Proud to be a westie?

Written By: - Date published: 7:44 am, November 22nd, 2013 - 56 comments
Categories: election 2014, national, paula bennett - Tags:

Paula Bennett proud to be a westie

For some time now Paula Bennett has said that she is proud to be a westie.

She has been an important part of National’s senior line up.  She was a teenage mother on the DPB who according to her pulled herself up by her bootstraps although thanks should really go to good old New Zealand Inc which supported her getting a tertiary qualification while on the Domestic Purposes Benefit.  She then formed a friendship with Murray McCully, got herself on National’s list and rode the National wave in 2005 to enter Parliament.

She won the Waitakere seat in 2008 on the back of a strong surge of support for National although the margin over Lynne Pillay was not great.  She was rewarded with a Ministerial position.  One of her major roles as a Minister has been to pull the ladder up after her so that others in her former position would not enjoy the assistance that she did.

Her ministerial promotion was straight out of the Crosby Textor play book.  Instead of being white, male, and rich she was of a mixed ethnic background, female, and not so rich.  And she had been a teenage mum and on the DPB.  It was a much better look if she, rather than her white rich male colleagues, bashed beneficiaries.  It was presented as if she was trying to help the poor whereas the reality was that it was a cynically targeted dog whistle that caused a great amount of misery but let National supporters think that something useful was being done.

National’s confidence in Paula was overly optimistic.  In the 2011 election despite Labour experiencing its worst result for a long time Paula was almost defeated.  Carmel Sepuloni and her able team led by Enzo Giordani ran a superb campaign and almost won the seat.  They created history by losing on election night, winning on the final count but then losing on a judicial recount by the slimmest of margins.

Yesterday Paula confirmed that she was no longer proud to be a westie but wanted to be a North Shore MP instead.  She announced that she wanted to seek the nomination for the new Upper Harbour seat which contains no part of the former Waitakere seat which she represented.  TV3 thinks that she wants to eat Colin Craig alive.  My brain is finding it hard to process this piece of information.

She now claims a strong affinity with the North Shore.  As any real Westie will tell you the North Shore is a foreign place to Waitakere.  You may as well take your passport when you move from one area to the other.  For someone who used to hold meetings on what it meant to be a westie her change of heart is somewhat disappointing.

Paula it is time for you to hand in your leopard skin.  Because it is clear that you are no longer proud to be a Westie.

56 comments on “Proud to be a westie? ”

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  1. amirite 1
    22 November 2013 at 7:59 am

    Life on a benefit back then when Paula was receiving it was so hard she lived with her private business owners parents, she was able to buy a house and get higher qualifications. On a benefit.

    The beneficiaries of today don’t have that privilege.

    She’s not a Westie, average Westies don’t live in multimillion Oratia Mc Mansions, she never has been a Westie and she can fuck off to the North Shore and never come back.

  2. Tom Gould 2
    22 November 2013 at 8:01 am

    The ever-compliant media are pitching the new Upper Harbour seat as “north-west Auckland” – emphasis on the ‘west’ – just to be helpful. Moreover, the notion of East Coast Bays being handed to Craig is accepted as clever politics by the master deal-maker. Vastly different from their attitude to getting more women selected, which is a corruption of the process, it seems.

    • northshoreguynz 2.1
      22 November 2013 at 9:53 am

      Not sure about that. The Bays did vote in a Social Crediter once, so there is an hornery streak there.
      Also is McCully happy about going list only? A better bet for Craig would be Rodney, Mark Mitchell is less powerful than McCully so possibly more malleable for the hierarchy to manipulate.

      • tracey 2.1.1
        22 November 2013 at 11:15 am

        MCcULLY WILL GO TO THE LIST HAPPILY. HE WONT NEED TO GO ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL FOR HIS SEAT AND HE WILL BE LINED UP FOR A NICE OVERSEAS POSTING… sorry caps lock

      • karol 2.1.2
        22 November 2013 at 11:20 am

        Before the Harbour Bridge was built, there were a lot of working class people living in the East Coast Bays. With bridge came gradual gentrification.

