0 Do as we say...

Direct from the "You couldn't make this shit up" department, Andrea Vance reports via Stuff:

The Green Party is demanding transparency of political donations - but will hold a closed door auction to raise funds later this month.
Last month co-leader Russel Norman called for more details about National's Cabinet Clubs - where ministers mix with donors over lunch or breakfast. The money raised from ticket sales goes into National party coffers.
It sparked a ''cash for access'' row with Norman saying the Government has put democracy up for sale, and calling for a ministerial disclosure regime.
However, the Greens are coy about their own fundraising methods. An agenda for next weekend's annual day meeting shows the media are barred from a pre-lunch ''party fundraising session'' on the last day of the three-day conference.
A spokeswoman explained the half-hour meeting is an auction for party members. It was a ''fun'' session closed so guests could ''let their hair down.''
Co-leader Metiria Turei has crocheted a blanket which will be offered for sale.
''It's not $10,000 a pop,'' the spokeswoman said, referring to National's fundraising events. 

This is simply priceless stuff; the Greens slag National off about its Cabinet Club, then hold a private, invitation-only "party fundraising session". It's typical Green Party do-as-we-say-not-as-we-do hippy-crisy.

And how about instead of calling it a "party fundraising session" they call it a meeting of the Crochet Club; partly as a tribute to Metiria's blanket, but mainly because with antics like this, it will be a long time before the Greens get anywhere near Cabinet! 

0 Are the Greens media now?

The Green Party seems to have abandoned being a political party now, and taken up journalism. Maybe it was the excitement on Twitter last night as Canon Media Awards were handed out, but that's the only explanation for this tweet from Russel Norman:

And right on cue, the Dom-Post has a story this morning with Dr Norman quoted prominently:

Some of Wellington's most recognisable names paid $3500 each to meet Prime Minister John Key at a National Party fundraising dinner also attended by his taxpayer-funded chief of staff, Wayne Eagleson.
As Opposition allegations continue to swirl around National's so-called "Cabinet clubs" for wealthy donors, it has emerged about 15 people, including former Wellington mayor Kerry Prendergast and Weta Digital co-founder Jamie Selkirk, attended the dinner at the Museum Hotel, which raised $45,000 for National.
The Cabinet club fundraising events, attended by leading National MPs, have been in the spotlight this week after the resignation of Maurice Williamson, who intervened with police on behalf of a wealthy National Party donor.
Justice Minister Judith Collins has also been under attack over her dinner with representatives of milk exporter Oravida - a company her husband governs, and which has also donated to National.
The fundraisers have been criticised for providing donors with access to ministers in return for cash. National has responded that Labour has done the same kind of fundraising.
The Museum Hotel event was held in 2011, and organised by hotel owner and National Party fundraiser Chris Parkin.
He said yesterday the event was nothing to do with the Cabinet clubs but was his way of helping to support National.
He joked that at least $2000 worth of each donation was for the food and wine. He did not believe anyone attending fundraising dinners expected to be able to "influence" the prime minister. "They are more there to ask questions."
Developer Richard Burrell, who was one of those present, said he was "chuffed" to attend after the asking price dropped from $5000 to $3500, and because Parkin always put on entertaining events that were good fun.
Key and Eagleson chatted to those attending, and it was "a good fun evening".
Payment for the event went to Parkin, he said. Official party donation records show Parkin correctly declared a $45,000 donation to National about two months later.
Prendergast said yesterday that she did not pay to attend, as she was there as a guest of Parkin. Selkirk did not want to comment.
Green Party leader Russel Norman said the fundraiser showed wealthy people could get access to the prime minister when poorer people could not.
Such fundraisers "may be technically legal, they're not right", he said. "If you have a lot of money, you can buy exclusive access to the prime minister." 

Dr Norman seems to miss a fundamental point here. Whilst he concedes that the dinner was "technically legal" he's actually wrong; the dinner was absolutely positively legal. It was promoted as a fundraiser for the party, and the donation from Chris Parkin was legally declared. 

But the point Norman misses is that people in New Zealand have a choice, and if they want to support the National Party (as many business people do, because National is far more business-friendly than the Greens, Labour or Mana) they have an absolute right to do that, provided it is done legally.

The Green Party's complaints here are petty, and motivated by a combination of the politics of envy, the fact that few people would shell out $3500 for dinner with Dr Norman or Ms Turei (or even David Cunliffe for that matter) but above all a desire to see taxpayer funding of political parties. If a Labour-Green government is ever elected, you can guarantee that will be on the agenda.

We suggest that the Greens stick to politics. It's not the job of political parties to boast about breaking stories, and in any event, 3News actually broke the story, although obviously they'd been fed plenty of inside information from the Green Party comms team. If the Greens want to break stories, let them give up the offices and support staff that you and we pay for, let them give up their MP salaries and taxpayer-funded travel, and let them join the Press Gallery and scratch out a living.

0 How would you feel...?

Labour and the Greens (and their friends at 3News) are outraged that the National Party raises money. 3News ran a story for them last night, which you can access here. But the final paragraph began thus:

But raising money this way isn't against the rules.

3News' main disappointment seems to be that National DIDN'T break any rules with its Cabinet Club promotions, which according to DPF have been going in in one form or another for 20-plus years.  But we are suspicious that 3News is aiding and abetting the Greens' push for taxpayer funding of political parties, and suspect that is the real story here.

Of course National isn't the only party to fundraise off the profile of its MP's. DPF's post tells how Labour sold promotional booths at its Conference in Christchurch last year. Among the benefits was this:

Sue Moroney challenged us when we mentioned this on Twitter this morning, saying "You are completely and utterly wrong". Naturally, we took issue with that; here's the conversation, which soon became one-sided. We're sure though that her apology to us isn't far away!

Now some will say that there's a difference between access to MP's and access to Ministers, and they'd have a point. So we did a Google search for "Labour Party fundraising ministers", and here's what we found on the third page:

 

 

Yes Dear Readers. In August 2005, Trevor Mallard substituted for Michael Cullen at a Labour Party fundraising dinner in Nelson. At the time, Dr Cullen was the Minister of Finance, and Mr Mallard was, among other things, the Minister of Education; a high-ranking appointment in any Cabinet.

 

So finally we get to our title; how WOULD you feel if you'd shelled out a reasonable sum to hear the rapier-sharp wit of Michael Cullen, and Trevor Mallard turned up? We know how we'd feel; disappointed. Dr Cullen was an excellent, articulate speaker with a ready wit, and Mr Mallard is not. Trevor Mallard would have been reading the speech prepared by Dr Cullen's staff during work time, and on the taxpayer's dime.

 

3News is right; raising money this way isn't illegal, as long as the Cabinet Manual is adhered to. Nor is it new, and nor is it the sole preserve of the National Party. 3News staff did themselves no favours last night with its attempt to taint the National Party. 

 

And both David Cunliffe and Russel Norman have had little success in attacking John Key on the issue at Question Time this afternoon. In fact Dr Norman gave the PM the chance to utter what must be the sledge of the day:

 

"I think that member's high horse went lame the day he parked it at the Dotcom mansion"