DNC Day 3. Biden, Obama, and Trump Jumps the Shark

Written By: - Date published: 8:13 am, July 28th, 2016 - 88 comments
Categories: capitalism, class war, us politics - Tags: , ,

The third day of the Democratic Party’s conference in the liberty city.

Key speakers include outgoing Veep Joe Biden and POTUS Barack Obama.  With Hillary Clinton now confirmed as the Presidential candidate, the conference moves fully into campaign mode. Expect less bother from the Bernie supporters and more attacks on the banker’s friend and lifelong 1%er  Donald Trump.

The most intriguing and potentially damaging speech for the right may come from Republican Michael Bloomberg, who will endorse Hillary Clinton.

Speaking of the Donald, he’s made a speech in which he weirdly asks Russia to spy on the USA. He sort of invites China and bedroom hackers round the world to do the same. Not surprisingly, the Democrats have seized on his loose words, claiming he is the first Presidential candidate in history to invite a foreign power to spy on an American citizen. Indeed, to spy on the then Secretary of State.

“This has to be the first time that a major presidential candidate has actively encouraged a foreign power to conduct espionage against his political opponent,”

“This has gone from being a matter of curiosity, and a matter of politics, to being a national security issue.”

– Jake Sullivan, Hillary Clinton’s senior policy adviser.

We’d all hate for Trump to be taken away in handcuffs by the FBI, right? But, if he is in Vladimir Putin’s pocket, as has been claimed, that might just happen.

Presidential running mate Tim Kaine is up around lunchtime. Joe Biden is on around 2PM, Obama shortly afterwards.

Edit: Added live video link.

It’s healing time, it’s hope time, its Hillary time! – Rev Jesse Jackson

 

88 comments on “DNC Day 3. Biden, Obama, and Trump Jumps the Shark ”

  1. Ad 1

    Lordie even Panetta has come out against Trump’s links to the DNC email leaks. He’s about as defence of the realm as they get over there.
    The Trump campaign’s links to Russia are generating an awful lot of smoke for there not to be fire. It’s going to pull Obama further and further into the campaign.

    Not too long before Trump will be getting the daily security briefings.

    • Colonial Viper 1.1

      Panetta – the Obama nomination for CIA – came out against Trump?

      Wow, quelle surprise.

      Let’s see the NSA evidence of where those DNC leaks really came from. XKEYSCORE provides precise instant tracing.

      • dukeofurl 1.1.1

        XKS tracing emails at the DNC in Washington DC, unlikely as that would be a new Watergate as they say its only for offshore
        A data download isnt email by the way, they may have just infiltrated a backup site and never went near the DNC servers.

        • Colonial Viper 1.1.1.1

          XKS tracing emails at the DNC in Washington DC, unlikely as that would be a new Watergate as they say its only for offshore

          Link please. Bill Binnie, former technical director at the NSA (with 6,000 NSA staff) said that all these NSA capabilities were built with the purpose of being turned inwards on US citizens. Snowden provided confirmation that was also the case. Independently, other whistleblowers have shown major US internet/telco providers allowed the NSA to install snooping equipment onsite in the USA targetting domestic American citizens.

  2. adam 2

    Because the left have moved out, and away from the democrats towards the Greens.

    Yesterday was such an awesome day, may there be many more like it.

    With many more on the left moving towards a more constructive option, rather than the less of two evils. Good to see a maturity and a willingness to look at the big picture, rather than short term political distraction.

    • Bill 2.1

      As soon as Bernie sat down to negotiate with Clinton over what should be on the campaign platform, he blew it. He had no right to enter negotiations on behalf of the movement that had built around him. Clinton will, over the course of time, drop whatever concessions she made to Sanders, and Sanders will find that he no longer has a huge body of people – a movement – behind him.

      Movements work by applying unrelenting pressure. When one demand is satisfied, another comes forward. What Bernie did was define, limit and, sadly, break that momentum.

      It’s over.

      Some people will gravitate towards the Greens or whatever. Some will stay with the Democrats. But “the Bern” is scattered and dying embers now.

      • dukeofurl 2.1.1

        “He had no right to enter negotiations”- really ? He must obey the hive.

        Sanders has had a lifetime in ‘left of democratic politics’ and his previous comments about his experience arent pretty.
        After there is an official Green candidate to vote for, let them go there

        • Bill 2.1.1.1

          Obviously no comprehension of the dynamic at the intersection between the structurally fluid politics of movements and more structurally crystalised politics of current orthodoxy.

          What you have said – and it’s wrong headed – is that a movement only articulates one voice, or one concern (a hive mind), and then implied that it’s perfectly reasonable and proper for one person- or maybe a committee – to determine the relative merits or worthiness of that singular voice and to use it as a bargaining chip.

          But movements aren’t one voice – they are many voices and not always speaking in unison or even necessarily in agreement. And in that case, it’s not just that your suggestion of a hive mind is ludicrous, but any suggestion that it’s in any way proper or acceptable for one person – or a committee – to distill those multiple voices or demands down to a ‘contained narrative’ that then gets put on some bargaining table is fairly vile.

