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Scoop Feedback: Time To Fess Up Helen
Sir,
The devious nature of the Prime Minister does not surprise me and is optimised by the latest nonsense over the "neither confirm or deny" stance taken by her over the deployment of New Zealand SAS troops in Afghanistan.
The nonsense is the fact she refused to make any comment in New Zealand on their deployment on the grounds that "loose talk kills". No one was asking what, where and when, just were they being usefully engaged.
The deviousness is the fact (as now apparent) that despite her continued protestations here at home she gave official New Zealand Government sanction to the deliberate leaking through Washington of the information.
Why? Because it had become apparent the lack of knowledge in the US of New Zealand's support for the Bush initiatives in Afghanistan, was severely damaging to her cause in this week's meeting between her and President Bush.
Miss Clark was wrong in the first place, but could she front up to the New Zealand public. No. Instead she has to skulk around the place to find what she no doubt hoped would be a nice quiet solution to the problem.
Is this really the sort of Prime Minister we need or want for that matter?
Mirek Marcanik
Scoop
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