Abuse against centre right MPs

Newshub reports:

Paula Bennett has revealed she’s been physically assaulted three times, received “numerous death threats” and had to call the police to her house in an eye-opening interview about her political career with The AM Show. …

“I’ve had numerous death threats, I’ve had police at my house, I’ve been physically assaulted three times – which I’ve never said before,” she said.

“There were three times – one time, when they chased me and I managed to get in my car and lock it and they kicked my car door… Another time I was just shoved, and one of my colleagues managed to get in and physically restrain the person.”

This is terrible stuff, and no MP should have to put up with this.

I note some MPs run off to the media almost every few weeks with a story about how they are being picked on online. Meanwhile Paula has had actual death threats and assaults, but doesn;’t use them as a form of profile raising.

I recall being a junior staffer in the mid 90s and there was a campaign against then Health Minister Bill English over Pharmac not funding some drug. There were tens of thousands of postcards and more than a few of them included death threats not just against him but also his family.