1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:03,360 Speaker 1: Government debt is the worst it's been since the nineteen nineties. 2 00:00:03,360 --> 00:00:06,080 Speaker 1: But today, two days out from a budget designed to 3 00:00:06,120 --> 00:00:11,000 Speaker 1: fix it, our parliamentarians will be debating a hacker. The public, 4 00:00:11,200 --> 00:00:14,800 Speaker 1: I don't think largely cares about this stuff. Pocketbook book 5 00:00:14,840 --> 00:00:18,400 Speaker 1: politics always trumps theatrics, except if you're to Party Mardy. 6 00:00:18,640 --> 00:00:21,799 Speaker 1: No matter how today's debate over the Privileges Committee report goes, 7 00:00:21,840 --> 00:00:24,239 Speaker 1: and it could go on for a long time, to 8 00:00:24,360 --> 00:00:28,040 Speaker 1: Party Marti wins a loss for them. In our Westminster system, 9 00:00:28,160 --> 00:00:30,520 Speaker 1: what we might think of as a sanction or a 10 00:00:30,560 --> 00:00:34,280 Speaker 1: punishment is to them a badge of honor. Already, they're 11 00:00:34,320 --> 00:00:37,880 Speaker 1: well followed. Social media accounts are beating the drum of discontent. 12 00:00:38,640 --> 00:00:41,080 Speaker 1: There are some who say that twenty one days is 13 00:00:41,120 --> 00:00:44,360 Speaker 1: too harsh. People are comparing the hacker's and Debbie's gun 14 00:00:44,440 --> 00:00:47,320 Speaker 1: thing to Brooks sea bomb, for example, They miss an 15 00:00:47,360 --> 00:00:50,640 Speaker 1: important point. Both the sea bomb and the hacker were 16 00:00:50,720 --> 00:00:55,720 Speaker 1: pre planned, choreographed stunts. The difference between the two is 17 00:00:55,800 --> 00:00:58,840 Speaker 1: Brooke asked the clerk in advance of her stunt if 18 00:00:58,840 --> 00:01:00,840 Speaker 1: she was allowed to use the word. The answer is yes. 19 00:01:01,440 --> 00:01:05,360 Speaker 1: To Pati Marti did not. Brooks stunt did not disrupt 20 00:01:05,360 --> 00:01:09,039 Speaker 1: a vote being taken in the House. The Mardi parties did. 21 00:01:09,840 --> 00:01:13,720 Speaker 1: Voting is the essence of democracy, where the elected expressed 22 00:01:13,760 --> 00:01:17,959 Speaker 1: the views of the electors us. It's Parliament's holy communion, 23 00:01:18,520 --> 00:01:22,680 Speaker 1: and nobody has yet said sorry. That does not mean 24 00:01:22,720 --> 00:01:26,360 Speaker 1: the punishment which a slim majority of government members voted for, 25 00:01:26,480 --> 00:01:29,600 Speaker 1: is not overly harsh. The clerk reckons it is brownly 26 00:01:29,720 --> 00:01:33,320 Speaker 1: clearly reckons it is. The opposition reckons it is. Does 27 00:01:33,400 --> 00:01:36,000 Speaker 1: the punishment really fit the crime? That's the question? Or 28 00:01:36,080 --> 00:01:40,800 Speaker 1: have standards slipped so badly? The House is such a 29 00:01:41,000 --> 00:01:45,640 Speaker 1: hot mess that a precedent and a message needs to 30 00:01:45,680 --> 00:01:49,520 Speaker 1: be sent to our parliamentarians. As I said, I think 31 00:01:49,600 --> 00:01:52,320 Speaker 1: on the whole the public largely doesn't really care about 32 00:01:52,320 --> 00:01:55,320 Speaker 1: this stuff. The question today is how long will national 33 00:01:55,400 --> 00:01:59,680 Speaker 1: let this debate drag on with amendments and filibustering before 34 00:01:59,720 --> 00:02:04,840 Speaker 1: a promise is reached. Winston and Seymour, they're your hardliners, 35 00:02:04,880 --> 00:02:09,360 Speaker 1: of course, to Party Mali, your Greens, the your opposing 36 00:02:09,440 --> 00:02:12,280 Speaker 1: hard liners of course. But for the bigger parties the 37 00:02:12,400 --> 00:02:16,079 Speaker 1: risk is if you play politics over policy for too long, 38 00:02:16,560 --> 00:02:20,760 Speaker 1: you look childish. The only winners from today's sideshow will 39 00:02:20,760 --> 00:02:24,160 Speaker 1: be the minnos and of course well the losers, I 40 00:02:24,160 --> 00:02:27,519 Speaker 1: should say, with the minnos will be the winners. The 41 00:02:27,560 --> 00:02:30,600 Speaker 1: losers really will be the bigger parties and the rest 42 00:02:30,600 --> 00:02:35,240 Speaker 1: of us. For more from Early Edition with Ryan Bridge, 43 00:02:35,320 --> 00:02:38,760 Speaker 1: listen live to News Talks at BE from five am weekdays, 44 00:02:39,000 --> 00:02:41,079 Speaker 1: or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.