Garrick Tremain Cartoon - The Treaty

 

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Trunp Victory

 

The US elections delivered a staggering victory to Donald Trump. It has given the Republicans a mandate to carry out widespread and far-reaching reforms with greater determination than was evident during Trump's first term as President.

The victory revealed how out of touch the political elite and the mainstream media have become with the issues important to ordinary folk, like the cost of living and immigration (here its cost of living and Māori activism). 

What happens in Trump America will have an impact here not only on our economy but also in terms of the momentum it will give to the anti-woke resistance movements that are now gathering strength around the world. The lesson for our politicians is that ordinary everyday voters are more concerned about realities than ideologies. 

More

https://www.nzcpr.com/a-day-of-reckoning/

Illegal Number Plates

Letterbox has been presented with a photo file of illegal motor vehicle registration plates, issued by a Far North hapu claiming sovereignty over their patch.

We are told the Police have been made aware of the issue but have turned a blind eye. The concern is not only with unregistered and unwarranted vehicles being unsafe and a danger to other motorists but there are implications with third-party insurance and in some cases avoidance of road user charges.

Northern Advocate article: Here >>>

Disorder in the House

Parliament descended into unprecedented chaos when the Māori Party interrupted voting on the first reading of the Treaty Principles Bill. Māori Party MPs confronted David Seymour with a haka that the Speaker described as "pre-mediated" and “appallingly disrespectful". Labour MPs and the public gallery joined the haka. 

To restore order the Speaker suspended Parliament and cleared the public gallery.  Willie Jackson and Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke were suspended.

Everyone should now know that the Māori Party has a clear agenda to disrupt Parliament and challenge its sovereignty. In response, the public is hardening its attitude to racial activism, and some are calling for the seven Māori seats to be abolished.

Questions are being asked whether National has the backbone to stand up to the extremism. How parties respond to the activists may become a defining issue for right-leaning voters when they choose between National, NZ First, or ACT. 

Seymour Exposes Hikoi

ACT leader David Seymour has criticised media coverage of the hikoi to Wellington and asked why reporters have not disclosed the organisers links to the Maori Party. The catalyst for the protest is Seymour’s Treaty Principles Bill which has just had its first reading in Parliament. 

Seymour noted that Eru Kapa-Kingi, the hīkoi leader, is employed by the Maori Party in Parliament and was a candidate for the party for the Whangarei electorate in the 2023 election. He is also the son of Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, the Maori Party MP for Te Tai Tokerau (Northland).  

The other leader of the protest is Kiri Tamihere-Waititi.  She is the wife of Maori Party co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and daughter of the party president and Waipareira Trust CEO John Tamihere. 

Greens target mayoralty

In February, Green Party co-leader, Chloe Swarbrick, committed her party to “getting more Green-aligned people into local government positions next year”. It is making good on that promise in Whangarei.

Letterbox understands the Green Party has shoulder-tapped a high-profile candidate to contest the Whangarei mayoralty, and work has begun to build their profile.

Tory Whanau Disaster

Veteran journalist, Barry Soper, recently asked, “How did Tory Whanau get the Wellington mayoralty?”

It’s a question that many are asking and the answer is relevant to Whangarei.

Barry says, “It's the same reason why one of the country's most revered mayors in recent years, Dame Kerry Prendergast, lost her nine-year grip on the city's mayoralty to another unfathomable choice, Celia Wade-Brown. It's not because both Whanau and Wade-Brown are Greens and it's not because both of them love cycleways, despite vocal ratepayer opposition to the amount of money being spent on Wellington cycleways. It's because of the single transferrable voting system (STV) that saw them winning against all odds. It's the system where you vote for candidates on a preferential system, where once a quota's been reached for a candidate, they drop out and the votes for the second preference kicks in - and so on until a winner is found.”

Mickey Mouse councillor

Kaipara district councillor Mark Vincent wears a Mickey Mouse T-shirt to council meetings. It’s his way of protesting about “the worrying state of democracy” in the organisation.

Ironically, in October 2020 Mark Vincent had little regard for democracy when he voted in favour of introducing a Māori ward on the KDC, without first consulting the wider community. Clearly, he doesn’t think electors should have a say in how they elect their representatives.

Garrick Tremain cartoon - book release