More Insults From the PM

The Prime Minister's latest official line on Iraq appears to be designed to rub our traditional allies' noses in it, ACT Deputy Leader Ken Shirley said today.

"Helen Clark's grandiose declarations at her press conference this afternoon were just another blatant attempt to grab anti-war votes.

"We all know that Helen Clark is out of the loop. It is not as though her opinion that the war `is not going to plan' is based on anything more than cable television reports.

"What on earth could the Prime Minister of New Zealand really gain by making the facile observation that `resistance in Iraq is stronger than expected'? What, really, is Ms Clark's point? Does she want troops to withdraw, leaving Iraqis to a continuation of the brutal Saddam Hussein regime? Because if she does not - if she believes the Coalition of the Willing should effect regime change as quickly as possible - her `bystander' position on Iraq is immoral and hypocritical.

"Ms Clark has made it clear that she does not care about New Zealand's relationship with the United States, the United Kingdom or Australia. She cares about gaining the peacenik vote at home, and seems determined to do so, no matter the outcome for New Zealand," Mr Shirley said.

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