19 April 2016

Turnbull: Crash or crash through

| Steven Bailey
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malcolm turnbull

It’s official. Malcolm Turnbull has been sworn in as Australia’s 29th Prime Minister following last night’s leadership spill.

The change of leadership is not only indicative of the ideological and cultural schism in the Coalition. It is indicative of the very same schism in Australian society today.

Malcolm Turnbull has won the Liberal leadership 54 votes to Abbott’s 44, and Julie Bishop won the deputy role with a decisive 70 votes to Kevin Andrews’ 30.

Abbott was undoubtedly one of the most successful opposition leaders Australia has ever seen, yet when the battle was won Abbott’s leadership was fraught with a genius for failure.

Regardless of his numerous attempts to atone and resurrect, Abbott and Peta Credlin chose slogans instead of narrative, authoritarianism instead of consultation, and divisiveness instead of conciliation.

Although the Nationals are no longer the tail that wags the Liberal dog, Turnbull will have to appease them with significant financial pledges and policy initiatives for regional Australia.

But his greatest struggle of all will be in appeasing the socially conservative ideologies of yesteryear that are rife within the coalition today.

Ministers will lose their jobs, but the great test for Turnbull will be to avoid a mass defection. I doubt whether Cory Bernardi will remain members of the Liberal Party. He will either defect to retirement, or defect to be an independent or to the Family First party.

For a man who echoed to our first female Prime Minister that her father died of shame, Abbott was never fit to be leader of a modern Australia. But I will say that this afternoon, at his first media appearance following the leadership change, Abbott gave the most graceful departing speech I’ve ever seen.

There is a distinct deference between Gillard knifing Rudd in 2010 and Turnbull knifing Abbott. Labor’s woes were a godsend to the Liberal opposition. Yet this time, Turnbull is the opposition’s worst nightmare.

We can expect federal Labor to repeat that a change of leadership is of no consequence, that Turnbull is just another salesman, and that there is no difference between Abbott and Turnbull. The thing is though, that the Australian people just won’t buy it.

There is a difference. A big difference.

Turnbull is a world-class intellect. He doesn’t speak in slogans, he won’t eat raw onions and he won’t knight Prince Charles. He is a republican, he believes in anthropogenic climate change, he won’t boycott the ABC and he will not appoint himself minister for women.

Bill Shorten is no match for Malcolm Turnbull. As the Election Leader of The Australian Sex Party – Canberra, I obviously won’t be voting for any of the major parties. But I will say that Turnbull is a greater talent than the entire Labor front bench put together.

The only Labor MP capable of challenging Malcolm Turnbull is Penny Wong. I hope that Turnbull reforms his party, and I hope that Penny Wong is one day given the opportunity to reform hers.

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Nice story Steven.

watto23 said :

Zed Seselja is really what is wrong with the liberal party. He is also evidence of stacking the party with conservatives over true liberals. He lost an ACT election narrowly and spat the dummy, quit and then took Gary Humphries seat and then almost lost that relatively safe senate seat. Hopefully he loses it next election. He is the sort of politician who doesn’t deserve to have the job he has and is clearly in it for himself.

He’s not just in it for himself – as his backing of Abbott has demonstrated, he is in it for repugnant ideologies that are not shared by mainstream society.

I am very, very keen to see him get the boot. Unfortunately, many voters will be happy to overlook Zed’s failings and vote for him anyway as the representative of a Party with new-found ambitions of credibility.

tooltime said :

I don’t generally agree with the author, but our opinions align on this article. He’ll hammer Shorten at the next election, Shorten will get the flick and around we’ll go again. And dont the ALP know it?

As much as I like Malcolm he is not going to fix what’s broke in the Liberal Party when he has to knuckle under to the extreme policies that are biting on the Australian public.

I hope he can pull a miracle off and change the nastier culture of his party, but it is far from a done deal. It is not looking good so far for 3 of the biggies, climate change, SSM, the NBN, without even tackling the real problems with the economy.

The three big free trade agreements are passing under the radar, and the Liberal’s track record on those is appalling.