          If you can’t see the widespread disempowerment that’s implicit to that scenario nor discern that the seeds of authoritarianism it sows, then I dunno – maybe resurrect the Socialist Unity Party or something and revel in the power that comes from stamping hard on political diversity or multi-faceted expressions of solidarity in the interests of establishing so-called unity.

          • dukeofurl 2.1.1.1.1

            What Sanders ‘movement’ – he was running personally for the democratic nomination for President.
            Its was all about ‘Vote for me ‘. he raised $182 million for HIS campaign , not some movement
            http://edition.cnn.com/2016/04/21/politics/2016-bernie-sanders-fundraising-hillary-clinton/

            He didnt have much by the way of people running for office under’ his movement’

            You seem to think he was running his own political party, the last one to do well was George Wallaces American Independent Party in 1968 and got 46 electoral votes, but that was under a vile racist platform

            • Bill 2.1.1.1.1.1

              I understand perfectly well that he was running for his personal nomination. I also understand that he was surfing a wave that welled up from non-establishment waters as it were. He could have – should have – preserved the potency of the latter when he failed in his personal quest to become the next president.

              Unfortunately, it seems he didn’t understand the nature of the beast that was raising him up and propelling him in his personal quest – and as a consequence, he inadvertently took the legs out from under it.

              • dukeofurl

                Have you see the results when Sanders stood for an ‘alternative movement’
                1970 Senate election Vermont
                Bernie Sanders (Liberty Union) – 1,571 (2.2%)
                1972 Vermont Governor
                Bernie Sanders (LU) – 2,175 (1.1%)
                1974 Senate election Vermont
                Bernie Sanders (LU) – 5,901 (4.13%)
                1976 Vermont Governor election
                Bernie Sanders (LU) – 11,317 (6.1%)
                1981 Burlington Mayor
                Bernie Sanders (I) – 4,330 (43.43%) Won
                1986 Vermont Governor
                Bernie Sanders (I) – 28,418 (14.4%)
                1988 Vermont Congressman
                Bernie Sanders (I) – 90,026 (37.5%) ahead of democrat
                1990 Vermont Congressman
                Bernie Sanders (I) – 117,522 (56%) Won
                every 2 years till
                2006 Vermont Senate election
                Bernie Sanders (Independent) – 171,638 (65.4%) – no democrat standing
                Peter Diamondstone (LU) – 801 (0.3%) His old movement

                2016 Democratic presidential primary
                Bernie Sanders – 12,351,297 (42.69%)

                Hes taking his time about his ‘movement’ since he left the LU far left group. In the US system Green would be the best match but hes not interested.

      • Andre 2.1.2

        Or they could stay with Bernie and help him make sure the Democratic stick to the commitments to progressive change they’ve put in the platform.

        • Colonial Viper 2.1.2.1

          Why stay with a party you can’t stomach the ethics of any more.

          • Andre 2.1.2.1.1

            Because with the system the USA has now and for the foreseeable future, stomping off in a tantrum because you didn’t get everything you want achieves either precisely nothing (if you’re lucky) or a big step backwards (as in 2000). Whereas gritting your teeth, staying in and doing the hard yards like Bernie (and Elizabeth and others) can achieve real change.

            • Colonial Viper 2.1.2.1.1.1

              Hi Andre, I hope that you and everyone like you keeps attacking non-Clinton supporters as childish and immature; it really helps the likability ratings of your favoured candidate

              as for 2000, the Democrats lost that race all by themselves many times before Florida, just as they have lost it this time by ditching Bernie Sanders who would have easily beaten Trump in November, in favour of absolutely disliked Hillary Clinton.

              So don’t scapegoat the rest of us for the Democratic Party’s shite short sighted decisions.

  3. Wayne 3

    Trump! unbelievable that he has said that. But will it even hurt him? Going on the past perhaps not.

    • One Anonymous Bloke 3.1

      What’s unbelievable about it from your point of view: it’s precisely the sort of thing the Lusk/National strategy of deliberately poisoning the well is supposed to achieve.

    • AmaKiwi 3.2

      A Democrat who is not too close to Clinton should ask the Russians if they can get a copy of Trump’s tax returns.

  4. ianmac 4

    “Speaking of the Donald, he’s made a speech in which he weirdly asks Russia to spy on the USA….”
    A terrible thing for him to have said but for the large body of anti-Clintons this would seem to be a good idea. Many would think it wrong for those potentially “criminal” emails to have been disappeared.
    Irregular by protocol but popular in a cut-throat battle?

  5. Colonial Viper 5

    1) The DNC and Clinton campaign are trying to push the Russian angle because they are afraid there will be more critical email leaks coming up.

    2) Read below. The Clintons accepted US$2.35M in Russian money in order to sell out US strategic resources to a Russian corporation.

    The Russian angle is going to blow back very hard on Clinton.

    Beyond mines in Kazakhstan that are among the most lucrative in the world, the sale gave the Russians control of one-fifth of all uranium production capacity in the United States. Since uranium is considered a strategic asset, with implications for national security, the deal had to be approved by a committee composed of representatives from a number of United States government agencies. Among the agencies that eventually signed off was the State Department, then headed by Mr. Clinton’s wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton.

