Tau Henare. Photo / File
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Tau Henare. Photo / File
A war of words has broken out on Twitter this morning after National MP Tau Henare was listed in a Herald on Sunday poll as one of the 10 MPs who should have performed better this year.
Political columnist Matt McCarten ranked Mr Henare as the sixth MP who should have performed better than he did.
"Humiliatingly hawking himself for the Speaker's job to his political enemies because his own party wouldn't support him. When you started life as a working class hero and morph into someone who publicly offered to sweep the floor for Don Brash, there's nothing else to say. Referred to these days as Uncle Tau. Sad and embarrassing," Mr McCarten wrote.
Mr Henare, who is chairman of the Maori Affairs Committee, this morning tweeted about being called Uncle Tau, "like me calling him [Matt McCarten] that back in the 80s 4 not s'portng Maori unionists," he tweeted.
Labour MP Trevor Mallard quickly responded, suggesting Mr McCarten had "progressed while you have regressed".

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