The Credibility Stakes: John Key vs Nicky Hager

• Guest post
• 10 years ago
• Categories: john key
• Tags: BLip, dirty politics, john armstrong, nicky hager

What a surprisingly even-handed opinion piece from the New Zealand Fox News Herald political commentator John Armstrong about the coming consequences of Nicky Hager’s “Dirty Politics”. In part, Armstrong writes . . .

. . . If John Key wishes to avoid being labelled the Richard Nixon of New Zealand politics, he is going to have to do more than deny knowledge of what was going on in a neighbouring office. The same applies to any attempt to denigrate Hager – as Key did on Tuesday – by describing him as a “screaming left-wing conspiracy theorist”. The left-wing bit is correct. But no one has ever produced the evidence to question the veracity of the content of Hager’s books.

In short, Hager is credible. It is thus Key’s credibility against Hager’s . . .

So, lets take a closer look at that Hager vs Key credibility match up with a review of past performances and current form.

Documented Lies Told By author and investigative journalist Nicky Hager

Zero, zip, nada . . . not one.

Documented Lies Told By the Prime Minister of New Zealand John Key

1. I promise to always be honest
2. we are not going to sack public servants, the attrition rate will reduce costs
3. there’s no way one in five New Zealanders will lose their jobs
4. we are not going to cut working for families
5. I firmly believe in climate change and always have
6. We seek a 50% reduction in New Zealand’s carbon-equivalent net emissions, as compared to 1990 levels, by 2050. 50 by 50. We will write the target into law.
7. National Ltd™ will provide a consistent incentive for both biofuel and biodiesel by exempting them from excise tax or road user charges
8. there is no truth in Nicky Hager’s book “The Hollowmen”
9. I didn’t know about The Bretheren election tactics
10. If they came to us now with that proposal [re trans-Tasman Therapeutic Goods regime], we will sign it
11. I can’t remember my position on the 1981 Springbok Tour
12. Tranzrail shares
13. I did not mislead the House (1)
14. Lord Ashcroft
15. National Ltd™ would not have sent troops into Iraq
16. Standard & Poors credit downgrade
17. the double-down grade doesn’t really matter and its only about private sector debt
18. I did not mislead the House (2)
19. I didn’t say I want wages to drop
20. I can’t remember why I voted against increasing the minimum wage
21. lifting the minimum wage to $15 an hour will increase unemployment
22. the real rate of inflation is 3.3 percent.
23. the tourism sector has not lost 7,000 jobs
24. no I have never heard of Whitechapel
25. I won’t raise GST
26. people who are on the average wage and have a child are $48 a week better off after the rise in GST
27. the purchase of farmland, by overseas buyers will be limited to ten farms per purchase
28. the Pike River Mine was consented to under a Labour Government
29. no promises were made to get the remains of the miners out of the Pike River mine
30. I did not provide a view on the safety of the Pike River coalmine
31. I did not mislead the House (3)
32. capping, not cutting the public service
33. raising the minimum wage to $15 per hour will cost 6000 jobs
34. north of $50 a week
35. privatisation won’t significantly help the economy
36. wave goodbye to higher taxes, not your loved ones
37. I never offered Brash a diplomatic job in London
38. Tariana Turia is “totally fine” with the Tuhoe Treaty Claim deal
39. Kiwisaver
40. National Ltd™ is not going to radically reorganise the structure of the public sector
41. tax cuts won’t require additional borrowing
42. New Zealand does not have a debt problem
43. New Zealand troops in Afghanistan will only be involved in training, not fighting
44. the wage gap between New Zealand and Australia has closed under my National Ltd™ government
45. It took 9 years for Labour to make a complete and utter mess of the economy
46. National Ltd™ has changed the Overseas Investment Act to include 19 different criteria
47. the price of goods and services has risen by 6 percent since the last election, while the after-tax average wage has actually gone up by 16 percent
48. no, although its a week ago and here I am being interviewed on television about them, I havn’t seen Gerry Brownlee’s comments regarding demolitions in Christchurch and which caused such outrage, but I can talk all about them
49. our SAS soldiers were not involved in the Kabul Hotel gunfight
50. the use of the Vela brother’s helicopter was required so I could attend meetings relating to national/international security concerns
51. the DPS makes the decision about accompanying the Prime Minister or not, I had no choice but to take them on holiday to Hawaii
52. I did not mislead the House (4)
