What a happy coincidence for the Opposition.
John Key was in Washington with the expectation of good publicity when the story broke on the suspicion Israelis in Christchurch during the February earthquake were spies.
Key, caught on the hop, initially stonewalled with a not-in-the-public-interest response. Within a few hours he accepted that was wrong and gave a much better explanation, with details.
Phil Goff saw an opportunity to score points from this and complained he hadn’t been briefed. But he had and as David Farrar points out at Kiwiblog Goff not only made false accusations about the Prime Minister, he attacked the SIS.
Everyone makes mistakes, even leaders. But good leaders accept they got something wrong and do their best to put it right.
Key did that, Goff has yet to do so properly.
Keeping Stock links to a Stuff story in which Goff admits he was briefed but didn’t remember:
”If there had been anything of substance said to me I’m sure I would recollect it.”
Once more, Key got pushed into a hole and climbed out. Goff jumped into a hole and kept digging.
Homepaddock 
One would have thought that at briefings with the director of the SIS, Mr Goff would have been paying close attention instead of day dreaming.
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Ah but as Trevor Mallard told the world, Labour’s not into details, Quinton.
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I understand the briefings were in March and Goff was distracted covering up for Hughes.
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Could this be a subtle plot by the Greens to become New Zealand’s second major political party?
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Fred, I thought that the greens had achieved that already.
And a further point, the meeting that Mr Goff would have had with the director would have beein minuted for record keeping purposes by the director.
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Goff is in deep schtuck here. He’s besmirched three reputations; that of Warren Tucker, the SIS head who he accuses of failing in his duty, and that of John Key, who he has accused of lying.
But without doubt the third reputation he has damaged will be the one that causes the most problems for him; the reputation of Phil Goff, career politician and Leader of the Opposition.
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Well put IV2. I thought Goff was merely a clumsy oaf but I see now he is prone to his pre-decessor’s habit of re-writing history.
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