    As the Russians gradually assumed control of Uranium One in three separate transactions from 2009 to 2013, Canadian records show, a flow of cash made its way to the Clinton Foundation. Uranium One’s chairman used his family foundation to make four donations totaling $2.35 million. Those contributions were not publicly disclosed by the Clintons, despite an agreement Mrs. Clinton had struck with the Obama White House to publicly identify all donors. Other people with ties to the company made donations as well.

    And shortly after the Russians announced their intention to acquire a majority stake in Uranium One, Mr. Clinton received $500,000 for a Moscow speech from a Russian investment bank with links to the Kremlin that was promoting Uranium One stock.

    http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/24/us/cash-flowed-to-clinton-foundation-as-russians-pressed-for-control-of-uranium-company.html

    • dukeofurl 5.1

      “Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States. The committee comprises some of the most powerful members of the cabinet, including the attorney general, the secretaries of the Treasury, Defense, Homeland Security, Commerce and Energy, and the secretary of state.”

      So Clinton hypnotised 5 other powerful secretaries to get the deal done ? For something like this most probably had deputies who attended the meetings and handled the paperwork, as the principals are busy people.

      BTW I thought you rubbished any thing from the NYT when it used as a reliable source by others. Have you seen the light ?

      • Colonial Viper 5.1.1

        Just remind me – how many of those heads you mentioned are Democratic political appointees?

        I think that answers your question (and also the question of why the FBI and DOJ didn’t indict Hillary Clinton for mishandling and losing classified information).

        One other thing – now that the IRS has started an investigation of the Clinton Foundation, I won’t really need to add any more comments for a while.

        • dukeofurl 5.1.1.1

          The classified material thing was a minor event. 3 emails out of 2000 which had “C” in the margins meaning ‘confidential’. Nothing was else was marked classified or even secret at the time Clinton saw it.

          No IRS investigation of Clinton Foundation either – you should check these things, a month back it was FBI investigation Clinton Foundation, but rust never sleeps.
          Yes lots of people are screaming investigate, but nothing has come of it

          “IRS Commissioner John Koskinen wrote to House Republican Marsha Blackburn (Tennessee) to inform her that the issue had been “forwarded” to the IRS “Exempt Organization Examinations” program in Dallas.
          “This program considers all referrals and will send you a separate acknowledgement when it receives your information,” Koskinen wrote in a letter dated July 22..”

          I could sent a letter to IRD asking them to investigate you ( I wont), but it doesnt mean they are or will do anything about it.

          But of course when nothing happens, it just means they are corrupt lap dogs of the Clinton cabal, so go figure

  6. Andre 6

    What Trump might do with the NSA’a powers if he gets the chance…

    http://www.vox.com/2016/7/27/12298664/trump-dnc-hacking-power

    • Colonial Viper 6.1

      Obama and the Dems have been a massive supporter of the military industrial surveillance complex and opponent of intelligence whistleblowers, supporting the locking up of many of them (like Chelsea Manning, who recently tried to take her own life) for decades.

      Under his watch the journalists of whole news services have been spied on, and the personal business of citizens of countries like NZ are an open book. Under Obama there have also been multiple cases of the IRS being used to target political enemies.

      So bitch about what Trump might or might not do; Obama helped build the machinery and use it.

  7. riffer 7

    The irony in Trump’s comment on hacking was probably lost on the majority of people. When I heard it I laughed. I’d read it as more of a commentary on Obama’s power as President and alluding to President’s not having that much power at all. Probably not a good thing to say though, as everyone seems to take stuff so literally.

    • Colonial Viper 7.1

      My mates and I figured out a long time ago that Trump spends at least half his day trolling the media with these comments. Some of them are really quite clever when you read into them.

      Banning Muslims coming into the USA ‘until we’ve figured out a plan to deal with Islamic terrorism’ for instance. The liberal media flies into a frenzy at the first half the sentence and doesn’t notice that Trump already has is plan to ‘deal with Islamic terrorism’ i.e. the travel ban would never happen.

      Very funny.

  8. Siobhan 8

    ‘ In what looks to be an embarrassing gaffe, the candidate of the 1%ers has requested help from Russia to hack Hillary Clinton’s emails”..that bit confused me, I’m thinking why would Hilary call for the Russians to hack her emails…

    • The evil of two lessers, as Bill Andersen used to call the American two party system! But we shouldn’t forget that Trump comes from wealth and privilege and is determined to make sure the inequality gap between most Americans and the 1% continues to grow.

      • Colonial Viper 8.1.1

        Donald Trump has announced that he will re-open, re-negotiate or throw out NAFTA in his first year as POTUS.

        That will lead to a resurgence in US manufacturing and a drop in cheap imports from Mexico and Canada.

        I can see the working class getting behind that. And they are.

      • Siobhan 8.1.2

        Do you think Goldman Sachs. Morgan Stanley. Deutsche Bank. Kohlberg Kravis Roberts. UBS Wealth Management. Monsanto etc etc etc hired Hilary to give them speeches about how she believes in equality and deconstructing a system that created the one percent??
        How very open minded of them.

