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Ko Paora Goldsmith tenei

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 9:11 pm, May 26th, 2020 - 33 comments

National’s new brains trust has not had a great day today. They responded to claims that their front bench looked awfully white and had no Tangata Whenua by claiming that Paora Goldsmith was from Ngāti Porou. The only trouble was that he wasn’t.

Todd Muller is Simon Bridges with less personality

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 1:33 pm, May 26th, 2020 - 68 comments

Todd Muller has announced a front bench that resembles a National Party front bench from 30 years ago. And his first live interview on national television did not go as well as he hoped.

Todd’s MAGA hat

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 7:59 am, May 25th, 2020 - 119 comments

Todd Muller has spent the weekend not introducing himself to the country and talking about his ideas for our future but by defending the displaying of a MAGA hat in his office.

Todd Muller is no Jacinda Ardern

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 7:45 am, May 23rd, 2020 - 151 comments

Is Todd Muller the solution to National’s inability to deal with Jacinda Ardern?

Nat Vote: And the Loser Is ….

Written By: te reo putake - Date published: 11:50 am, May 22nd, 2020 - 197 comments

The Nation holds its breath as the dullest political leadership race in a generation snores to a close. Who will win by losing? Who will lose by winning? Who cares?

UPDATE: It’s Mullertime!

UPDATE: Bennett dumped!

Who wants to lead the National Party?

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:31 am, May 21st, 2020 - 93 comments

Tomorrow the National Party caucus meet to decide on a leadership challenge mounted by Todd Muller and Nikki Kaye. Both parties obviously think they have the numbers. Which MPs are misleading them?

Dead man walking

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 7:00 am, May 20th, 2020 - 106 comments

The media is reporting there will be a vote of no confidence in Simon Bridges’ leadership at next week’s National caucus meeting.

Mark Richardson for National leader!

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 11:08 am, May 19th, 2020 - 27 comments

Michelle Boag thinks that Mark Richardson should be the next National leader after Simon Bridges. Here at the Standard we wish to endorse this proposal.

What does National do in Epsom?

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 7:00 am, May 19th, 2020 - 33 comments

Last night’s Reid Research Newshub poll result will be reverberating through National’s caucus. And raises the question, do they gift Epsom to ACT and maybe get a right wing MP or do they preserve every seat they can for themselves.

Jacinda is not like Muldoon

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 9:49 am, May 13th, 2020 - 97 comments

National has decided to play politics with Covid 19 and is opposing the Government’s attempt to pass legislation to secure level 2 arrangements. And has made the extraordinary claim that Jacinda Ardern is just like Rob Muldoon but with slogans.

Bloomfield and the empire strikes back

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 12:06 pm, May 12th, 2020 - 41 comments

Dr Ashley Bloomfield has responded to allegations by Simon Bridges that the government has suspended the Official Information Act and the Emergency Response Committee has made multiple requests for information from the Ministry that it is waiting for by advising publicly there are no outstanding requests for information.

Parker gives Bridges a lesson in constitutional law

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 10:01 am, May 9th, 2020 - 175 comments

In a Facebook Live event David Parker has schooled Simon Bridges on basic principles of constitutional law. And it appears that Bridges demand that legally privileged advice be handed over is heading to the Privileges Committee.

Bridges pulls a stunt

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 7:46 am, May 7th, 2020 - 93 comments

Simon Bridges threw two stunts yesterday, firstly threatening to try and summons senior Public Servants to publicise confidential legal advice and then by attacking Dr Ashley Blomfield for not answering emails quickly enough despite the existence of a pandemic which the country appears to be handling pretty well.

His work here is not yet done

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 7:00 am, May 1st, 2020 - 71 comments

Former Prime Minister John Key has said that under current conditions employers are going to sack 20 per cent of their workers even if the company is doing well and that employers should never waste a crisis.

Leak, leak, leak, leak …

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 10:14 am, April 28th, 2020 - 19 comments

Tova O’Brien has reported multiple leaks of a Nick Smith email which was highly critical of Simon Bridges.

The class politics of the Covid-19 pandemic response

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 7:35 am, April 28th, 2020 - 59 comments

National economics spokesperson Paul Goldsmith has advanced a plan to address the Covid 19 pandemic which includes union bashing and privatisation.

Guest post – Bridges is done, who can save National?

Written By: Guest post - Date published: 7:58 am, April 24th, 2020 - 115 comments

Guest post from former Labour Staffer Clint Smith on the similarities between National’s current predicament and what happened to Labour in 2011 and 2014.

Who will be National’s leader?

Written By: notices and features - Date published: 12:00 pm, April 22nd, 2020 - 65 comments

Will Simon survive? Or will Paula and Mark team up against him? Or will Judith somehow manage to persuade the caucus that she is the only chance they have of retaining their seats?

Stay tuned …

BBQ time for National

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:57 am, April 21st, 2020 - 88 comments

If the current dip in National’s polling continues then a number of their electorate MPs face the loss of their seats and an increasing battle for a shrinking number of list seat positions.

When Bridges’ social media goes wrong

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:09 am, April 21st, 2020 - 77 comments

Simon Bridges’s Facebook post criticising the extension of lockdown level 4 has been met with overwhelming opposition, including from people who are clearly National Party supporters.

Better footpaths and cycleways are a socialist inspired plot?

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:06 am, April 14th, 2020 - 65 comments

National MP Simon O’Connor thinks that making under used streets safer for walkers and cyclers is a Socialist inspired plan for world domination.

National’s Petition is Cynical Populism

Written By: Incognito - Date published: 12:45 pm, April 9th, 2020 - 124 comments

National is trying to ~~steal~~ show political leadership and relevance by launching a petition.

Addendum added

National seeks delay to election

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 7:38 am, April 9th, 2020 - 120 comments

Hot on the news that National’s polling has plunged to 35% Paula Bennett has publicly suggested that the election should be delayed. I wonder if they are related?

Holding the Government to Account or Concern Trolling?

Written By: Incognito - Date published: 8:00 am, March 31st, 2020 - 35 comments

When Opposition Spokespersons behave like concern trolls, we have a problem.

Relentless negativity

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:22 am, March 18th, 2020 - 57 comments

Simon Bridges has been criticised for his relentless negativity towards the Government’s urgent Covid-19 budget response and for playing politics as usual at a time when unity is required.

Red tape bonfire of the vanities

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 2:19 pm, March 9th, 2020 - 19 comments

National has promised a bonfire of regulations. Just like conservatives in Australia, the United Kingdom, America and previous National administrations.

The politics of gun control

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 7:47 am, March 9th, 2020 - 180 comments

National and NZ First are frustrating the passage of the Arms Legislation Bill by raising issues that may appeal to extremists but will not make the country a safer place after the Christchurch massacre.

The politics of hand washing

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 1:35 pm, March 6th, 2020 - 25 comments

Simon Bridges thinks that getting people to wash their hands and removing unemployment stand down periods is tinkering but that National’s still unreleased economic policy will solve the crisis.

Bridges thinks the solution to Covid 19 is tax cuts

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:14 am, March 5th, 2020 - 64 comments

Simon Bridges thinks that tax cuts are the best way to address financial stress caused by businesses by the Covid 19 epidemic. Even though businesses under financial stress will be paying little if any tax and a tax cut would have little if any effect.

Climate change – the right schemes and the left despairs

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:02 am, March 2nd, 2020 - 27 comments

The Australian Liberal Government has signalled a movement away from solar and wind power to untested technologies including carbon capture, hydrogen and lithium. Meanwhile the woman who led the negotiations for the Paris Agreement is calling for civil disobedience to force institutions to respond to the climate crisis.