Up until a couple of years back Matthew Hooton was in my view our most insightful political commentator and his Herald essays a sheer delight for their colourful expression.
Then it all went haywire, hitting the absolute pits when he became the active advocate for Todd Muller (remember him) to take over the National leadership. That ended in tears, both literally and metaphorically, after a less than 2 months reign at the top.
Puzzled, I made enquiry as to what’s gone wrong and was told Matthew had gone on the wagon.
The result, a constant jumble of confusion. For example, a month back Hooton (rightly) described the current government as doomed and the worst in our history. Today he’s written how they can win next year, a proposition bordering on insanity.
I suspect his heart’s no longer in it as borne out by this nonsense today. Writing of the PM he refers to “The hallowed three times winner club alongside Key, Clark, Bolger and Muldoon.”
Pay attention Matthew. Open with Willian Fox, a four time Prime Minister (referred to then as Premier), add Edward Stafford, three separate times on the throne, so too Harry Atkinson. Or in the modern era, Syd Holland won three elections, all of which I vividly recall. Keith Holyoake chalked up three election victories plus a separate initial term when he took over from Holland who’d gone gaga in 1957.
Matthew, for God’s sake get back on the grog and start writing sense again.
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6 Comments
Totally agree Hooton has lost the plot.Suggesting Ardern a chance for re-election ,adding her off shore celebrity status (once was now gone) shows him to be either “on something” or stupid and stupid he is not.
I agree with with the NO PUNCHES PULLED prediction sometime ago ,LABOUR WILL BE ANIHILATED at the next election and Ardern gone before that.
Strictly speaking , Jacinda Ardern has faced four elections , and been beaten three times . Twice by Nikki Kaye for Auckland Central , 2011 and 2014 . Then beaten by Bill English’s National , 2017 . But gifted the baubles of office by a vengeful Winston Peter’s . A virus assisted her to victory in 2020 . Even Ian Foster’s All Blacks have a better winning percentage than that .
I wonder if Matthew has been giving advice to UK ex-Prime Minister Liz Truss? I sense some of the Muller meltdown magic in her mercifully brief train-wreck term as PM.
Nothing surprising in Matthew’s viewpoint. The real surprise is that he still has time to write these. I know he is working huge hours as Chair of the NZ Bitcoin Investors Association and PR Director for The Bradford Exchange.
Hooton is an idiot, no better proven than with Muller. Track record equals credibility and his record of mistakes and poor predictions means he has none. His ongoing existence as a political activist apparently suffices as a mark of “credibility” (“He’s involved so he must know more than you or me”).
BTW, Holyoake won four elections: 1960, 1963, 1966 and 1969 before retiring and handing over the reigns to Jack Marshall. And of course, as you point out, he briefly served as PM in 1957 before losing the GE to Nash and Labour.
And of course Richard John Seddon from Westland who lead the Liberal Party to 5 general election victories, 1893, 1896, 1899, 1902 and 1905.