        • Colonial Viper 8.1.2.1

          I think Trump should release his tax returns, and Clinton should release the text of her highly paid speeches to the big banks.

          • dukeofurl 8.1.2.1.1

            release the text ?, thats so 1990s.

            Heres a video, if you bothered to look it up

            Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women: Proving the Case for Women Entrepreneurs
            https://youtu.be/0lKlJ3Ed4fQ

            “The event featured a keynote address from former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on the business case for empowering women to ensure future economic growth.”

            Im sure it will check all the boxes about the Clintons and Wall St and their plan to enrich the 1% further.

        • te reo putake 8.1.2.2

          Did you read the speeches, Siobhan? Perhaps they did indeed touch on equality etc. I reckon you should probably do some research, rather than make assumptions.

          Whatever you feelings about Clinton, she has at least a lifelong record of service to her nation. We might quibble about the quality, but the other guy has a lifelong record of privilege, wealth and bigotry.

          • Colonial Viper 8.1.2.2.1

            Interesting. How does accepting US$2.35M of Russian money into the Clinton Foundation around the time she was signing off on deals to sell 20% of US uranium reserves to the Russians count as “service to her nation.”

            • te reo putake 8.1.2.2.1.1

              How does cherry picking disprove a wider point? 🙂

              • Colonial Viper

                I can give you a dozen more data points on Clinton taking millions in foreign money in what you call “service to her nation” if you like. Lot’s of cherries where this one came from.

                But I won’t need to because Trump is going to bring all of this up over and over again in the next 4 months.

                • Still cherry picking and irrelevant to her service to the nation. Her entire adult life has been one of service. That’s way different to how your 1%er hero has lived his life.

                  • Siobhan

                    Her entire life has been one of service. The question is, service to who?? The people who pay her would seem a good starting point.

                    Hilarys life is like a box of cherries.

                    • I guess that makes Vince Foster one of the squishier cherries in the box…

                    • McFlock

                      Jeez, that old lie again.

                      Still, goes to show that conspiracists have been profiting off straightforward deaths for decades, without regard to any of the real people involved.

                  • One Two

                    “Irrelevant to her service to the nation”…

                    Comedy Gold!

          • Siobhan 8.1.2.2.2

            I would love to read the speeches..do you have a link??
            I’m sure Hilary has released them as they would totally convince us all of her sincerity.

            • te reo putake 8.1.2.2.2.1

              They have google on computers now, so you can, as I suggested, do some research, if you’re that exercised about the matter.

              • Siobhan

                SHE WILL NOT RELEASE THE SPEECHES.

                Do you not understand??

                “I will look into it. I don’t know the status, but I will certainly look into it.”..that Hillarys statement. And yes, I Googled that. As a Hilary fan maybe you should Google facts from sites other than weloveHillary.com.

                And yes, I get ‘exercised’ about you know, facts.

                • Thanks for clarifying! You might have said that at the start and saved us both some time we’ll never get back. I’m really not as up with right wing Hillary hate memes as some people might think 😉

                  • dukeofurl

                    Hillary Speech Video at Goldman Sachs
                    https://youtu.be/0lKlJ3Ed4fQ

                    Siobhan, you never looked did you, just repeated the ‘story’

                    • Colonial Viper

                      Clinton doubles down on refusing to release bank speech transcripts

                      Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is doubling down on a strategy of not releasing transcripts of speeches she gave to Goldman Sachs and other investment banks.

                      Clinton has refused to release any of the transcripts in the face of a pressure campaign from rival candidate Bernie Sanders, who has relentlessly attacked the Democratic front-runner as being too closely tied to Wall Street.

                      “She’s not going to basically create a standard that isn’t applied to anyone else in this race,” said one longtime Clinton ally and confidante of her position on releasing the transcripts.

                      The issue has been an effective line of attack from Sanders, who has closed the gap with Clinton in national polls.

                      It also appears to have hurt Clinton, who has seen her favorability rating in polls drop below 50 percent. Just as bad, Clinton has seen her marks fall with Americans when they are asked whether they trust her or see her as honest.

                      http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/277302-clinton-doubling-down-on-transcripts

  9. Ad 9

    An interview with Trump on his view of current military and geopolitical events:

    http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/22/us/politics/donald-trump-foreign-policy-interview.html?_r=0

    In particular he was asked what happens when NATO members get invaded but haven’t paid their financial contributions for membership.

    Haberman:
    “Can the members of NATO , including the new members in the Baltics, count on the United States to come to their military aid if they were attacked by Russia? And count on fulfilling our obligations …

    Trump:
    Have they fulfilled their obligations to us? If they fulfil their obligations to us, the answer is yes.

    Haberman:
    And if not?

    Trump:
    Well, I’m not saying not. I’m saying, right now, there are many countries that have not fulfilled their obligations to us.

    If I were in Latvia, noting what Russia did to Crimea just three years ago, I would not be reassured in its NATO treaty to defend it from Russia.