53. oh, maybe our SAS soldiers were in the Kabul hotel gun fight but they weren’t wounded by friendly fire
54. New Zealand has lost $12 billion from GDP due to the Christchurch earthquake . . . oh, it might actually be around $15 billion from GDP due to the Christchurch earthquake . . . Blinglish said what?
55. 10,000 houses will have to be demolished in Christchurch due to the earthquake
56. 14,000 new apprentices will start training over the next five years, over and above the number previously forecast
57. our amendments to the ETS ensure we will continue to do our fair share internationally
58. we are committed to honouring our Kyoto Protocol obligations
59. any changes to the ETS will be fiscally neutral
60. New Zealand has grown for eight of the last nine quarters”
61. National Ltd™ will tender out the government banking contract
62. we will be back in surplus by 2014-15
63. Nicky Hager’s book “Other People’s Wars” is a work of fiction
64. unemployment is starting to fall
65. we have created 60,000 jobs
66. we have created 45,000 jobs
67. the 2011 Budget will create in the order of 170,000 jobs
68. I don’t know if I own a vineyard
69. no, I did not mislead the House (5)
70. the Isreali spy killed in the Christchurch quake had “only one” passport
71. the Police will not need to make savings by losing jobs
72. I voted to keep the drinking age at 20
73. New Zealand is 100% Pure
74. I’ve been prime minister for four years, and it’s really 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year
75. baseball in New Zealand is attracting more government support
76. the decision to buy brand new BMWs was made by the Department of Internal Affairs without reference either to their minister or to me
77. I didn’t have a clue that Ministerial Services, which I am in charge of, was going to buy brand new BMWs
78. even though four of my ministers knew all about it, I didn’t have a clue that brand new BMWs were being bought.
79. even though my Chief of Staff met with officials to discuss purchase of the the brand new BMWs, I didn’t have a clue
80. even though I personally signed papers discussing the matter, I still didn’t have a clue
81. Labour forced us into buying the brand new BMWs, its their fault
82. ummm, look, sorry about that BMW thing , it was because I was so upset
83. I did not describe David Beckam as thick as batshit
84. I did not mislead the House (6)
85. the public demanded that we change the labour laws for The Hobbit
86. “The Hobbit” created 3000 new jobs
87. we have delivered 800 extra doctors in the public service
88. I did not mislead the House (7)
89. I wasn’t working at Elders when the sham foreign exchange deals took place
90. I was starting School Certificate exams in 1978
91. I don’t know who arrived on the CIA jet to visit the spies I am responsible for
92. reducing barriers to property developers will increase the availability of affordable housing
93. Labour left the economy in poor shape
94. forecasts show unemployment will fall
95. we have closed the wage gap with Australia by $27
96. Ngati Porou and Whanau Apanui are not opposed to mining
97. I have not had any meetings with Media Works
98. our [NZ’s] terms of trade remain high
99. the TPPA is an example of democracy
100. the TPPA will still have to be ratified by Parliament
101. National Ltd™ will use the proceeds of state asset sales to invest in other public assets, like schools and hospitals
102. New Zealand troops will be out of Afghanistan by April 2013
103. overseas investment in New Zealand adds to what New Zealanders can invest on their own
104. overseas investment in New Zealand creates jobs, boosts incomes, and helps the economy grow
105. National Ltd™ will build 2000 houses over the next two years
106. there are only 4 New Zealand SAS soldiers in Bamiyan and all working in the area of logistics and planning only
107. selling state assets will give cash equity to those companies
108. the Sky City deal will provide 1000 construction jobs and 800 casino jobs
109. all five bidders for the convention centre were treated equally
110. my office has had no correspondence, no discussions, no involvement with the Sky City deal
111. I did not mislead the House (8)
112. I can’t remember what was discussed at my meeting with the SkyCity Chief Executive on 14 May 2009
113. I have no record of the 12 November 2009 email from Treasury advising that the SkyCity deal was dodgy and needed to be referred to the Auditor General
114. there was nothing improper about the Sky City deal
115. SkyCity will only get “a few more” pokie machines at the margins
116. any changes to gambling regulations will be subject to a full public submission process
117. Sky City has approached TVNZ about the purchase/use of government-owned land
118. I did not mislead the House (9)
119. this government has been very transparent about all its dealings with SkyCity