  3. Tiger Mountain 3
    22 November 2013 at 8:04 am

    “Carpet Bagger” aka–opportunist– has US origins but it still has some currency in political circles here. Referring particularly to MPs that move to an electorate where they have no or few historical ties for the purpose of anticipated electoral success.

    Don’t just go Paula*–piss off! The shore deserves you way more than us. Your days were very numbered here out West.

    * Poorer Benefit, Brawla Bennett, Pullyer Benefit, Pulla Benefat, Paula Benefit etc.

  4. tracey 4
    22 November 2013 at 8:10 am

    Does Upper Harbour include West harbour?

    I saw that prime news describe her move because waitakere no longer existed, rather than her choosing to contest one of the other genuinely west seats.

    Nonetheless a more north harbour-ish seat is more honest and representative of her ideology.

    I hope Carmel gets back in.

  5. Akldnut 5
    22 November 2013 at 9:20 am

    Paula Benefit can see the writing on the wall, if she doesn’t make the move immediately she won’t have a seat unless she gets through as a list MP.

    Theres a change in the wind, I can smell it from here.

  6. risildowgtn 6
    22 November 2013 at 9:57 am

    Colon Craig will just have to settle for Epsom then 😛

    Wonder how that will go down with them

  7. Ennui 7
    22 November 2013 at 10:35 am

    Paula: living proof that Waitakere Woman exists

  8. Tiger Mountain 8
    22 November 2013 at 11:09 am

    pass the bucket quick…
    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=11160995

    Bennett’s personal aide de camp or waxer in chief would be hard pressed to write as oozing a sycophantic piece like this by Audrey Young.

    • tracey 8.1
      22 November 2013 at 11:14 am

      This is my reply to Audrey

      ‘You think it makes up for her pulling the ladder up behind her do you Audrey?

      You are right though, she is the perfect face for the duplicitness of the National party, pretending to provide a brighter future while shutting the lights down on their way out.”

      • ghostwhowalksnz 8.1.1
        22 November 2013 at 12:13 pm

        THis is how National does its ‘Man Ban’

        Set up a new seat to put a woman in over the heads of the locals.

        For the life of me I dont know why Paula didnt get the rejigged Helensville, after all it takes a big chunk of The Waitakere seat that voted National.

        It should be Key that goes onto the List only ( along with English) . That way he just walks away when he wants. And she sails on merrily

    • Naturesong 8.2
      22 November 2013 at 1:42 pm

      Given that Audrey thinks that Paula Bennett is such an asset, I’ve asked if she knows when the National plans to sell her 😆

      I suspect it won’t get printed

  9. greywarbler 9
    22 November 2013 at 12:26 pm

    She will change her spots as appropriate for her benefit. You don’t like my spots… well I have others. And the picture shows she has a fine lot of teeth, the same weapons whatever the livery to use against any prey – whatever she spots to pounce on.

    • Tim 9.1
      22 November 2013 at 2:43 pm

      Looking at the comments so far (particularly Ennui, Tracey et al), I was just reminded of a mysogenist mate of mine’s summation of her, and at the risk of appearing Slatorist – his opinion was
      “She’s an easy lay”. The context of the comment was in terms of her lack of any principle, her blind ambition to whatever ideology best suits her purpose – which is one of personal gain, and her craving for some sort of respect. Christ! (who – btw claims to be a Christian in here?)

      IMHO, (pulla bent) a fail on every count, and one very very UGLY woman (aesthetics aside).
      Why am I not surprised to learn somewhere on this site that she’s a Muff McCully protoge.
      She’d be Tarzan’s Jane; Muff’s idea of philanthropic endeavour – assisting the up and coming to ease a conscience; Key’s dirty-work agent; Finlayson’s “FHag”; the local spray-painter’s (under the table) earn; Joyce’s cock-sucking mantra-repeater; Soimun Brudgizz’s “Oim stendung roit behoid ya Soi – go man go” chearleader (especially if it could all be held in a SkoiSiddy stadiumm? or confrince senna); and so on. Oh Christ! – now there’s a story in itself – a “sidebar” even.

