Helen’s tanty:a possible tipping point

Scoopit!

The media consensus was that John Key won the TVNZ Leaders Debate last night, as Adam posted late in the evening , even Matt McCarten appeared to acknowledge that on TVNZ Tonight.

This was confirmed by Tracy Watkins article this morning – mentioning Key’s warmth and confidence, Espiner G, in this piece at TVNZ confirms this, as does Espiner C. in this piece.

The only apparent exception in tone was Radio New Zealand – Sounds Like Helen.

Obviously the 9th floor was very unhappy that it’s little media helpers gave Round One to JK, because what did we see later today but reports such as this NZPA one at Stuff:-

Helen Clark laid into National leader John Key’s performance in last night’s head to head debate today saying it was lucky he didn’t cry and accusing him of having a tantrum.

“The fact he didn’t burst out crying on the set probably counted for him,” she said during a Radio Live question and answer session this morning.

Later in the day she didn’t resile from her criticism telling reporters that expectations around Mr Key’s performance before the debate were low and; “the fact he didn’t collapse with a stress attack on the set probably gave him marks”.

NZPA noted:-

The two party leaders performed well in the debate, watched by 1.1 million New Zealanders, but because Mr Key was less experienced but did a good enough job to turn around a flat few days for National he was deemed by some to be the winner.

The muted nature of this remark suggests some trimming in response to Clark’s attack.

Then Clark is reported as saying:-

At one point Miss Clark made a comment that Mr Key may shout at home but he wouldn’t shout her down.

Today she said she was not accusing him of yelling at his family.

“What I meant was he was having a tantrum he was completely out of control trying to shout me down…”

Another reason he couldn’t out shout her was that he didn’t have a “voice advantage”.

“I’m really referring to the fact that by women’s voices I have a lower register by men’s voices he has a higher one.”

Yet last night she appeared to say it was a good debate.

NZ Herald ran the same story. Naturally TVNZ ran the item as well, indeed you might well have thought from his comments that the Espiner G. of today was not the Espiner G. of last night

Today she reverts to ad hominem attacks, especially once she and her people had digested the reaction. Adam is certain that if the ’self selecting poll’ had been in her favour she would not have attacked it.

Clark suggests she would have liked more questions from the political journalists than from You Tube, no doubt because she can handle the journalists better as she dominates them on a daily basis.

Notes at the TVNZ website:-

Clark seemed to emerge very positive after the debate on Tuesday.

“I enjoyed the debate tonight,” she said. “I think it was a good old fashioned debate on the issues and I hope that means we’ve banished any idea that this is a bitter election debate.”

However on the campaign trail on Wednesday, that had changed, Clark complaining that host Mark Sainsbury didn’t do enough to keep the leaders talking over one another.

“If the moderator isn’t active, then that will lead to the participants having to intervene themselves,” she said on Wednesday.

The tone of the website comment is different from the On Air tone to Adam’s mind.

John Key’s reaction as noted by NZPA:-

A spokesman for Mr Key said he would leave it to the public to decide.

“New Zealanders will judge the result of the debate.”

Last night asked about his inexperience Mr Key said he just did his best.

“But I gave it my best shot and they (the public) will have a good sense of where a National government would take New Zealand.”

Adam suspects that many will see Helen Clark’s reaction as that of a sore loser, desperate to smear the man who beat her fairly.

To Adam’s mind Ms Clark cannot accept that John Key came across as more human and down to earth. She cannot understand why she did not win.

Key did not score a king hit last night.

Adam is tempted to wonder though if Clark by throwing this needless tantrum today and indulging in her vituperative comments about Key being close to crying etc, may not in fact have scored a spectacular own goal in many people’s minds.

She should have kept quiet and moved on to the next debate. Now to many she will have clearly established John Key as the winner last night, simply through her over reaction.