120. I did not mislead the House (10)
121. the Auditor General has fully vindicated National over the Sky City deal
122. I did not mislead the House (11)
123. the Deputy Auditor General supports the view that there was nothing inappropriate about the Sky City deal
124. I did not mislead the House (12)
125. I did not breach the confidentiality of the Auditor General’s Report into the Sky City deal
126. the Labour Government did exactly the same sort of deal back in 2001
127. Labour has promised to not revoke the Sky City legislation
128. there’s a 50/50 chance the Hobbit is going off shore unless we do something
129. David Shearer has signed up for the purchase of shares in Mighty River
130. Solid Energy asked the government for a $1 billion capital investment
131. fracking has been going safely on in Taranaki for the past 30 years without any issues
132. no frontline positions will be lost at DOC
133. Iain Rennie came to me and recommended Fletcher for the GCSB job
134. I told Cabinet that I knew Ian Fletcher
135. I forgot that after I scrapped the shortlist for GCSB job I phoned a life-long friend to tell him to apply for the position
136. I told Iain Rennie I would contact Fletcher
137. I haven’t seen Ian Fletcher in a long time.
138. I did not mislead the House (13)
139. I have no reason to doubt at this stage that Peter Dunne did not leak the GCSB report
140. I called directory service to get Ian Fletcher’s number
141. the new legislation narrows the scope of the GCSB
142. the GCSB has been prevented from carrying out its functions because of the law governing its functions
143. because the opposition is opposed the GCSB law ammendments, parliamentary urgency is required
144. the increasing number of cyber intrusions which I can’t detail or discuss prove that the GCSB laws need to be extended to protect prive enterprise
145. it was always the intent of the GCSB Act to be able to spy on New Zealanders on behalf of the SIS and police
146. National Ltd™ is not explanding the activities of the GCSB with this new law
147. cyber terrorists have attempted to gain access to information about weapons of mass destruction held on New Zealand computers
148. the law which says the GCSB cannot spy on New Zealanders is not clear
149. it totally incorrect that the Government effectively through GCSB will be able to wholesale spy on New Zealanders
150. we self identified that there was a problem with the GCSB spying on Kim Dotcom
151. the illegal spying on Kim Dotcom was an isolated incident
152. The advice I have had in 4 years as a Minister is that in no way ever has there been an indication of unlawful spying
153. the Ministerial Warrant signed by Bill English did not cover anything up
154. I wasn’t briefed about the raid on Kim Dotcom’s home.
155. first I heard I heard about Kim Dotcom was on 19 January 2012
156. first I heard about the illegal spying on Kim Dotcom was in 17 September
157. I did not mislead the House (14)
158. I won’t be discussing Kim Dotcom during my Hollywood visit.
159. The Human Rights Commission couldn’t get its submission on the GCSB legislation in on time.
160. it would cost too much to for the police and SIS to carry out the spying on New Zealanders that this new legislation will permit
161. critics of the GCSB legislation, including the Law Society, the Human Rights Commission, and the Privacy Commission, are all uninformed
162. no, I did not mislead the House (15)
163. I do not know how Mr Henry is conducting the Enquiry
164. no, I did not mislead the House (16)
165. the Henry Enquiry had permission to view Ministers’ emails
166. no, I did not mislead the House (??)
167. we do not spy on journalists
168. the passing of phone records to the Henry Enquiry was an error on the part of a contractor
169. I wasn’t aware that my own Chief of Staff was instructing Parliamentary Services to hand over information concerning journalist Andrea Vance
170. National Ltd™ has never tried to impinge on the role of the media
171. I had nothing to do with information on a journalist being handed over to the inquiry into the leaking of the GCSB report
172. the terms of the enquiry made it clear to everyone that it was only the phone records of parliamentary staff and ministers that were to be provided
173. I have the utmost respect for the media and the role it plays in New Zealand’s democracy
174. the Henry Enquiry did not access a journalist’s building-access records
175. the Henry Enquiry did not ask for phone and email records
176. no, I did not mislead the House (17)
177. the Greens are opposed to the GCSB and the SIS even existing
178. the GCSB needs to spy on New Zealanders because there are al-Qaeda terrorists in New Zealand
179. John Minto is in the Green Party