The last FTA that didn’t end up costing us hundreds of billions was the one Labor negotiated with New Zealand. Every single FTA the Liberals have negotiated with Singapore, USA, Thai, Chile, Malaysian has cost us badly and trashed our industries.

The sum total added to our accumulated Trade Deficit is now over $210 billion dollars. The Singapore FTA alone saw us swing from the black into the red to the tune of well over $90 billion. The USA FTA has cost us close to $70 billion and the Thai FTA was another black to red to the tune of $50 billion.

Now we are signed up to 3 more of the same, with the Liberals hiding the details from us yet again.

You’d think somebody would analyse the results of the FTA to see if they actually worked.

Took me an afternoon and they are absolute shockers.

What fascinates me is that the arch conservatives can get so hot under the collar over a not that big a deal of the Light Rail because to them it is “waste” and yet pay no attention to what does count in the real scheme of things for our whole economy. The LNP signing away enormous sums in perpetuity with the stroke of a pen with nothing to show for it.

We are running out of holes to dig, and prime farming land and National Parks to trash, to pay for it all.

drfelonious said :

Yes, I totally agree Nilrem!

I was sickened by Zed being such a prominent supporter of Tony Abbott – Mr Slash and Burn Canberra

There they were lining up being Tony on the night of the vote – the paleolithic wing of the Liberal Party: Cory Bernadi, Eric Abetz and our very own Zed.

Obviously Zed’s choice was an individual one and he paid no mind whatsoever to the views of the overwhelming majority of the city he claims to represent.

Moderate Liberals in Canberra need to join the party; support Malcolm Turnbull and do Zed a favour by voting him out so he gets the opportunity to outgrow his awkward Ayn Rand adolescent phase somewhere out of the public limelight. He can start by working in one of those real jobs that Liberals claim to be all in favour of.

Yep. Although “Palaeolithic Wing”, might be a bit generous. How about “Palaeolithic Rump” or “Palaeoloithic Coccyx”? They really are a pretty small minority of obnoxious crazies. Thankfully. I know a number of decent and moderate Libs who get really feral when you mention these reactionaries. They hate them.

It was amusing watching Shortstack struggle throughout question time yesterday. Turnbull made him look a right fool. I’m looking forward to much more of that.

I don’t generally agree with the author, but our opinions align on this article. He’ll hammer Shorten at the next election, Shorten will get the flick and around we’ll go again. And dont the ALP know it?

Yes, I totally agree Nilrem!

I was sickened by Zed being such a prominent supporter of Tony Abbott – Mr Slash and Burn Canberra

There they were lining up being Tony on the night of the vote – the paleolithic wing of the Liberal Party: Cory Bernadi, Eric Abetz and our very own Zed.

Obviously Zed’s choice was an individual one and he paid no mind whatsoever to the views of the overwhelming majority of the city he claims to represent.

Moderate Liberals in Canberra need to join the party; support Malcolm Turnbull and do Zed a favour by voting him out so he gets the opportunity to outgrow his awkward Ayn Rand adolescent phase somewhere out of the public limelight. He can start by working in one of those real jobs that Liberals claim to be all in favour of.

Garfield said :

For anyone wondering where Zed Seselja’s priorities lie, he’s now apparently publicly warning Turnbull that there needs to be a strong conservative contingent in the cabinet. I could understand passing that message along quietly but to do it publicly can only be designed to make the situation worse and deepen the divisions between the more extreme conservatives like him and Cory Bernadi and the moderates in the party. I read an article about Bernadi not ruling out leaving the Libs now that Turnbull is in charge. I hope that if he does go, he takes his clone Seselja with him. They both have more in common with Family First than with the Liberal party that Menzies formed.

Completely agree. Just because you stack the liberal party safe seats with conservatives doesn’t mean all liberal voters are conservative. I think despite Canberra being a mostly safe Labor city, actual true liberalism would win votes here. Family First and One Nation that are/were true conservative parties, didn’t do so well in elections. I’m happy for all the conservatives to go there, then they’ll realise the silent majority doesn’t want them in power. All the conservative policies and a conservative PM were what caused the latest PM to be replaced. The people didn’t want the unfair conservative policies. If Turnbull continues with them he won’t win the election, there is only so far personality can take you.

