Recollections of the New Zealand media pile-on when Liddell stayed on during the January 6 Capitol insurrection to ensure a smooth presidential transition from his former boss Donald Trump to Joe Biden on January 20, 2017 have rankled.
So too, his ostracism by former National Party leader Judith Collins.
But by Friday morning, there was no holding back.
“I just want to say, how good was Chris Liddell last night? I thought he was excellent,” Luxon said.
“I just want to say mate, thank you so much for what I thought, mate, was a very thoughtful, very considered presentation.”
Liddell comes with a stellar business reputation: the former chief financial offficer at Microsoft, he went on to be vice chair and CFO at General Motors, where he managed the company’s US$23 billion IPO in November 2010, at the time the largest public offering in history. He earlier ran Carter Holt Harvey in New Zealand.
So, what did Liddell say at the summit?
Well, he did affirm his long-held belief that New Zealand can be the best small country in the world … “but realising that vision depends on its ability to harness its strengths to deal with the upcoming challenges of the world – a world that will change more in the next decade than in any other period in my lifetime”.
It was a welcome and familiar mantra for the Prime Minister, who shares that ambition.
So how should New Zealand approach the US at a time of profound global dislocation?
He advised keeping a low profile, maintaining existing connections, and not pushing controversial issues during periods of significant geopolitical transition.
New Zealand’s best strategy is to “sit back and let some of the other issues” play out while continuing to build strategic relationships.
This is in accord with the approach taken by Foreign Minister Winston Peters – who will next week meet with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington DC.
Liddell made several key points: stay diplomatically cautious during the current geopolitical shifts, and avoid unnecessary confrontation; focus on long-term strategic positioning rather than reacting to short-term political turbulence; leverage the country’s strengths as a small, stable nation with strong rule of law and minimal corruption; prioritise relationships within the Five Eyes alliance; position the country as an attractive investment destination with unique opportunities in digital and natural infrastructure; and remain pragmatically optimistic about global challenges, seeing them as potential opportunities.
Liddell served Trump for the full four years during his first term as President.
Inevitably, people want to know what it was like working for Trump in such close quarters.
Liddell didn’t disappoint: the former and current President was “intuitive” and in policy briefings would pit those with opposing views in the room to hear all sides of an issue – unlike former US President Barrack Obama, who was cerebral and wanted to read all the policy documents.
But there was caution: Liddell pointed out that when tectonic plates move, there’s much dislocation before a new equilibrium emerges.
The irresistible force of the new administration reaching the immovable object of the existing order; the intermittent balance between co-operation and competition between the US and China; and the repositioning of Europe were all realities countries and businesses have to grapple with.
Said Liddell: “The bigger the dislocation, the bigger the opportunity.
“In that context, the world we are now entering is a world of challenges, but at the same time a world of unlimited opportunity. It’s also a world where a small, old nation can outperform.”
To do that New Zealand should overcome complacency, increase national aspiration levels, embrace transformational solutions, develop more flexible and effective institutions and compete globally, not just locally.
There was more besides, but his realistic optimism resonated, not just with the many New Zealanders present but also the international visitors.
