A cold cup of tea

Written By: - Date published: 1:23 pm, November 12th, 2011 - 15 comments
Categories: act, election 2011, john banks, john key, national - Tags:

Well, that was a let down. The much-hyped ‘cup of tea’ climaxed in Key saying that he would be voting for Goldsmith but he “wouldn’t be unhappy” if other Epsom voters back Banks. A double negative? Hardly a ringing endorsement. I think it’s too little, too late, for a man and a party that are too unpopular. All Key has done is tie his brand to extremists.

I think Banks is still going to go down in Epsom. The gap is just too big and the public perception of Banks is just too negative, while Goldsmith seems mostly harmless.

It is likely that National will bleed votes both to ACT and to Labour/the Greens because of this endorsement. Far righties will see ACT as more viable. Soft centrist votes will be turned off by the thought of  Brash at the Cabinet table.

This is high stakes stuff. If ACT goes and Dunne loses too, as looks likely, National will be bereft of natural allies. And National’s support is tracking down to the point where it can’t govern alone. The Banks endorsement should only make that more likely.

What happens in this scenario? There would be no parties that would support its asset sales policy through Parliament, except perhaps the Maori Party, but that would require some kind of special offer to iwi that would gut National’s support.

15 comments on “A cold cup of tea ”

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  1. Jenny 1
    12 November 2011 at 1:39 pm

    The leader of ACT is Don Brash but he is elephant in the room at every John Banks meeting. ACT supporters again tried to steal the ACT leaders image from MANA candidate Pat O’Dea. When O’Dea again took it a candidates debate.

    http://thestandard.org.nz/the-greatest-threat-to-banks-brash-that-story/

    O’Dea had to remonstrate with them before they would hand it back.

    So much for “respect for private property” from the party of individual rights.

    • Draco T Bastard 1.1
      12 November 2011 at 2:09 pm

      So much for “respect for private property” from the party of individual rights.

      They only have respect for their property – they have none for anybody else’s. It is for this reason that I’ve started calling them (and all libertarians) Dictators hiding behind liberal values. They’re only interested in them being able to do whatever they like with their property and no one else having a say even though what they do affects everyone else.

      • Hami Shearlie 1.1.1
        12 November 2011 at 10:58 pm

        Agree DTB! Rodney Hide always talked about how ACT loved democracy! What a joke! Look at the way they and National are trying to usurp it in Epsom!!

  2. felix 2
    12 November 2011 at 2:25 pm

    So Banks is the ACT leader now, right?

    How come he doesn’t come out and say it?

  3. Mac1 3
    12 November 2011 at 2:42 pm

    felix, “Positively 4th Street” comes to mind, addressed to John Banks-

    “Why don’t you just come out once
    And scream it………..

    I wish that for just one time
    You could stand inside my shoes
    And just for that one moment
    I could be you

    Yes, I wish that for just one time
    You could stand inside my shoes
    Then you’d know what a drag it is
    To see you.”

    I’m sure Bob won’t mind reattribution of his lyrics to another subject.

    • fender 3.1
      12 November 2011 at 3:55 pm

      Yes Mac1…Bob has written so many songs that have universal meanings. One that springs to my mind is the line from “Blind Willie McTell”:
      ……….”well God is in heaven,
      and we all want whats his,
      but power and greed and corruptible sin seems to be all that there is”

  4. pollywog 4
    12 November 2011 at 2:56 pm

    The much-hyped ‘cup of tea’ climaxed in Key saying that he would be voting for Goldsmith but he “wouldn’t be unhappy” if other Epsom voters back Banks.

    There’s a word for people who live by the maxim…

    Do as I say, no as i do

    …starts with an H and rhymes with rippoquit.

    What’s Banks views on state asset sales ? Is a vote for him a vote for them as well ? I wonder how that resonates with the wider ACT supporters beyond Epsom ?

    • Draco T Bastard 4.1
      12 November 2011 at 4:23 pm

      Is a vote for him a vote for them as well?
      ACT has been supportive of selling everything ever since it started.

      I wonder how that resonates with the wider ACT supporters beyond Epsom?

      Probably quite well. They do, after all, like the idea of being rentiers.

      • Hami Shearlie 4.1.1
        12 November 2011 at 11:03 pm

        “A vote for me is a vote for him”? – sounds a bit like “The Two Ronnies” – no wait, “The Two Johnnies!” And I hope it is “Goodnight from Me, and Goodnight from Him”!

  5. fender 5
    12 November 2011 at 4:03 pm

    My fear is that the docile public dont or wont recognise this Nact circus as our very own “Tea Party” movement. I believe they are modelling themselves on the US version.

  6. rainman 6
    12 November 2011 at 6:31 pm

    I hope all the Labour and Green supporters in Epsom have the sense to vote for Goldsmith. This time it’s close enough to make a difference.

  7. hoom 7
    12 November 2011 at 9:10 pm

    Not really impressed with Goffs’ response
    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/5955798/Goff-looking-to-stop-MP-smuggling

    This is legitimately how MMP works currently.
    What needs to change is the 5% threshold, it needs to go down to at most 3% or even 1%.

    At 1% cutoff this poll
    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10765223
    could almost give us 10 parties in parliament with a good mix of electorate only & party votes, a good mix of interests represented.
    I think it’d be great 😀

    Very importantly ACT would look like what they really are: a small special interest party with little more real legitimacy than ALCP.

  8. Hami Shearlie 8
    12 November 2011 at 10:53 pm

    A double negative you say Eddie, I thought the double negative was John Banks and Don Brash!! I love the “cold cup of tea” comment, more like a cold cup of sick for the epsomites!!