Donald Trump with the New Zealand Ambassador to the US Rosemary Banks in the Oval Office. Photo / file
Donald Trump with the New Zealand Ambassador to the US Rosemary Banks in the Oval Office. Photo / file
COMMENT
OPINION:
Well, Waitangi Day has come and gone, signalling the end of the Christmas break for our politicians.
Of course, most have a short break and then undertake constituency work if a local MP or do whatever list MPs with, in my opinion, no accountability to the public do.
Parliamentis back this coming week thankfully for sad sacks like me who comment occasionally on the doings of our leaders.
As a columnist this time of year is a bit dry in terms of being able to have a go at politics.
We have been lucky this year as we have had the end of the Trump presidency in America with all the shenanigans that preceded that and the subsequent fallout in terms of impeachment yet again for the Donald.
Of course Trump will not be impeached, that will never happen in a Senate split evenly between Democrats and Republicans but requiring a two-thirds majority.
The GOP will want to put Trump and his attempted insurrection behind them but cannot afford to ignore him or impeach him; he garnered 74 million-odd votes, about a third of the voting public in America. Many like him or his policies, he is a cult figure.
The GOP leadership will worry that, if he or one of his acolytes do not get the Republican nomination for 2024, a third, independent alternative, let's call them The Trumpians, with a very strong voting base could split the Republican vote, guaranteeing an easy win for the Democrats.
There are the mid-term elections in 2022, just around the corner, to deal with as well.
Two years is nothing in politics and with America split in so many ways there could be great changes in 2022, effectively neutralising President Biden and his team.
Why bother with American politics? The past four years has seen the world change in ways that we could never imagine a year ago. An isolationist America is the last thing the world community needs, especially right now.
Despite the many varied opinions of America, it is the biggest, richest and oldest democracy on the planet. The world community needs a stable and strong America that is open to trade and immigration.
The strong leadership usually emanating from Washington has been non-existent in the past four years.
President Trump turned his back on Covid-19 and, instead of doing his primary duty as a leader of a democracy, protecting his people, he hung them out to dry.
Rob Rattenbury.
Around 400,000 deaths and climbing, most needless, has been the result.
With a weak America which has had a recent "hands off " approach to foreign policy things are moving amongst countries which now have nationalist leadership.
Human rights are never a strong point in those nations but with America watching over their figurative shoulders and with many dependent on the generous aid handed out by America they used to behave themselves. Not so much now perhaps.
In President Biden the world has a leader who is politically experienced and who has a level of gravitas and maturity that fits the office of the President.
It will be interesting to see how his administration deals with the wreckage left behind by four years of neglect.
Locally the only matter that has raised eyebrows politically is the ongoing question of Maori wards in local government.
This issue is an emotional matter and subject to much spirited debate.
Māori wards are not going to go away anytime soon. Interesting comment has come from one highly respected local Māori elder in my area.
He points to long discussion within Māoridom itself about how any wards could be set up and administered.
It must be remembered Māori are as diverse in views and opinions as any other culture in New Zealand. One point he raised which was of great relevance, is the question of Māori not from the local area gaining dominance on a local Māori ward over Māori from the area.
The elder states that the matter of wards is still under discussion within Māoridom with no easy answers emerging.
The precedent for Māori wards is already in place with the seven Māori seats in Parliament.
Separate seats were set up in the 19th century to guarantee Māori representation in a European-dominated parliament, those seats to remain in place until Māori say otherwise.
Despite strong Māori caucuses slowly emerging there is no call for the abolition of these seats yet, actually growing in number.
This is all about the expected partnership arising from the Treaty of Waitangi.
Māori take the Treaty very seriously still and want a true ongoing representation just for Māori at the local body council table.
As most of us have not learned our real history this causes many deep angst.