    • Colonial Viper 9.1

      I see you’re on this track again Ad. Tell me, why should Germany the UK, Canada and France take their people to war over Lithuania? It’s like NATO wants to set up a repeat of WW1 where illogical treatises turned a few minor niggles into a trans-European million death war.

      What’s the strategic purpose of having Latvia in NATO other than to find an excuse to put even more NATO bases on Russia’s border?

      Last question – Russia couldn’t be bothered to take over Ukraine even though it contained a whole heap of heavy industry and farm land that Russia depended on.

      Why on Earth would Russia bother with owning a small and economically backward country like Eastonia?

      If I were in Latvia, noting what Russia did to Crimea just three years ago, I would not be reassured in its NATO treaty to defend it from Russia.

      Huh? Are Latvians going to vote en masse to rejoin Russia like the Crimeans did?

      The Crimea is as part of Russia as Rhode Island is to the USA.

      • Ad 9.1.1

        I don’t presume to be an expert in international war.

        I’m pointing out that in the interview, Trump’s stated price for sustaining NATO is membership cash. I can understand the frustration of free-loading, but putting tiny countries on notice like that is a thing.

        I can only hazard a guess on your first question to be: because the signatories to NATO are committed to their international obligations to militarily protect each other.

        I have no idea about the strategic purpose of having Latvia in NATO.

        In answer to your last question about why would Russia bother with Estonia, well, probably Crimea, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and a bunch of others were asking themselves the same question. Until the tanks rolled in.

        • Colonial Viper 9.1.1.1

          I’ve already answered re: Crimea. Self determination is a right granted by the UN and the Crimeans chose to go with Moscow and not the neo-Nazi crowd who took over Kiev.

          Georgia. Russia can’t be bothered with Georgia either. They rolled the tanks in and rolled them back out to make a statement about not killing Russian peacekeepers.

          Azerbaijan. The west has as much business in Azerbaijan as Russia has in telling the USA what to do in Puerto Rico.

      • DoublePlusGood 9.1.2

        “The Crimea is as part of Russia as Rhode Island is to the USA.”
        What, stolen from indigenous people?

        • Colonial Viper 9.1.2.1

          Napolean wanted it; he couldn’t take it.

          NB the Kievan Rus have been all through that area since about the 8th or 9th century AD.

          And today Russia is a federation comprising dozens of different ethnic groups each of which keeps their own cultural identity and language. Orthodox Christians, Catholics, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, etc. are all welcome to practice. Moscow recently opened one of the biggest Mosques in Europe.

          • dukeofurl 9.1.2.1.1

            I think he meant the Crimean tartars who were evicted.

            The area has ruled by the remnants of The Golden Horde as the Crimean Khnate until around the 15th century when they came under loose control of the Ottoman Sultans. The area extended into southern Russia and Ukriane.
            http://www.allempires.com/article/index.php?q=The_Crimean_Khanate
            en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crimean_Khanate

            It wasnt annexed by Russia till 1783, so it had a long period under control of Golden Horde , Byazantium and The Ottomans

            • DoublePlusGood 9.1.2.1.1.1

              Yeah, there’s a myriad people with historical claims to Crimea.
              I was just making a general comment about the difficulty of saying things belong to people when that is really just because of empire and conquest.

            • Cemetery Jones 9.1.2.1.1.2

              The Khanate seized the lands around Kiev (including Crimea) when they invaded the old Kingdom of Russia in the 13th century. By then, Kiev had been a royal seat in Russia for around 500 years.

            • Colonial Viper 9.1.2.1.1.3

              A majority of Crimean tartars voted to go with Russia and against going with the neo-nazis in Kiev.

              • GregJ

                They didn’t CV. The Mejlis of the Crimean Tatars called for a boycott and the estimate is that fewer than 5% of Tatars voted in the referendum. The Tatars want to to be an autonomous republic as part of Ukraine – they want the ethnic Russians out – not surprising given the genocide carried out on the Tatars by the Soviets in 1944.

                Of course the Russians have moved to delegitimise the Mejlis by banning it this year as an “extremist organisation” – accusing it of using “propaganda of aggression and hatred towards Russia, inciting ethnic nationalism and extremism in society” (the irony is just delicious).

                I’m sure the Turkish Kurds would understand how the Tatars feel.

                • Colonial Viper

                  Ukraine had plenty of time to grant those Tartars autonomous status.

                  At least in Russia the Tartar language and culture will be properly protected, unlike by the neo-nazi regime in Kiev.

                  The Crimean Tartar language has also now been granted full official language status on Crimea, on par with Russian and Ukranian.

                  The resolution provides for constitutional reform that would amend several key provisions of Crimea’s basic law. Under the amended constitution, the Crimean Tatar language would be granted official status, on a par with Russian and Ukrainian in Crimea.

                  It stipulates proportional representation in future parliaments and provides for at least 20 percent of seats in the republic’s executive for Crimean Tatars. They would have guaranteed representation in the lower levels of government as well.

                  The parliament also wants to recognize as official the self-governance bodies of the Crimean Tatars, starting with the Kurultai, a general assembly of the Tatars.

