Winston hates the Herald

Winston unleashes a torrent against the Herald:

Peters said the rejection came after “fuss” by “minions of foreign-owned interests”, referring to the country’s main newspaper owners, APN – publishers of the NZ Herald and the Herald on Sunday – and Fairfax.

“It’s all very well for a bunch of chardonnay-drinking, pinky-finger-lifting elitists to come up with their view. It’s the ultimate in elitist arrogance. There is no politics in this.”

It is typical Peters. Well if there is no politics in this, why not give the money back to the taxpayer to whom it is morally owed?

Matt McCarten is unimpressed also:

But of all of his antics, dropping off a cheque for $158,000 to Starship children’s hospital last week must be the most blatant example of cynical populism I can recall.

Mind you, the NZ First’s leader’s latest hypocrisy is consistent with his past behaviour. Peters has always had an uncanny knack of being able to take a strong principled position one moment and, with a straight face, do the exact opposite without claiming he has done anything wrong.

During the last election he defiantly claimed NZ First wouldn’t sell out for the baubles of office. Within weeks he was our Foreign Minister, claiming he wasn’t a member of the Government because he didn’t go to Cabinet meetings, and his other MPs remained on the backbenches.

The Auditor-General’s original charge was that our politicians had unethically used public money to buy votes. Peters has pulled off a breath-taking feat. Not only did he misuse money two years ago, but he is using the same money to fund publicity he hopes will get him elected again next year. It remains to be seen if enough New Zealanders vote for a party with this sort of morality compass.

One of the better summing ups I have seen.