Where caucus goes.

Press, 24 May 1982, Page 18

Where caucus goes.

By

A. K. GRANT

“The proposal to offer the Canterbury to Britain had been made by the New Zealand Cabinet and unanimously approved by the Government caucus at a meeting on May 5. “There has been .some mild frustration in the news media in New Zealand over what exactly took place at that particular meeting,” Mr Muldoon said. “But for once it remained a secret. Extraordindary.” — Press Association report. 21/5/82. The history, of oratory, and of the eloquence which uplifts ■ the human heart at moments of great crisis would have been very different if Mr Muldoon’s attitudes had infused the following great men: (a) Michael Joseph Savage: “Where Britain goes, we go. Where Britain stands, we stand. This information is confidential to this caucus, and must on no account be released to the press, or to any other member of Parliament.” (b) Winston Churchill: “I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat. Keep that to yourselves, however.” (c) Churchill again: “Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties and so bear ourselves that if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say: ‘They kept that one pretty quiet’.” (d) Lord Grey of Fallodon: “The lamps are going out all over Europe, and not a bad thing, either.” (e) Franklin Delano Roosevelt: “In the future days, which we seek to make secure, we

look forward to a world founded upon four essential human freedoms. The first is freedom of speech and expression — everywhere in the world, except parliamentary assemblies.” (f) Pitt the Younger: “Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves. It is extremely useful.” (g) Henry V, according to Shakespeare: “This day is called the feast of Crispian: He that outlives this day and comes safe home, Will stand a tip-toe when this day is named, And want to know who let the secret out.” (h) Edmund Burke: “Parliament is not a congress of

ambassadors from different and hostile interests; which interests each must maintain, as an agent and advocate, against other, agents and advocates; but parliament is a deliberative assembly of one nation,.with one interest,.that of the whole; where not local purposes, not local prejudices ought to guide, but the-general good, resulting from the general reason of the whole. In other words, parliament is nothing but trouble and I suggest we keep everything in caucus.” (i) Woodrow Wilson: • “The world must be made safe for democracy, or, at any rate, for Cabinets.” (j) Abraham Lincoln: “. . . and that government of the people, by the caucus, and for the caucus, shall not perish from the earth.”