180. the GCSB needs to spy on New Zealanders because of the terrorist threat, even though official reports released over my signature say there is no risk and the SIS has the matter in hand
181. the GCSB Bill does not give the GCSB the power to look at the content of communications as part of its cyber-security functions
182. no, I did not mislead the House (18)
183. there will be no mining on Conservation land in the Corromendel
184. no, I did not say we would follow the US and Australia into a war against North Korea
185. New Zealand has an arrangement to have asylum seekers processed in Australian detention camps
186. I did not mislead the house (19)
187. I paid for that lunch and I’ve got the credit card bill to prove it
188. I am honest and upfront
189. the only way net new jobs can be created is by private investors putting their money into businesses in New Zealand
190. you can’t hide if yuu’re Prime Minister
191. an increase in the number of people looking for work indicates that confidence is returning to the economy
192. the 10 percent of taxpayers in New Zealand who are the top earners pay 76 percent of all net personal tax.
193. I did not mislead the House (20)
194. Aaron Gilmour was >a href= http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UHlarcvmR7U&feature=youtu.be> one of a number of people in a group who were badly behaved
195. the substantial wage growth under Labour was eroded by inflation
196. National Ltd™’s 2010 tax changes were fiscally neutral
197. I did not mislead the House (21)
198. the bulk of New Zealanders earn between $45,000 and $75,000 a year
199. Pike River Coal did not put profits and its production ahead of the safety and lives of those 29 workers.
200. Radio Live had sought advice from the Electoral Commission about my show just before the election
201. it is because of National Ltd™’s policies that the price of fresh fruit and vegetables has dropped.
202. the length-of-the-country cycleway will create 4000 jobs.
203. police training for next year has not been cancelled
204. National Ltd™ has only cut back-office jobs in the health service
205. The Crown’s dividend stream from the Meridians, the Mighty Rivers of the world is large and there is no motivation to sell assets; actually we’re about creating assets not selling assets.”
206. National believes employment law should treat all parties fairly. It should . . . Protect employees and employers.
207. I am not trying to tackle such issues in a “fearful” way ahead of the next election
208. Wellington City is dying.
209. National Ltd™ has been working on a number of things with New Zealand First on a number of things one of which has a financial component but I can’t talk about it
210. the best way to get growth in the economy is to reduce public debt
211. New Zealand mum and dad investors will be our number one priority in the allocation of Mighty River shares
212. we won’t let “cowboy” oil exploration companies operate here in New Zealand
213. the Green Party is racist by not allowing Chinese residents in New Zealand to buy a house
214. the Labour Party is promising a four-bedroom house in Auckland for $300,000
215. the food in schools programme is in the 2013 budget
216. the meat exports are being held up in China because of issues in relation to the Chinese looking to trace counterfeit meat
217. its notoriously difficult to win three elections in a row
218. I am deeply concerned about every child in New Zealand who is in poverty
219. there is no manufacturing crisis in New Zealand
220. the government’s exposure to MediaWorks’ going into receivership is reasonably limited
221. the money from the sale of state assets will not be used to prop up Solid Energy
222. I don’t see a place for a Winston Peters-led New Zealand First in a government that I lead. It’s not a matter of political convenience, it’s a matter of political principle.
223. The vast majority of the buildings in Christchurch came through the earthquakes in good shape
224. the commemoration of New Zealand’s involvement in the Korean War will not be used to bolster trade talks
225. third generation Chinese New Zealanders will be required to present their passport before buying a house under the Labour government
226. the Labour housing policy is an attempt by David Shearer to save his leadership
227. the Labour housing policy is in breach of free trade agreements
228. only 2% of the proceeds of the sale of Mighty River will be spent on the sales process
229. David Cunliffe is lying to you
230. Labour wants to nationalise the super market industry
231. The government will engage in no further negotiations with Rio Tinto
232. Without a government subsidy of hundreds of millions of dollars Chorus will go broke
233. No, I did not mislead the House (??)
234. the justice system is already adequate for handling situations involving new evidence