Zed Seselja is really what is wrong with the liberal party. He is also evidence of stacking the party with conservatives over true liberals. He lost an ACT election narrowly and spat the dummy, quit and then took Gary Humphries seat and then almost lost that relatively safe senate seat. Hopefully he loses it next election. He is the sort of politician who doesn’t deserve to have the job he has and is clearly in it for himself.

Nilrem said :

Garfield said :

For anyone wondering where Zed Seselja’s priorities lie, he’s now apparently publicly warning Turnbull that there needs to be a strong conservative contingent in the cabinet. I could understand passing that message along quietly but to do it publicly can only be designed to make the situation worse and deepen the divisions between the more extreme conservatives like him and Cory Bernadi and the moderates in the party. I read an article about Bernadi not ruling out leaving the Libs now that Turnbull is in charge. I hope that if he does go, he takes his clone Seselja with him. They both have more in common with Family First than with the Liberal party that Menzies formed.

Zed, such a fitting representative for the enlightened, compassionate and educated citizens of the Territory.

Someone voted for him. NOT me!

Garfield said :

For anyone wondering where Zed Seselja’s priorities lie, he’s now apparently publicly warning Turnbull that there needs to be a strong conservative contingent in the cabinet. I could understand passing that message along quietly but to do it publicly can only be designed to make the situation worse and deepen the divisions between the more extreme conservatives like him and Cory Bernadi and the moderates in the party. I read an article about Bernadi not ruling out leaving the Libs now that Turnbull is in charge. I hope that if he does go, he takes his clone Seselja with him. They both have more in common with Family First than with the Liberal party that Menzies formed.

Zed, such a fitting representative for the enlightened, compassionate and educated citizens of the Territory.

For anyone wondering where Zed Seselja’s priorities lie, he’s now apparently publicly warning Turnbull that there needs to be a strong conservative contingent in the cabinet. I could understand passing that message along quietly but to do it publicly can only be designed to make the situation worse and deepen the divisions between the more extreme conservatives like him and Cory Bernadi and the moderates in the party. I read an article about Bernadi not ruling out leaving the Libs now that Turnbull is in charge. I hope that if he does go, he takes his clone Seselja with him. They both have more in common with Family First than with the Liberal party that Menzies formed.

rubaiyat said :

rosscoact said :

gazket said :

The only way Lefties make it to power is by white anting their colleagues . They don’t have the balls to show their true face . These people are true scumbags.

What’s wrong with eating raw onion it’s better than snott, Kevin Rudd picked his nose and ate it.

There is no one to vote for any more both parties are now the same they just have a different coloured front door.

So hope someone like Donald Trump starts a party here. Political correctness needs its arse kicked.

And there we have it. The thick end of the wedge

Emphasis on the “thick”. 😉

[Insert Rainier Wolfcastle ‘that’s the joke’.gif]

rosscoact said :

gazket said :

The only way Lefties make it to power is by white anting their colleagues . They don’t have the balls to show their true face . These people are true scumbags.

What’s wrong with eating raw onion it’s better than snott, Kevin Rudd picked his nose and ate it.

There is no one to vote for any more both parties are now the same they just have a different coloured front door.

So hope someone like Donald Trump starts a party here. Political correctness needs its arse kicked.

And there we have it. The thick end of the wedge

Emphasis on the “thick”. 😉

Abbott was great in the opposition – his greatest downfall was that he couldn’t change his mindset from “Leader of the Opposition” to “Prime Minister of Australia”. Nearly two years in office is too long to continue to blame the previous Government without having much to show for your own.

gazket said :

The only way Lefties make it to power is by white anting their colleagues . They don’t have the balls to show their true face . These people are true scumbags.

What’s wrong with eating raw onion it’s better than snott, Kevin Rudd picked his nose and ate it.

There is no one to vote for any more both parties are now the same they just have a different coloured front door.

So hope someone like Donald Trump starts a party here. Political correctness needs its arse kicked.

