by Geoffrey Churchman
Today marks a year since Chris Luxon was voted leader of the National Party by its MPs, ousting Judith Collins. Although recent opinion polls have shown National has a comfortable margin ahead of Labour — high 30’s versus low 30’s — many feel that National should by now be in the high 40’s, the same as the Jacinda Party was getting prior to the 2020 election. That it isn’t getting that level of support is an indicator of problems that Luxon and his colleagues and advisors need to address.
To any objective outside observer, this government has been handing (potential) support for National and ACT to them on a plate: among other things:
- The systematic dismantling of democracy and its replacement with an unelected, unaccountable ethnocracy
- Attacks on Freedom of Speech
- Creation of a massive, unresponsive, expensive and unproductive public sector
- Allowing the country’s only oil refinery to close and be dismantled
- Sharply rising inflation
- Sharply rising crime
- Attacks on the country’s agricultural sector which has long been the main basis of NZ’s economy
- Falling real incomes for the working and middle classes
- A health sector in crisis
- Deteriorating roads and railways
- Plummeting education standards and chronic pupil truancy
- A bought and paid-for mainstream media which avoid criticism of the government
- Riding roughshod over people’s human rights
- Ramming Wokeism down people’s throats
- A general attitude by this government of “we know best so you peasants can Stuff off”
How does all that not result in opinion poll results in the low 20’s for this government which is about all the support that this program should have among the public, being the hard core who believe that no matter what, Labour somehow cares about them?
Despite her awful accent, mispronunciations and increasingly hagged appearance, Comrade Jacinda’s still reasonable looks and reasonable communication skills can be the only explanation. It’s an unfortunate fact that good looks and charisma are a big factor in winning elections because of the influence of mainstream TV; those who have that start with an advantage over those who don’t. The Labour Party and its reporters in the MSM clearly make the absolute most of it.
The task for Chris Luxon is to replace her, and that requires necessary equivalent personal skills and an ability to demonstrate that he has them. He looks and sounds like a businessman, but there is a difference between running a business, even a large one, and running a country. In theory at least, the leader of a country is there to do what’s best for everyone, not just a vested interest group such as a thousand or so Maori elites as the Jacinda government is doing.
How much of the economic and social destruction that the Jacinda regime has wrought on the country is National going to reverse? How much is National going to assert the principles of equality of rights where every citizen is treated the same regardless of their ancestry? Luxon is going to have to enunciate clearly firstly, that is National’s intention and secondly, exactly how he’ll go about that.
If Luxon fails to do that he and his Party can expect a lot of the votes that National should pick up instead going to ACT and parties outside parliament.
Our editorial group talk about this often. Here are Roger Childs’ comments:
Luxon is trying to ingratiate himself with the mainstream media and Labour supporters. He doesn’t need to do this and should be playing to National’s constituency. I see him as gutless and he needs to stand up for democracy, equality and equity while rejecting separatism, tribalism and favouritism. He also needs to book himself in with the Orewa Rotary Club to give a speech next January, and thereby take a leaf out of Don Brash’s book.
I think that he has picked the Wong horse when promoting raising the age fir Super particularly St this time of greatly increased cost of living and fir people in manual jobs. There are so many other issues he can attack. Regards Gaire Thompson
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National’s deputy leader Nicola Willis is fairly active on social media. Is she highlighting current issues like Three Waters or giving 16 year olds the vote? No, she is steadfastly fixated on the exchange rate. It’s hard to escape the impression that she wants National to be voted in on a platform of the same as Labour but more competent. Luxon is little better. This can work if there are really very few New Zealanders not worried about the major issues as as democracy, the dreadful education system, the pandering to extremists, the attack on agriculture etc, as long as the cost of living doesn’t go up. But the increase in popularity of parties who are likely to deal with these issues, like ACT and NZ First, suggests otherwise.
I was extremely disappointed in National’s 2020 campaign. I went along to meeting after meeting asking about everything from conversion of farmland to monoculture pine to the abusive SexEd curriculum. I got no support from the local candidate, who didn’t seem to know what I was talking about, and eventually twigged that the Party’s policies were (as now) “we’ll do the same as Labour but better”, though with some catch-up with ACT on issues like Zero Carbon. https://stovouno.org/2020/10/17/nz-nationals-election-strategy/
While fully accepted that ridding the country of this nasty government is the prime goal, Luxton and Nationals mentions continue to get in the way of the goal.
For National, who long declined to embrace the Cullen fund and seemingly would love to grab it for their own pet projects rather than use it for what it was designed for is shabby, just as going against experts who confirm that superannuation as we know it is affordable.
No, Luxton barrels in and the result is clearly a healthy increase in NZ First voters. Nothing against NZ First, I have voted for them for years, but it clouds the next ACT/National government.
Time now for National to lock in its manifesto and keep its promises so we can decide whether NZFirst is in or out.
” In theory at least, the leader of a country is there to do what’s best for everyone, not just a vested interest group ”
I do believe that Luxon is also working for the same agenda , hence the silence and lack of oppostion .
If National get in the WEF and their New world agenda continues as they have planned …………………
All one can say to the things this writer would like to see Chrissy doing is: “You have infinate hope.”
There are no opposition parties. Look how they were with Covid-247. Hook, line & boat. Aren’t you all getting a bit tired of the “Two Party Dictatorship”???
Reblogged this on Free Citizens and commented:
Same things happening in UK. How strange.