Andrew Little reflects
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12:59 pm, March 11th, 2018 - 18 comments
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If you want to enjoy a deep discussion of events leading up to Andrew Little standing down as leader and Labour’s election win then this Stuff video is a must watch.
Andrew in his typically forthright manner goes through the disappointment of polling results which saw his demise. He reflects on such issues as the Hageman lawsuit which damaged his credibility by having him appear in a witness box in election year and the Auckland intern debacle which also damaged his standing.
He also provides an interesting insight into Jacinda’s ascension to leadership and the Prime Minister’s office.
He is very measured and charitable in his comments. He also reflects on his early decisions as a Minister which have been really impressive.
He finishes by saying that he feels very privileged to be part of her ministry and very proud of what she did during the campaign and as Prime Minister.
This really is a must watch for political junkies.
As said in the article history will reflect that Little’s call was one of New Zealand political leadership’s gutsiest.
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The Government has done the right thing in moving to ban greyhound racing. ...2 weeks ago
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Hmm yeah, the Hageman’s attempt to tar the image of Labour’s leader sure did backfire didn’t it ….
Andrew Little is to be admired and respected and as expected, he is showing he is an excellent minister and quickly settled in with his various portfolios.
Not a vampire then. 😉
I am hearing lots of lawyers he’s met with have been highly impressed.
Most of them Nats.
Lucky government to have him.
He’s having a stunning innings in Justice! Hes a straight up pragmatist and is hugely intelligent.
He’s correct about Jacinda too. We knew she was smart before she took over, we just didn’t know she was brilliant!
The Election still confuses me (in a good way).
The Labour policy platform did not change when Jacinda took over from Andrew. It is still the same Labour Party as it was under Andrew.
The only conclusion that I can draw from that, is that people do not vote on policy.
The influence of media is incredible. The MSM went from being relentless in their negative attacks against Andrew, to relentless in their praise for Jacinda. There was no media anlysis as to how Labour was all of a sudden different, but in the space of few days the whole media narrative changed from Labour can’t win, to the media created “Jacindamania”.
The 2017 leadership change and election will be a case study for political strategists for a long time.
I suspect it has a lot to do with Robertson and Ardern engaging the media over the long term – and how they did it.
Patrick Gower always seemed to lead the white anting against Cunliffe from within the Labour caucus. I suspect Robertson had a hand in that. Gower went after Turei with a vengeance – “resign! resign! resign!” – leading the press pack.
When Ardern took over the leadership, Gower was all cheer leading for Ardern from the get go.
Ardern also had been developing a positive image in the popular media over a long time.
It’s depressing for those of us who want the general public to pay more attention to policy and debating it.
I’d be surprised if anyone votes purely on policy.
Do you?
Sure, it might be an important factor, but did you believe any of the nat policy promises? The roads and bridges they were going to build, for example? Or did you figure they were probably lying?
People vote for a mix of reasons. Including the idea that poll narratives have a heavy dose of self-fulfillment, the charisma of the party leadership, the media pundits wanting a decent horserace so skewing their coverage, etc etc etc.
“Andrew Little reflects.” A great first.
Cluck cluck.
Not like you Greywarshark, what’s up??
Who? Not me at 2.05 pm Patricia.
He truly is a good man. We are lucky to have him in this role and genuinely supporting Jacinda. I have had the good fortune to spend time with them both before the election.
They have such a grasp of policy and what needs to happen. What we tend to forget is the pressures brought to them both by MSM politicians and public expectations.
This government is on track for being one of the best and most progressive ever. They have many problems to face and they are only just getting started. Jacinda is so lucky to have Andrew Little on her team as they all go forward together.
Chosen by Peters, you mean, rather than the voters. PM by default, not by election and not by endorsement. Selected. Course, the truth hurts. No wonder she doesn’t actually talk about policy, ever. Just a celebrity face, while the strings are pulled from behind the scenes.
The PM commands a government with a majority of the popular vote and a majority of the seats in parliament. So how exactly did the voters not choose this?
This MMP government was chosen by the electorate.
That national party contenders were ignored by the majority of the MMP electorate
seems to have escaped your attention.
Being born to rule does not mean it has to happen, check assorted deposed, decapitated or otherwise discarded true blue dictators.
Maybe society matters. Without society there is no commerce, ther is is no “bottom line”.
Agree with what you say, Peter, apart from that “maybe”.
Whatever dear Maggie T might have tried to assert to the contrary, “society” damn well does matter. Without it, without the trust that binds it together, you end up sooner or later with its primitive predecessor – tribalism. That’s what’s been happening in my native UK this last thirty years or more. Nobody trusts anyone except (too often “even”) their own families. It’s been really distressing to see. And once destroyed, trust takes years or decades to rebuild.