      But then she’d also be a Skeith HolyOleyOldOak brassiere-and-whale-bone-girdle fitter; a S SSSSSdugluss Mickey Kay apologist – on the basis he’s not too bad a bloke; a TOTAL embarrassment to the likes of a former Commonwealth head – a McKinnon who’ll soon be rolling in a grave when thinking about “National” as a polutkill entity; most likely “some bitter old queen’s” biggest regret as he moves further into isolation and loneliness (occasionally lashing out in Parly-arm-int) in some pathetic attempt to justify his utterly unprincipled decisions HE’s (He – as in the great Chris) made (Ideology over conscience in his case); …… could go on (I mean – like as in Nuk Smuth, Gerry Brownlee FFS! )

      They’re actually a band of hypocritical, ideology-driven, mostly not THAT intelligent oppressors.
      In most cases – they don’t even know though HOW the effects of their last and desperate cling to the failing are in effect and the consequences that occur as a result.

      They’ll be screaming the loudest, ALL OF A SUDDEN displaying concern for their offspring’s welfare that a struglging Joseph Bloggs is daily/hourly/minutely aware of.
      I’ll leave you fellas to how much sympathy you’ll feel during their inevitable demise – all a question of time. 2014 …. 2017/
      i always thought NZ was a world leader in fawn polcy – NOT though for a very long time!.
      Textor – Christ1 IT’S NOT THAT HARD TO ascertain a Boer-like agenda is it?, “Sir” John Key – a risk my own cuzzy-bro intimately connected with his C.Veee [I mean Curriculum Vitae – not Resume], judged as extreme – just as well he left me stuff (TELLING ME: blood’s thicker than water – compliant woifees and sons asoid0.

      It’s ekshly ALL quite amusing – EXCEPT of course it’s also bloody serious.

      ANyway……. this is turning into a rave.
      I just satisfy myself (with history and experience beside me ( That the harder they rise – the harder they fall )\
      Really- if I were a 1%, ever diminishing – like .0999%), I’d really seriously be thinking about my chances of survival.
      Seems to me that RoNS, Deep-sea Drilling, Benfut Crekdearns, the supposition that the ssssscrewritty tellginsss is forever loil with no jenduzz of theeerown; their loiltees are freva in thintrists of lektid repriszzentivs, rather than s Use A where their comfort and means of sustainability is derived; – again – could go on.

      I’ll just watch from the sidelines – knowing damn well that Labour have a shitload of the evidence (as do Greens) – incidently – so do Mana for that matter.

      I’ve not yet seem any MSM (or alternative medaia release) that suggests I should change to giving Labour a pardee vote. As Polly Toynbee suggests – I’ll shove a clothes peg over my nose and give Robertson a tik, but so far that won’t come with his Pardee.

      (THe guy’s STILL living a dream, and forgetting the necessities of winning an election)

      MMMM – maybe he’s got a really really really small COCKC!

      [deleted]

      And if any of us lose – let’s just save time shall we? Get the local pear kumny ta make sure the cross members support a weight – if any of you can bear hanging on to 0800 numbers – long enough to prove how much more fishint ‘n’ fektiv proivtois-aye-shun as been – please go for it.

      God Almighty – there are ekshly an number of ‘connected’ contributors in here ayr! – I mean those that know stuff, but unwillingl to stoop to the level of a Slator, or Textor, or a Lusk, or a Bennett even, or a Finlayson, (Let’s not begin yet on Jonololists including alcoholic wifebeaters STILL craving respectability)

      I think it’s probably what appeals to me most about NZ’s Left (the idea of principle and the unwillingness to stoop).
      Another thing that ‘RIGHT’ really should begin to think about

      [lprent: Don’t advocate violence even rhetorically. It is pointless on a blog, causes dumb flamewars, and gets r0b upset. I prefer to get rid of the problem before it gets irritating. ]

      • Tim 9.1.1
        22 November 2013 at 3:41 pm

        Point taken LP.

        I’ll watch from the sidelines, and occasionally comment.