235. my Minister Nick Smith was not aware of the content of the leaked draft submission on the Ruataniwha situation until 17 September
236. New Zealand First will nationalise a host of industries and businesses
237. I have no responsibility for the statements I make
238. Mark Mitchell was just gossiping at a cocktail party when he tipped Webster off about Len Brown’s affair
239. it was a lack of external analysis and accountability which put Solid Energy into its debt crisis
240. the Commerce Commission misinterpreted the law when deciding the price for access to the Chorus copper infrastructure
241. no analyist predicted that the cost of access to the copper infrastructure would go down
242. there has been only one problem with oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico
243. If it was my vote, it would be no pay increases for Mps
244. Greenpeace are just scare mongering about any oil leaks off the New Zealand coast
245. For every election for the last five elections , we have had royal visitors to New Zealand.
246. No decision has been made on the timing of the sale of Air New Zealand shares
247. its not true that in New Zealand the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer
248. This summer is the most active season ever for oil and gas exploration, with the industry spending up to $750 million. At the same time, the Government is strengthening the regulations that govern drilling, particularly in deep water.
249. Labour is trying to mislead people about eligibility for Best Start because they don’t get the payment while they also get paid parental leave.
250. A mountain of evidence shows that the quality of teaching – inside the classroom – is the biggest influence on kids’ achievement
251. Governor General Jerry Mateparae has been jostled while walking onto Te Tii Marae at Waitangi .
252. Cameron Slater, who I speak to regularly and who told me about Winston meeting Kim Dot Com, has got absolutely nothing to do with the National Party.
253. Cameron Slater rang me
254. What I do know is that when this Government came in, there were predictions that unemployment would rise to over 10 percent.
255. The Cabinet Office had cleared Judith Collins of a conflict of interest
256. The golf tournament in which I played the chairman of Oravida was for charity.
257. The Cabinet Office has cleared Collins of a conflict of interest after it translated comments on Oravida’s website which stated that she had praised its products
258. My Justice Minister, Judith Collins, didn’t lie to Parliament, she just didn’t understand the question.
259. The [MFAT] paperwork shows right through this that not only did the Minister have a very busy programme, all on judicial and justice issues, but, secondly, all the way through it talks about a private dinner.
260. No, I did not mislead parliament. (??)
261. No, I did not mislead the House(??)
262. The Unions decide the leadership of the Labour Party and picked David Cunliffe
263. Unions give the Labour Party millions of dollars a year
264. The economic mess inherited by the Abbott government in Australia can be likened to the economic mess inherited by National Ltd™ when it came into office in 2008.
265. National Ltd™ inherited an economic mess from Labour
266. National Ltd™ inherited an economic mess from Labour in 2008
267. No, I did not mislead the House(??)
268. Twelve percent of New Zealand households pay 76 percent of all net tax in New Zealand
269. Natinal Ltd™ ignored the plight of babies living in the poorest famililies because there is other assistance available
270. the Malaysian government declined to waive diplomatic immunity for the man charged with burglary and attempted rape
271. the UN officials visiting down south are focussing on sustainable agriculture
272. I would apologise to the woman if I knew who she was
273. My government has led the charge on the transperancy of MPs’ spending
274. Only 1 percent of New Zealand farm land is in foreign ownership
275. Internet Mana put together the video depicting a burning effigy of me.
276. Under National Ltd™ the prison population has gone down.
277. National Ltd™ has been nowwhere near the Labour party computer system
278. The OIA request to the SIS about Phil Goff’s briefing on the Isreali spies had nothing to do with my office.
279. National Ltd™ talks to the MSM exactly the same way we talk to the MSM
280. The allegations in Nicky Hager’s book are all wrong.
281. Nicky Hager has got nothing to prove any of the allegations.
282. All this stuff in “Dirty Politics” is coming from the left.
283. National Ltd™ is not using blogs as attack sites any more than anyone would do
284. The release of “Dirty Politics” is part of a coordinated attack from the left because it is unable to win the discussion on the issues that matter.
285. Very little of the book “Dirty Politics” is about me.