On 4 May 2018 I posted a comment comparing the maiden speeches of Jacinda Ardern and Nicola Willis. Ardern’s was full of bitterness towards National. Willis by contrast, was gracious towards her opposition. I knew from the structure of her speech that she was a very intelligent and perceptive woman and it has come as no surprise to me that she achieved rapid promotion from 58th on National’s list to be ranked 14th within two years.
Ardern, who by virtue of having one child, is applauded as a inspiration to a working mothers. Nicola Willis has four young children aged from two to eight years which by contrast, demotes Ardern’s status as utterly insignificant.
I also admired Willis’s comment in her maiden speech “I respect the many Kiwis who day in day out do the hard-work of parenting well, without fanfair”. Ardern wouldn’t know the meaning of “without fanfair”
Willis continues, “I will not be a Government-knows-best politician”. Another glaring contrast to the Ardern’s “The only source of truth” is her governments.
And yet another comment by Willis that exposes Ardern’s inadequacies is this “But we are kidding ourselves if we think lifting family incomes is all that is required to strengthen Kiwi families”. Ardern believes child poverty can be eliminated by throwing more money at the problem only to witness a rise in child poverty.
However Nicola Willis finest commitment was expressed in this statement “We must back our risk-takers, innovators, and entrepreneurs who put their capital and livelihoods on the line to produce a product”. Ardern has destroyed the confidence and value of most businesses in this country.
But the biggest contrast between the two women is communication. Ardern can communicate well to those under the age of ten, but at an adult level, is painfully patronising and stumbles her way through grown up interviews. Nicola Willis, on the other hand, was a successful University debater, captaining New Zealand teams, winning numerous national tournaments and competing around the world. I’m predicting Nicola Willis will lead National one day and would make an excellent PM. If only she was in charge right now.
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