        If there’s one thing though that really pisses me off no end – it’s the very grubby “right”,(thinking they have an entire State apparatus behind them) – commenting on, denigrating threatening, moralising and passing judgment on a number of other contributers on here.
        There are quite obviously a number of contributors and commenters on here (if only because of their longevity and experience) are WELL aware of the “right’s” BS.
        They all have my admiration for exerciising the degree of restraint they do.

        It must really be tempting at times to provide more details as to the identity of one or two trolls on here – rather you than me!

        Thanks for the restraint, and the venue

      • Murray Olsen 9.1.2
        23 November 2013 at 12:14 am

        My young nephew used to hang around the NAct party a few years ago. He told me that Paula distinguished herself by her lack of intellect, even in that company. Unbelievably thick was his description. Crosby Textor must have loved it when she turned up – an empty, hollow Waitakere sheila who they could paint into a minister’s clothing with broad brushstrokes, and as eager to please those she sees as her betters as a neglected puppy. An alley cat would have more independence of thought.

      • the pigman 9.1.3
        23 November 2013 at 12:28 am

        *a slow standing ovation breaks out, beginning with gentle head-nodding slow claps before rising to a deafening crescendo*

  10. Papa Tuanuku 10
    22 November 2013 at 12:28 pm

    What do you call it when the media reports on the boundary changes as if if they are all about the chances of an unelected rich white male?

    Is the interests of that rich white male more important that the whole political make up of CHCH? CHCH got less airplay than C Craig did.

    The reporting being dished up is anti democratic. In politics being elected gives you political currency, not being unelected and rich. It wouldn’t seem so on WSCP NZ TV

    • Rich 10.1
      22 November 2013 at 1:02 pm

      We have MMP. Unless it’s one of the seats where national are gerrymandering one of their satellite party members (Dunne, Banks, Craig?) then the boundaries aren’t strictly relevant. We could have Queensland style electorates and the list would still level it out.

      • lprent 10.1.1
        22 November 2013 at 1:30 pm

        If it were purely proportional without a threshold OR the threshold didn’t have the “coattails” gerrymander in it – then you’d be right.

        In our actual system, you’d be wrong. Because small parties under the threshold who win a single electorate seat exert excessive political power compared to list only parties.

        Read TRP’s guest post. I think he wrote it for you.

  11. karol 11
    22 November 2013 at 12:47 pm

    What a pain this electoral change providing Faux Westie Bennett an electoral lifeline.

    Also, I have been contemplating moving into the Massey-Upper Harbour area some time in the future. But now feel honoured to be a Kelston westie. Hope Labour and Greens put up some excellent candidates.

    I sometimes wonder what is more useful to the left: a leftie voting against the likes of Bennett in a fairly safe Nat electorate; or a leftie adding to the strong left party voted from within a pretty safe Labour electorate?

  12. Linz 12
    22 November 2013 at 12:47 pm

    Imagine being stuck in a lift with Ruth Richardson, Jenny Shipley, Paula Bennett, Hekia Parata, and Judith Collins.

  13. RedBaronCV 13
    22 November 2013 at 7:41 pm

    Is it only just me who is wondering if she announced her candidacy for the Upper Harbour seat and then rang John Key leaving him to deny it (Nact party fractures) or confirm it (large dead rat swallowed)

    • the pigman 13.1
      23 November 2013 at 12:27 am

      Mike Smith called it on Nat radio early in the week (that National wouldn’t gift it to Craig). Basically said that the new seat could never go to Craig because National lack the overwhelming majority there and Labour would have *some* support. It’d be dangerous in a 3 way split where those not following who-drinks-milo-with-whom make the fatal error of dividing their vote between Craig and the National candidate.

      Now as much as people claim Epsom voters won’t tolerate it, I’m picking Banks will go down and make way.. those good people of Epsom are well-trained at getting “two-fers” on their party/electorate votes.

  14. Rogue Trooper 14
    22 November 2013 at 11:16 pm

    Way-out West, they do the Velcro Fly : “You need just enough of that sticky stuff, to hold the seams of your fine Blue jeans”.