The politics of envy

The Herald reports:

Labour has accused the Prime Minister of being “out of touch” after he used a military helicopter to ferry him between engagements on Sunday. …

Mr Key’s office says it would have been unacceptable for him to be late as the Governor-General was also attending and protocol requires the Prime Minister cannot arrive later than the Queen’s representative. …

Labour’s finance spokesman David Cunliffe said Mr Key’s actions showed he is out of touch.

“Maybe Mr Key’s lavish lifestyle with his $55 million worth of investments tells him that flying around from Auckland to Hamilton and back in a helicopter is just normal business, but to most kiwis in this age of austerity it’s outrageous.”

One can have a debate about whether use of a helicopter is justified on a particular occassion (I suspect all PMs only use them when necessary), but what I find interesting is that Labour are once again attacking John Key for having been successful in business, and for being a “rich prick”.

This just reinforces to me that when Labour talk closing the gaps, their focus is not helping those at the bottom of society, but clawing down those who have done well.