                  Crimean MPs pledged to fund programs for support of the Tatar community in Crimea and repatriation of Crimean Tatars, who were deported from the peninsula by Joseph Stalin’s Soviet government in the 1940s.

                  There will also be recognition of the Tatars’ cultural impact on Crimea through the return of the original names of some geographical features such as mountains or rivers that were changed at the time of the deportation.

                  https://www.rt.com/news/crimea-tatar-rights-guarantee-122/

  10. Siobhan 10

    Does anyone know when Hilary last gave an interview to the Press??

    According to the Washington Post her first interview as the Nominee will be on Fox..https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/07/27/hillary-clinton-is-giving-her-first-interview-as-the-democratic-nominee-to-fox-news/

    • dukeofurl 10.1

      Or NBC Meet the Press on July 31.

      or 60 minutes for CBS
      “Hillary Clinton said Republicans have created a “Hillary standard” that has contributed to the negative impression many people have of her, giving her first joint interview with her newly announced running mate, Sen. Tim Kaine.
      “I often feel like there’s the Hillary standard and then there’s the standard for everybody else,” the presumptive Democratic nominee said in the interview on CBS News’ “60 Minutes.”

      Fox News is a news channel so likely has scheduled it earlier.

  11. Enough is Enough 11

    “banker’s friend and lifelong 1%er Donald Trump”

    Trump is a 0.0001%er

    But I think you will find Hillary is closer to the bankers and owes more to Wall Street than Trump ever will

    • Colonial Viper 11.1

      The key to understanding this is that while Trump is definitely a 0.01%’er he is not a D.C. / K Street beltway insider.

      • Phil 11.1.1

        Trump and his companies have thrown bucket loads of money at politicians since at least the 1990’s. Trump claims to have donated heavily to the McCain and Romney presidential campaigns.

        If that’s not the assessment you’re using to decide if someone’s a Washington DC insider, what is?

        • Colonial Viper 11.1.1.1

          Trump has thrown money at Washington politicians before yes, but he doesn’t have his own lobbyist firms like Big Oil and Big Guns do; he doesn’t have a revolving door of senior managers who one year staff his corporations and the next year staff the White House like the big banks do.

          • ianmac 11.1.1.1.1

            On 60 Minutes Prime this week there was an interview with Trump and his running mate. Terrifying lack of wisdom, relevance or connectedness. When he had quoted back to him each of his declarations, not one could he explain or justify.
            God Save America.
            Must be next week:”60 Minutes Prime Monday visits racially segregated communities after recent Police shootings of black Americans. Also tonight the first joint interview with Hillary Clinton and her running mate Tim Kaine. PGR”

            • Colonial Viper 11.1.1.1.1.1

              Well, Clinton and Kaine should have no problem smashing Trump and Pence at the ballot box, then.

  12. McFlock 12

    Trump is a professional shark-jumper, entertaining the crowds with jumps over bigger and meaner sharks.

    Sooner or later folks will get bored with shark jumping. Preferably sooner, but who knows…

  13. save nz 13

    The US are allowed to spy on their own citizens as well as the rest of the world, the SIS can spy on the NZ citizens and our neighbours – so maybe there will not be the outrage about Trump asking Russia to spy… the US people are already mass surveilled….

  14. Morrissey 14

    Actually, the only “shark-jumping” here was by the hapless Clinton hit squad campaign team. Nobody with an IQ above room temperature believes anyone other than a DNC insider leaked those emails; the Democratic establishmen’s hysterical attempt to deflect attention from Madame Mao’s turpitude is analagous to the National Party’s rage after one of Nicky Hager’s books is published.

    It was the blackest of black comedy to witness the likes of professional liar and dissident-persecutor Lyin’ Leon Panetta talking darkly about “treason” after Trump’s playful exhortation to the Russians to release the 30,000 missing Madame Mao emails.

    As horrible as Trump is, by the way, he’s a choirboy compared to Panetta….

    http://www.salon.com/2012/01/30/leon_panettas_explicitly_authoritarian_decree/

    • Colonial Viper 14.1

      Voters in Panetta’s local district rated him as a real nice, honest guy, a model representative of the people. But he sold out his soul hard after he got his White House appointment.

    • ianmac 14.2

      Yes Morrissey. Remember how the Dirty Tricks book was not about the issues raised, according to National fans, but the way that the information was obtained. They refused to read Nicky’s book because it was “stolen” info!
      So in the Democrat’s world it is the mystery of who and how the emails were obtained that matters, and not the substance of the issues.
      Tricky?

    • swordfish 14.3

      Julian Assange on Democracy Now

      AMY GOODMAN: So, that was Robby Mook citing experts saying the DNC emails were leaked by the Russians. You were the one who released these 20,000 emails, Julian Assange. Where did you get them?

