf of the coalition, was a smart one. Who even considered that this was the strategy that the coalition had in mind to delay the debate on the punishment for the sinners in the Māori Party? I didn’t hear anyone mention this possibility. And yet it was such an obvious move. It not only fooled the dullards on the left but also the dullards in the media.
Heather du Plessis-Allan asked ZB chief reporter, Jason Walls, why the media hadn’t explored this possibility. He replied that they had, right up to Tuesday morning but National was non-committal. Any journalist worth their salt would have worked out that being non-committal was a flag that this was very likely to happen. But no, according to Jason Walls, everyone was confused.
What was confusing about it? It was a move completely within the rules. If anything was confusing it was the fact that all the leftie journalists, so looking forward to a filibustering debate maybe lasting for weeks if not months, failed to engage what little grey matter they illustrate they have, and failed to see this might be a possibility.
The left in parliament were equally floored. Hipkins managed to confirm nothing he says is to be believed. Prior to Tuesday’s events, he was moaning that the Māori Party MPs risked being excluded from the budget debate. Chris Bishop has now removed that risk by delaying the Māori Party debate and Hipkins is not happy with that either. He said if the government had contacted him he was up for a conversation. Bollocks.
He then breathtakingly accused the government of running a kangaroo court and a circus. If they are running a circus, they now know where to look for the lead clown. He and his party, along with the deranged Greens, are obviously on the side of the Māori Party. If he thinks this is the strategy that will win the hearts and minds of middle New Zealand, he is deluded.
Labour, the Greens, the Māori Party, and for that matter the media, have proven once again that they are not to be taken seriously. Far from attracting votes from middle New Zealand, they will find as the election draws closer, that these voters will desert them in droves.
Maurice Williamson was a good listen on ZB Tuesday night. He blames the whole shenanigans on the speaker. He said Gerry Brownlee, whose body language gave everything away, did not like the decision handed down from the Privileges Committee and therefore allowed a debate on it that had the potential to last for well beyond Budget Day hence there was no option but for the action Chris Bishop took.
I initially thought Brownlee would make a good speaker but time and events have proved otherwise. It is not the job of the speaker to be Mr Nice Guy. The result of that tack has seen standards and behaviour reach low levels. If what Maurice Williamson says is true, then it’s a black mark against the speaker. Parliament is descending into a place which is unbecoming to its position in the country: it is the place where the highest standards are expected and should be met.
Bishop and the coalition are to be congratulated for getting themselves out of a tricky situation without anybody realising it. It also confirms that investigative journalism in this country is dead: they are just pumping out left-wing propaganda that middle New Zealand is no longer interested in or believes.
