Classic, I was just saying yesterday that Key is probably concerned about focus testing turning up ‘do-nothing’, ‘weak’ and ‘visionless’ memes and today he’s got a little puff piece in the Dominion Post that purports to lay out his “vision”.
Of course like every other missive from the great leader this one says exactly nothing. In fact the comments section is filled with people pointing that out:
My favourite bit was “I could go on listing”…
What a mess of vacuous noise. You aren’t electioneering anymore John, you are supposed to be leading the country, but I guess you are quite ‘relaxed’ about how you do that, right?
And I don’t see the correlation between anything you are saying and what you are doing/have done – where’s the plan?
reading the above certainly doesn’t make me any more comfortable about the future. if anything, its a little discomforting. maybe if he spent his time actually doing stuff instead of talking about it… and a bit of guts ‘n backbone in our leader would be nice.
And the complaints about inaction just go on.
This failure will continue to be more and more of a PR problem for Key and his government because they face two basic choices. Either do nothing (or rather focus on hollow aspirational statements while quietly carving away at anything progressive) or show some real vision which would inevitably be an electorally unpalatable right-wing vision.
My gut feeling is the “war on P” stunt was an early (failed) attempt by Key’s handlers to short-circuit this meme by presenting him as a strong and in-touch leader but failed because it was rushed and the spin doctors didn’t realise just how “nanny-state” it would be perceived to be.
I’d also suggest that the real rot set in after Rodney laid the truth bare. At the time I said it would hurt Key more than Hide (despite the Hide-in-the-dogbox focus the gallery took) and it has because it legitimised a narrative that will just keep eating away at Key’s popularity.
Christmas will give the government some reprieve but this isn’t a problem that will go away unless Key is seen as doing something more than cashing in on trade deals that were set up years ago and making stupid jokes. Their real problem they have is that every time they do something, whether it’s the ETS or the ACC cuts, the public don’t like it.
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