Sideshow Pete

Sideshow Pete (apologies to Simpsons)

Joining dog owners and Vodafone on my list of groups I’m totally over, NZ First and Sideshow Pete(rs).

I think Winston represents in one neat package everything that is wrong with politics and it’s hardly surprising politicians are way down the list on people the public trust.

This morning on Morning Report he managed to skillfully not answer any of the questions put to him, answering every question (which just required a yes or a no) with another question. At the end of the interview we knew nothing more, apart from that he was going to sue everyone for “outrageous allegations”. You were left with the impression that either he did know something and wasn’t going to be tricked into admitting it, or if he didn’t then he is exceedingly naive - I know which option I would take.

It would be really good if the party retired him because he’s just a huge joke now. I don’t even thinks he takes himself seriously.

In what must have been a 5 minute interview Sideshow Pete managed to avoid saying anything about the donation from the prominent racing family, apart from the bleeding obvious fact that as Minister of Racing (what the hell do we have a Minister of racing for anyway) he knew “of them”. The fact that he didn’t admit anything either way really means you could draw the conclusion that he did know, because if he didn’t he would have just come out and said so. It’s all rather too neat that the donations were all allegedly under $10,000, and so because they were anonymous they didn’t have to be declared.

It seems that the man who spent many years chasing tax evaders has learnt a few tricks of his own. Sure nothing is strictly illegal, but it stinks all the same.

I honestly believe that unless the major parties start to take a stand and clean up politics in ten years we are going to see corruption. This chicanery and use of grey areas has led some people to think this is all OK. It’s not and it has to stop.

National needs to stand up now and show some spine. They need to state now that even if it means they won’t become government, they will not deal with NZ First if Winston Peters is leader.

Key tried to have a buck each way and claimed that it was the voters who decided who was in government. This is showing the same flexibility that Sideshow Pete shows, and I’m pretty confident that most voting citizens are sick and tired of this sort of shit. Show some leadership and balls John, don’t deal with Peter’s.

We need a government that shows some commitment to moving past the growing sleaze of the last few years and who will clean things up, not wallow further in the trough. National need to demonstrate that they will makes some tough calls and they can start by sending a message to voters, “A vote for NZ First will not get you a National Government”. I for one will be seriously considering my votes if it looks like Winston will be getting anywhere near the ‘baubles of office’ in the next National Government.