      JULIAN ASSANGE: Well, what’s not in that clip there by Robby is that, just afterwards, he was asked by Jake Tapper, “Who are these experts? Can you name them?” The answer was no, a refusal to name the experts. But we have seen one of the “experts”, so-called “experts”, that the Democratic Party is trying to base its incredible conspiracy theory on about WikiLeaks. And that is this—what we jokingly refer to as the “NSA dick pic guy”. He’s a former National Security Agency agent who started to produce conspiracy theories about us in 2013, when we were involved in the Edward Snowden rescue, as a means to try and undermine the Snowden publications, subsequently embroiled in some amateur pornography scandal. That’s why they don’t want to name their experts, because they are people like this.

      In relation to sourcing, I can say some things. A, we never reveal our sources, obviously. That’s what we pride ourselves on. And we won’t in this case, either. But no one knows who our source is. It’s simply speculation. It’s, I think, interesting and acceptable to speculate who our sources are. But if we’re talking about the DNC, there’s lots of consultants that have access, lots of programmers. And the DNC has been hacked dozens and dozens of times. Even according to its own reports, it had been hacked extensively over the last few years. And the dates of the emails that we published are significantly after all, or all but one—it’s not clear—of the hacking allegations that the DNC says have occurred.

Recent Comments

Recent Posts

  • At a glance – Does CO2 always correlate with temperature?
    On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
    3 hours ago
  • Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6.06 pm on Tuesday, March 19
    TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Tuesday, March 19:Kāinga Ora’s dry rot The Spinoff DailyBill McKibben on ‘Climate Superfunds’ making Big Oil pay for climate damage The Crucial YearsPreston Mui on returning to 1980s-style productivity growth NoahpinionAndy Boenau on NIMBYs needing unusual bedfellows Urbanism SpeakeasyNed Resnikoff's case ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 hours ago
  • Relentlessly negative
    Negative yesterday, negative today. Negative all year, according to one departing reader telling me I’ve grown strident and predictable. Fair enough. If it’s any help, every time I go to write about a certain topic that begins with C and ends with arrrrs, I do brace myself and ask: Again? Are ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 hours ago
  • Scoring 4.6 out of 10, the new Government is struggling in the polls
    Bryce Edwards writes –  It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 hours ago
  • Promiscuous Empathy: Chris Trotter Replies To His Critics.
    Inspirational: The Family of Man is a glorious hymn to human equality, but, more than that, it is a clarion call to human freedom. Because equality, unleavened by liberty, is a broken piano, an unstrung harp; upon which the songs of fraternity will never be played. “Somebody must have been telling lies about ...
    6 hours ago
  • Don’t run your business like a criminal enterprise
    The Detail this morning highlights the police's asset forfeiture case against convicted business criminal Ron Salter, who stands to have his business confiscated for systemic violations of health and safety law. Business are crying foul - but not for the reason you'd think. Instead of opposing the post-conviction punishment and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    7 hours ago
  • Misremembering Justinian’s Taxes.
    Tax Lawyer Barbara Edmonds vs Emperor Justinian I - Nolo Contendere: False historical explanations of pivotal events are very far from being inconsequential.WHEN BARBARA EDMONDS made reference to the Roman Empire, my ears pricked up. It is, lamentably, very rare to hear a politician admit to any kind of familiarity ...
    7 hours ago
  • Bryce Edwards: Scoring 4.6 out of 10, the new Government is struggling in the polls
    It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support for the various parties in ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    8 hours ago
  • Bishop scores headlines with crackdown on unwelcome tenants – but Peters scores, too, as tub-thump...
    Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news – packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions – worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writers’ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    9 hours ago
  • Will it make the boat go faster?
    Ele Ludemann writes – The Reserve Bank is advertising for a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advisor. The Bank has one mandate – to keep inflation between one and three percent. It has failed in that and is only slowly getting inflation back down to the upper limit. Will it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    12 hours ago
  • Bryce Edwards: Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi The fact that a ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    12 hours ago
  • Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    12 hours ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' at 10:10am on Tuesday, March 19
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st Century The SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims Stuff Steve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    12 hours ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things on Tuesday, March 19
    It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    14 hours ago
  • New Life for Light Rail
    This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail  Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    15 hours ago
  • Why Are Bosses Nearly All Buffoons?
    Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    17 hours ago
  • Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6.06 pm on March 18
    TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Peters holds his ground on co-governance, but Willis wriggles on those tax cuts and SNA suspension l...
    Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago
  • Labour’s final report card
    David Farrar writes –  We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how  went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promise The result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • “Drunk Uncle at a Wedding”
    I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago
  • Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • Gordon Campbell on Dune 2, and images of Islam
    Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
    2 days ago
  • New Rail Operations Centre Promises Better Train Services
    Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
    2 days ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things at 6.36am on Monday, March 18
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    2 days ago
  • The Kaka’s diary for the week to March 25 and beyond
    TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Bitter and angry; Winston First
    New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    2 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    2 days ago
  • Out of Touch.
    “I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • The bewildering world of Chris Luxon – Guns for all, not no lunch for kids
    .“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
    Frankly SpeakingBy Frank Macskasy
    3 days ago
  • Expert Opinion: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
    It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
    3 days ago
  • Manufacturing The Truth.
    Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet –  is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
    3 days ago
  • A Powerful Sensation of Déjà Vu.
    Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
    3 days ago
  • Can you guess where world attention is focussed (according to Greenpeace)? It’s focussed on an EPA...
    Bob Edlin writes –  And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Further integrity problems for the Greens in suspending MP Darleen Tana
    Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Jacqui Van Der Kaay: Greens’ transparency missing in action
    For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s Dawn Chorus with six newsey things at 6:46am for Saturday, March 16
    TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ Herald Thomas Coughlan Simeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • How Did FTX Crash?
    What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Elections in Russia and Ukraine
    Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s six stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15
    TL;DR: Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it:  We want our country to be a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • National’s clean car tax advances
    The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Government funding bailouts
    Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Two offenders, different treatments.
    See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    4 days ago
  • Treaty references omitted
