Peter Dunne must be one of the must boring politicians to have ever entered parliament. His do-gooder, sensible, and middle-of-the-road political persona has made him a non-entity for most of the public. This despite the fact he has been a minister during the time of both Labour-led and National-led governments. And now sadly, the one decent act he has carried out during his long and tedious career, seems to have been motivated by personal gratification rather than out of any principle of standing up for civil liberties and exposing illegal state spying. [Continue reading John Moore’s guest blog post below]
So what are we to learn from the demise of Peter Dunne, as well as from the cynical response to his fall from the likes of the Greens and Labour who have threatened to call in the cops. This whole rather pathetic episode, of a politician stuffing up, sadly points to an age where politics lacks passionate political players, where politicians are primarily motivated by personal gain, and where acting in a principled way consistent with a set of strong political believes is an anathema to most time serving MPs. Therefore, this whole sordid affair, including Dunne's now exposed leak and the unprincipled responses of the Greens and Labour, point to a political wasteland filled with self-serving politicians lacking in any real big ideas and merely chasing headlines and personal and material benefits.
A boring man for boring times
Dunne personifies the boring, post-ideological, 'post-political' politics that inflicts our time. He has been able to easily support both Labour and National governments, which points to the blandness and sameness of the two major parliamentary parties. He has always been a stable coalition-partner who promotes himself as a sensible centrist, acting to dissuade any government from lurching too far to the left or right.
That Dunne appears rather dull reflects the general dullness and technocratic nature of modern New Zealand politics. It's been several decades now since this country has had any truly charismatic politicians, with the possible exception of Winston Peters. However, even with Peters, his style is more about feeding on fears and whipping up reaction, rather than presenting any real alternative or bold vision.
So Dunne personifies the new political leader, as does the easy going John Key and mumbling inarticulate David Shearer: dull, efficient, conformist and concensual. These are political actors that readily accept the limits set by prevailing economic orthodoxies, and offer nothing new for an increasing cynical public – a public increasingly turned off by mainstream politics.
The Greens' and Labour's authoritarian reaction
The response of Russel Norman and David Shearer to Dunne's indiscretion, in calling for police intervention, shows them to be as cynical and as lacking in principles as Dunne himself. Rather than taking this opportunity to focus on and raise debate about state spying, Norman and Shearer chose to primarily react instead against Dunne's behaviour regarding the leak. This reveals how truly cynical and opportunistic these two leaders are. Also it betrays a rather authoritarian streak within them both, as they have without hesitation called on the cops to intervene in an internal parliamentary matter. This certainly creates a chilling precedent for politicians who may again in the future leak documents that the public has a right to see. So, although Dunne is certainly no Bradley Manning, his actions have served the wider public good. In contrast, the Greens and Labour have instead acted to potentially further stifle the vital flow of information that occurs due to leaks from politicians and other state actors to the media. Therefore, shame on Russel Norman and David Shearer.
Beyond the politics of dullness and opportunism
The Dunne affair has certainly provided the opportunity to draw a wide audience into a much needed debate around the issue of state spying and an expanse of coercive powers. However all the players involved, including Dunne himself, have acted to in fact obscure this important issue through their self-serving and opportunist actions. What was needed was a politician that would loudly condemn the behaviour of the GCSB, and act to bring into question the whole range of coercive powers of the state. But New Zealand's parliament certainly contains no Bradley Manning or Julian Assange. Rather we are presented with a dull politician, perhaps going through a mid-life crisis, trying to impress a journalist. That Dunne, who has some concern over illegal spying, can't even defend his actions in political terms reflects the hollowness of modern politics. And the response by Norman and Shearer betrays a deep level of cynicism and opportunism by 'our' leaders that is rotting the national body politic. No serious debate is forthcoming from these leaders on illegal spying, rather just a pathetic call on police intervention in an attempt to knock Dunne while he's down. Woe the state of politics in New Zealand.