And there we have it. The thick end of the wedge

gazket said :

The only way Lefties make it to power is by white anting their colleagues . They don’t have the balls to show their true face . These people are true scumbags.

What’s wrong with eating raw onion it’s better than snott, Kevin Rudd picked his nose and ate it.

There is no one to vote for any more both parties are now the same they just have a different coloured front door.

So hope someone like Donald Trump starts a party here. Political correctness needs its arse kicked.

The only way the extreme right can get in is by lying through their teeth and hoping no-one will notice.

Unfortunately for them not everyone is as stupid as their ardent followers.

The only way Lefties make it to power is by white anting their colleagues . They don’t have the balls to show their true face . These people are true scumbags.

What’s wrong with eating raw onion it’s better than snott, Kevin Rudd picked his nose and ate it.

There is no one to vote for any more both parties are now the same they just have a different coloured front door.

So hope someone like Donald Trump starts a party here. Political correctness needs its arse kicked.

HiddenDragon5:15 pm 15 Sep 15

Aside from anything else, if these means that the next ACT election will not be about “sending a message to Tony Abbott”, then that will be a good thing for democracy in the ACT.

From original post: “Turnbull is a world-class intellect. He doesn’t speak in slogans, he won’t eat raw onions and he won’t knight Prince Charles.”

Prince Charles has been a Knight of the Order of Australia since 1981.

No point…just saying!

house_husband3:13 pm 15 Sep 15

I’m a swinging voter with small “l” liberal tendencies and one of the many who completely switched off politics in the past few years. I’m listening again but am sceptical the support of a few conservatives to get Turnbull over the line was more about electoral survival rather than any real desire to allow open debate and choice on issues like same sex marriage, immigration and climate change.

Been a while since I could vote Liberal as they veered further and further to the far right and outright off the dial crazy.

If Turnbull can bring them back to what they were, which was true liberals, and not Tea Party knuckle grazers, I could vote for him. Particularly if the choice is him or Shorten. My Senate votes will still go to reasonable independents if they are available, possibly aligned with Nick Xenophon.

Two things Malcolm may have trouble with however is the “I’m not a scientist, but…” faction and the “Some of my best friends are…” troglodytes.

That may make it hard to vote for the first sign of light at the end of the LNP tunnel. That light wont be a new dawning, it will be just the same old villagers with lit torches lookin’ for someone to blame for their mistakes.

As a long time Liberal voter who was questioning what I’d do come next year’s election, this change in leadership is quite welcome. It gives the party an opportunity to turn aside from the policies that were going to lead to a big loss to Labor next year. The SSM plebiscite should be held no later than next years election rather than there being the risk that it would be put off indefinitely. If the direct action policy doesn’t achieve the specified targets there is now a PM who believes in climate change to pursue expanded or better policies. With Hockey presumably no longer Treasurer, hopefully we can also get some of the tax reform items that were ruled out by Abbott back on the table, and Turnbull is knowledgeable and articulate enough to explain to people why they’re necessary. The big question is how much he will be able to achieve in the face of the party’s conservative majority. I hope their sense of self preservation and desire to keep Labor out of office will prompt them to accept changes that won’t come naturally to them.

I hope that we finally see a real Liberal Party Prime Minister and not a conservative. Turnbull is the best chance of this. Unfortunately there will be a hard core who would rather destroy the Party (and with it, the country) out of petty spite.

I’m hoping Turnbull opposes the conservatives in the party and goes back to being Liberal. Its going to be interesting, I think he might have to give members a conscience vote on SSM, not sure if the environmental policies will change before the election. He will have to make some changes, but if the conservative right refuse to let him make said changes they won’t have a chance of being re elected. Its alright to jump up and down and state your case, but the point is, the polls were heading to a huge loss at the next election and it was mostly due to the far right wing conservative policies, very little if any liberal policies (meta data retention completely the opposite, GST on imported good another opposite of liberal policy).

Abbott had to go sometime before he ruined the country. I think many were happy we didn’t have to wait a year to see him go. I certainly could never vote or preference the liberal party while ever the right wing, ultra conservative control the party and the policies. There is no silent majority support for these ultra conservative policies.

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