In October last year I wrote a post called A PM but not a leader, focusing on Key’s lack of character and leadership with respect to then current events (Paul Henry’s racism and Key’s kowtowing to China). Fast forward to today and things are getting worse…
New Zealand’s double credit downgrade is an international vote of no confidence in the Nats’ economic management. How does Key respond?
Govt refuses responsibility for credit downgrades
The National-led Government is refusing to take any responsibility for the decision by two major international agencies to downgrade New Zealand’s credit rating.
On Friday morning, Fitch lowered New Zealand’s credit rating by one notch to AA, citing the country’s rising debt and persistent and widening current account deficits. Standard & Poor’s downgraded the country’s rating one notch from AA+ to AA in the afternoon.
During a fiery debate in Parliament on Tuesday, Prime Minister John Key and Finance Minister Bill English blamed the former Labour-led Government and economic woes in Europe and the United States for the downgrade.
In 2009, Mr Key warned that a credit downgrade would be disastrous for the New Zealand economy.
Mr Key and his Government then took full credit when a downgrade was averted. But now the Prime Minister says the downgrade is not his fault.
Happy to take credit for the good books left to him by the previous government, refusing to take responsibility for the muddle his own government is making. Not the mark of a leader. Here’s another example:
Key unconcerned about Labour’s electoral commission complaint
Prime Minister John Key says he is “not concerned in the slightest” that he may have breached electoral rules after hosting a RadioLIVE show last Friday, despite Labour lodging complaints with the Electoral Commission and the Broadcasting Standards Authority. …
Mr Key says he didn’t seek advice on whether it was against electoral laws and he did not know if his office did. When told that it would be his office and not the radio station that would be responsible for the breach of the rules, he replied, “that’s a matter for others, there’s a process and people should feel free to go through it”
Got that campers? Key is “not concerned in the slightest” that he may have breached electoral law, and didn’t even seek advice on the issue. If he did it’s up to others to catch him out, because he doesn’t give a damn. Kind of makes a mockery of all the faux outrage bleating about breaches of electoral law doesn’t it. Not the mark of a leader.
Finally of course yesterday, Key used the incident of an unstable man trying to throw himself over the balcony in the debating chamber to attack Labour, shouting words to the effect that “you should be ashamed of yourself, that’s down to you guys” and making a throat-slashing gesture to Labour as the man dangled. Inappropriate, nasty, ugly. Not the mark of a leader.
Three strikes, you’re out. John Key is a PM and a very popular media product, but he isn’t a leader’s backside and he never will be.
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