Rumours are swirling that the esteemed temporary Leader of the Labour Party is to take at least a week off from the election campaign to attend his son’s wedding.
Attending your son’s wedding in itself is an obviously important duty as a father however let’s just unpack the problems with this at a political level.
- If your own son believed you could win the election wouldn’t he ensure the timing of the wedding was outside the election campaign process? I mean, if my Dad was likely to be PM I’d be doing everything to help him get there – even postponing my own wedding.
- Is leaving the country for a week a good idea? I don’t know. It might pay to ask Jim Bolger and a number of other former Leaders what usually happens when you go overseas.
- Is Goff trying to outplay the PM and show that he too can attend a wedding overseas? I’m not sure how much media coverage junior Goff’s wedding will get though.
- Do the polls say that you can take a week off work? I suspect they don’t.
Now, let’s look at the positives.
- Attending his son’s wedding will remind the wider public that Goff is not Clark. He is a family man.
- Attending his son’s wedding will remind the wider public that Goff is just like Key. He is a family man.
- OK, so
Poor Mr Goff, can’t get a break anywhere.