Review: Nicky Hager: The Hollow Men: Nelson: Craig Potton: 2006: $NZ30.00 Like many other political analysts last year, I noticed some strikingly familiar aspects to National's election campaign last year. By coincidence, I was brushing up on US politics at the same time, and read several books about George W.Bush and the associated philosophy of 'neoconservatism' within US domestic and foreign policy. One lesson that I absorbed was that most neocons were acolytes of Leo Strauss, a German emigrant, conservative philosopher and student of Machiavelli. It didn't really surprise me, therefore, when I learnt during the election campaign that Brash and his entourage were using the same neocon tactics, strategies and deceptive rhetoric here. Of course, I assumed that this was broadly philosophical. I reasoned that National was emulating the US Republicans (and Howard's Australian Liberals), because the latter were examples of successful centre-right governments. I didn't think that the Nats would be clueless enough to sign up with a hard right fundamentalist outfit like the Exclusive Brethren, that they'd covertly target New Zealand's benchmark nuclear-free policy, or that former Reagan advisor Richard Allen (from the US neocon organisation People for A New American Century, and a conservative Catholic) were giving Brash et al. direct assistance. Why should this concern us? While most US attention has unsurprisingly been focused on George W. Bush, his neocon inner circle and their advocacy of an imperial foreign policy that has bogged down in the sectarian quagmire of post-Baathist Iraq, it is worth noting that neoconservatives also have a hard right domestic agenda, which involves exploitation of the Exclusive Brethren and their antipathy against civil unions. In addition to that, the Exclusive Brethren's anti-unionism chimed nicely with National's own anti-union industrial relations policy. LGBT New Zealanders have every right to be damned angry at Brash for this. Not only did he deliberately deceive our communities about his voting intentions when it came to LGBT relationship recognition laws, he then proceeded to vote against every liberal reform item that enshrined it within law, and then voted for measures that would have gutted it, like Stephen Franks SOP 336, and Copeland's same-sex marriage ban bill. He turned our communities into a political football during the general election, merely to pander to a sectarian religious minority group, who provided National with free advertising. Now that the pustule has been lanced, and Brash has resigned, is Brethrengate all over with? Possibly not. Brash's ludicrous antics have resulted in undue publicity for Nicky's book, and his resignation undercut National's attempts to deny the veracity or plausibility of its contents. At the moment, I suspect the Nats just wish The Donald would go away. I suspect that as Key has had to cut a deal with Bill English to avoid white-anting, and English is Opposition Treasurer, there is no place for Brash within the restructured National front bench. Therefore, Brash will resign. It probably doesn't help matters that he's still fuming and threatening legal action against Nicky Hager for improper receipt of allegedly 'stolen' emails. I'd advise the Opposition not to go down this path, as all it would do would be to draw attention to possible Electoral Act breaches, and reignite suspicions that Brash is merely trying to censor free speech merely because it paints him in twilight machivellean hues. Will John Key be any better? Well, according to Metro, we may be about to have the first Jewish leader of a major New Zealand political party since Sir Julius Vogel, noted social liberal and supporter of women's suffrage, which will put him offside with the more scrofulous elements of the fundamentalist Christian Right, given their historic connections to the League of Rights. If I were Key, I'd sweep the front bench clean, and reassign duties. Either Gerry Brownlee or Judith Collins should get either police or defense portfolios. Wayne Mapp's ridiculous social conservative anti-pluralist "PC Watchdog" vanity shadow portfolio should be abolished, as should the equally suspect "Family" shadow portfolio, if it isn't prepared to acknowledge the diversity of all New Zealand families. On the other hand, Simon Power and Katherine Rich are capable and competent performers, and should be promoted. By contrast, Richard Worth needs to be dumped, and if he is, Chris Finlayson will probably be his replacement. But there are questions that need to be raised. Is Key as much to blame for the events of September 2005 as Brash was? Will Labour use the Brethrengate revelations to harry National's new leader with? Can Bill English be trusted as new deputy leader? Is Gerry Brownlee happy at his abrupt ejection from his former post? What about Brash's bereaved faithful? And what about ACT, given Nicky's disclosures about its centrality to the Brash ascendancy last year? As for us, National will take a long time to rehabilitate itself. Key could start by reaffirming his support for LGBT adoption reforms, and facilitating them through voting for Metiria Turei's private members bill should it be drawn from the ballot, or if the government should draft legislation of its own. We also expect the Opposition to unequivocally disavow the Exclusive Brethren, and ignore just government retribution against this shadowy, authoritarian sect outside the New Zealand political mainstream. Also recommended: Shadia Drury: Leo Strauss and the American Right: New York: St. Martins Press: 1997. Leo Strauss: Thoughts on Machiavelli: Glencoe, Illinois: Free Press: 1958. Irwin Stelzer (ed) Neoconservatism: A Reader: London: Atlantic: 2004. Craig Young - 28th November 2006