A party of one

Over on Public Address, Keith Ng tries to get his finger on what it is about Winston Peters that makes him such a formidable political actor:

"He's in politics for the love, for the status, for the glory - especially the glory of being persecuted. The more he's being attacked, the more he feeds off it and grow stronger. Perhaps one more blast from the media's Why-Do-You-Keep-Lying-to-Us Ray will finish him off? No, he just soaks it up."

Ng noted an observation from political science on an Agenda panel interview with Peters, regarding the statement by NZ First deputy leader Peter Brown that NZ First was an opposition party, not a government party.
Boston: "You cannot have the leader of a party representing the country internationally as the Foreign Minister, claiming at the same time that it is an opposition party. The only way you could realistically maintain that position would be to decouple the leadership of the party from the party, that in effect would mean Mr Peters leaving his party."

I think the resignation of Doug Woolerton as party president was a clear sign the party knows Peters has given up any pretence the party is about anything but Peters. Labour knows that too - this government isn't about doing stuff, it's about getting through to the next one.