Author Archive
Latest UMR Poll – National sinking
Written By: - Date published: 7:40 am, October 14th, 2020 - 180 comments
Leaked results of the latest UMR poll suggests that National is under 30% and that Judith Collins campaign techniques are not working. She responded by calling the Prime Minister a liar and fat shaming the population.
How not to campaign in an MMP environment
Written By: - Date published: 8:34 am, October 13th, 2020 - 30 comments
A recent series of advertisements placed by National MPs in Auckland seeking electorate votes and not seeking party votes show that central control of National’s campaign and discipline are completely lacking.
2020 election campaign – 6 days to go
Written By: - Date published: 9:23 am, October 12th, 2020 - 52 comments
With six days to go to election day the campaigns have reached interesting stages although the underlying trends and events appear to be good for the left.
National’s 2020 election campaign in billboards
Written By: - Date published: 4:51 pm, October 11th, 2020 - 24 comments
A review of National’s billboards used this year shows what an utter disaster the campaign has been for them.
Ngaro goes negative
Written By: - Date published: 8:18 am, October 10th, 2020 - 43 comments
National list MP Alfred Ngaro has shown that National’s message discipline has broken down completely by going negative and making some outlandish claims against Labour’s Phil Twyford.
Strong team at leaking
Written By: - Date published: 7:43 am, October 9th, 2020 - 56 comments
Another day and another story about National MPs leaking against Judith Collins
When campaigns go bad
Written By: - Date published: 7:43 am, October 8th, 2020 - 50 comments
Every day there is a new catastrophe for Judith Collins. Yesterday she had a walkabout from hell when it was revealed on national news that national activists including Hamish Price had been strategically placed to pretend to be ordinary members of the public and say nice things about her for the camera.
The importance of party unity
Written By: - Date published: 9:33 am, October 7th, 2020 - 83 comments
If a party wants to become Government there are a few characteristics that is has to have. Fiscal competence is one, unity is another. National currently has neither.
The Trump Covid game
Written By: - Date published: 2:17 pm, October 6th, 2020 - 10 comments
Let’s imagine a scenario where you are the President of the United States and it is in the middle of a pandemic. You then contract the virus yourself. How would you rate compared to Donald Trump?
National leaks again
Written By: - Date published: 7:33 am, October 6th, 2020 - 62 comments
A highly critical email about Judith Collins written by National Maungakiekie MP Denise Lee has been leaked and indicates that National’s Auckland policy was made on the hoof and without reference to the person in caucus with actual responsibility for the subject.
Paul Goldsmith should stop digging
Written By: - Date published: 3:05 pm, October 3rd, 2020 - 80 comments
Paul Goldsmith has shown yet again his complete inability to understand how Government finances work by claiming there is a $10 billion dollar hole in Labour’s fiscal plan where there is none.
POTUS, Covid and the New Zealand election
Written By: - Date published: 8:01 am, October 3rd, 2020 - 122 comments
News that Donald Trump has tested positive for Covid will have a significant effect on the US election as well as our local election. It raises the issue who will you trust to lead the country against this most agile yet deadly virus?
The Votesafe campaign
Written By: - Date published: 11:44 am, October 2nd, 2020 - 35 comments
A well funded organisation has emerged from nowhere and is potentially having a significant effect on one of the referendum topics this year.
NZ First and the SFO
Written By: - Date published: 8:57 am, September 30th, 2020 - 38 comments
Some random musings on the news yesterday that persons associated with NZ First had been charged by the Serious Fraud Office.
Judith Collins, Nicky Hager and Dirty Politics
Written By: - Date published: 12:16 pm, September 29th, 2020 - 55 comments
Judith Collins has said about Dirty Politics author Nicky Hager that he “still needs to meet his maker.” What did she mean by this? And why does she harbour such dark thoughts about Hager?
Mood of the Boardroom: National is toast
Written By: - Date published: 11:07 am, September 28th, 2020 - 45 comments
The NZ Herald Mood of the Boardroom finance election debate should be for National what it is like attending a Living Wage campaign meeting for Labour. They should be at home and the participants should be solidly behind them. But not this year.