    Ele Ludemann writes  – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Ghahraman Conflict
    What was that judge thinking? Peter Williams writes –  That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 15
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop: Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • The day Wellington up-zoned its future
    Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 15-March-2024
    It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    5 days ago
  • That Word.
    Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to March 15
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
    It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #11 2024
    Open access notables A Glimpse into the Future: The 2023 Ocean Temperature and Sea Ice Extremes in the Context of Longer-Term Climate Change, Kuhlbrodt et al., Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society: In the year 2023, we have seen extraordinary extrema in high sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic and in ...
    5 days ago
  • Melissa remains mute on media matters but has something to say (at a sporting event) about economic ...
     Buzz from the Beehive   The text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary.  It can be quickly analysed ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • The return of Muldoon
    For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Will the rental tax cut improve life for renters or landlords?
    Bryce Edwards writes –  Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: What Saudi Arabia’s rapid changes mean for New Zealand
    Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 days ago
  • Racism’s double standards
    Questions need to be asked on both sides of the world Peter Williams writes –   The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • It’s not a tax break
    Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • The Plastic Pig Collective and Chris' Imaginary Friends.
    I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Who is responsible for young offenders?
    Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s fantasy trip to La La Landlord Land
    How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
    6 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 14
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop: The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • No, Prime Minister, rents don’t rise or fall with landlords’ costs
    TL;DR: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • Cartoons: ‘At least I didn’t make things awkward’
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
    6 days ago
  • Solving traffic congestion with Richard Prebble
    The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    6 days ago
  • I Think I'm Done Flying Boeing
    Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • Invoking Aristotle: Of Rings of Power, Stones, and Ships
    The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
    6 days ago
  • Van Velden brings free-market approach to changing labour laws – but her colleagues stick to distr...
    Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Why Newshub failed
    Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Māori Party on the warpath against landlords and seabed miners – let’s see if mystical creature...
    Bob Edlin writes  –  The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they  follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • Government moves to quickly ratify the NZ-EU FTA
    "The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 hours ago
  • Positive progress for social worker workforce
    New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    10 hours ago
  • Minister confirms reduced RUC rate for PHEVs
    Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    12 hours ago
  • Trade access to overseas markets creates jobs
    Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand.  Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    13 hours ago
  • NZ and Chinese Foreign Ministers hold official talks
    Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Kāinga Ora instructed to end Sustaining Tenancies
    Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber: Growth is the answer
    Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Singapore rounds out regional trip
    Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships.      “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Minister van Velden represents New Zealand at International Democracy Summit
    Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Insurance Council of NZ Speech, 7 March 2024, Auckland
    ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland  Acknowledgements and opening  Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho.  Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau  My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Five-year anniversary of Christchurch terror attacks
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says.  “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024
    Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024  Acknowledgements and opening  Morena, Nga Mihi Nui.  Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau  Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Early visit to Indonesia strengthens ties
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country.   “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • China Foreign Minister to visit
    Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week.  “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Minister opens new Auckland Rail Operations Centre
    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Celebrating 10 years of Crankworx Rotorua
    The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee.  “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government delivering on tax commitments
    Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today.  “The Amendment Paper represents ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Significant Natural Areas requirement to be suspended
    Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Government classifies drought conditions in Top of the South as medium-scale adverse event
    Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Government partnership to tackle $332m facial eczema problem
    The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced.  “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • NZ, India chart path to enhanced relationship
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level.   “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Ruapehu Alpine Lifts bailout the last, say Ministers
    Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Govt takes action to drive better cancer services
    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Govt takes action to drive better cancer services
    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Work begins on SH29 upgrades near Tauriko
    Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Work begins on SH29 upgrades near Tauriko
    Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Fresh produce price drop welcome
    Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024.  “Lower fruit and vege ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Statement to the 68th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women
    Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all.  Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Speech to the 68th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW68)
    Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all.  Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Government backs rural led catchment projects
    The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber
    Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction.   Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Commission’s advice on ETS settings tabled
    Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Government lowering building costs
    The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Trustee tax change welcomed
    Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister’s Ramadan message
    Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness.  It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister appoints new NZTA Chair
    Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Speech to Life Sciences Summit
    Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology.  It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Progress continues apace on water storage
    Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Government agrees to restore interest deductions
    Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. “Help is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Government’s restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,” says ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister to attend World Anti-Doping Agency Symposium
    Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. “New Zealanders believe ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

Page generated in The Standard by Wordpress at 2024-03-19T09:33:18+00:00