National’s alternative budget doesn’t add up
Written By: - Date published: 9:36 am, September 26th, 2020 - 23 comments
If ever you needed a symbol of National’s current plight it is the handling of the release of its alternative budget. It has been a complete and utter shambles. A clusterf&*k of epic proportions. Because if there is one part of National’s reputation that needs to be defended at all costs it is the perception that they are competent financial managers and making multiple billion dollar mistakes in your alternative budget at election time is the one thing over all else that will hurt that part of your reputation.
So much for the climate change consensus
Written By: - Date published: 10:50 am, September 25th, 2020 - 39 comments
Ten months ago National supported the Zero Carbon Bill and called for a consensus between the major political parties on the overall framework through which climate change issues are addressed. This week National trashed all of that to try and shore up its sagging support.
National’s many and varied Covid border policies
Written By: - Date published: 7:31 am, September 24th, 2020 - 12 comments
On Tuesday National announced the fifth variation of its Covid border policy this year.
How low can National go?
Written By: - Date published: 7:44 am, September 22nd, 2020 - 43 comments
With news of a second mistake in National’s draft budget its campaign is in trouble and support for other right wing parties appears to be surging. Update: Stuff is reporting a further $3.9 billion dollar mistake …
Paora Goldsmith is National’s $4 billion dollar man
Written By: - Date published: 4:17 pm, September 20th, 2020 - 116 comments
Paul Goldsmith has blighted National’s campaign launch by making a $4 billion dollar mistake in National’s budget costings.
The Auckland Central Poll
Written By: - Date published: 9:08 am, September 20th, 2020 - 33 comments
A Reid Research poll has suggested that Helen White is well ahead of Emma Mellow and Chloe Swarbrick and that Labour’s support is still sky high.
National’s lolly scramble tax cuts
Written By: - Date published: 8:34 am, September 19th, 2020 - 55 comments
Despite claiming that the PREFU figures were catastrophic and despite stating a month ago that it would not do this National has come out with a policy of temporary tax cuts favouring the rich. They must be desperate.
Reti’s running
Written By: - Date published: 7:50 am, September 18th, 2020 - 62 comments
Yesterday Shane Reti ignited leadership rumours after he was asked if he wanted to be National leader and did not pledge support for existing leader Judith Collins.
The PREFU is much better than National wanted
Written By: - Date published: 4:33 pm, September 16th, 2020 - 51 comments
The Prefu is out! And it is not as scary as National would have wanted.
Taxpayer’s Union is wasting taxpayers’ money
Written By: - Date published: 9:24 am, September 15th, 2020 - 35 comments
The Taxpayer’s Union, which claims to be opposed to Government waste, is wasting taxpayer’s resources by lodging a spurious complaint with the Broadcasting Standards Authority against Labour’s free apprenticeship policy.
National’s Upper Harbour problem
Written By: - Date published: 8:31 am, September 14th, 2020 - 41 comments
This has been quite a year for National. It is onto its third leader, has lost a slew of experienced MPs, and has had other MPs resign in curious circumstances. And now it appears that it has a crisis involving its Upper Harbour candidate, Jake Bezzant.
Labour’s social welfare policy
Written By: - Date published: 12:20 pm, September 13th, 2020 - 62 comments
Labour has announced that if elected they will significantly increase abatement levels for beneficiaries and reinstitute the Training Incentive Allowance Scheme, the policy that Paula Bennett famously had the benefit of but then cancelled once she was Minister.
Covid, the US President and the Evangelical churches
Written By: - Date published: 8:30 am, September 10th, 2020 - 123 comments
There has been disturbing local news that some members of a local evangelical church, influenced by American equivalents, refused to accept the threat posed by the virus. And in America a new book from Bob Woodward suggests strongly that Donald Trump knew how big a threat Covid would be but chose for political reasons to downplay the risk.
Labour announces tax policies
Written By: - Date published: 12:55 pm, September 9th, 2020 - 98 comments
Labour and the Greens have both recently announced taxation policies. Meanwhile there is no sign of any fiscal policy or alternative budget from National.
What did Brownlee know about Southern Response’s misleading and deceptive conduct?
Written By: - Date published: 4:37 pm, September 8th, 2020 - 27 comments
The Court of Appeal has ruled that Southern Response has engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct and has potentially short changed thousands of Cantabrians hundreds of millions of dollars.
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