Roll up, roll up to the one-party circus: it’s politics for dummies, Turnbull-style.
Liberal ringmaster Malcolm Turnbull cracks his whip. Don’t vote for Bill Shorten because you’ll end up with “a hung Parliament, a budget black hole, big Labor taxes, less jobs and more boats”. Resist the “roll of the dice on independents or minor parties”.
Denigration of the Greens, in particular, has been swift and shrilling. So has the punishment. Drop them below Labor on the how-to-vote cards. That’ll teach them. Ruin them.
Turnbull’s directive against minor parties is quite absurd, especially when his government is built on the support of a minor party, the National Party.
The anti-Greens move is straight from the book of Menzies – make them into dangerous maniacs who spout socialism (that is, communism) and threaten true-blue Aussie values. Scare voters witless and get them to vote for the only party you can trust – the Libs. Oh, and the rusted-on rural rump, the Nats, as well. Sure thing.
It seems that even Labor left-wingers need anti-Greens help from the heavyweights. Former Labor PM Paul Keating came to the defence of Anthony Albanese who’s facing quite a battle in his inner Sydney seat of Grayndler. Keating says the Greens are “a bunch of opportunistic Trots hiding behind a gum tree”. Neoclassic Keating hyperbole for Labor’s true believers.
Why is there such a two-party focus of fury on the Greens? Simple: the Greens are a threat to their cosy powerbase. They want to stop these nasty little upstarts in their upward tracks.
In the ACT, the two major parties tend to brush the Greens off. They think the results are foregone conclusions. Labor will win both seats in the Reps, and it’ll be one senator for Labor and one senator for the Libs.
Canberrans like to think they’re different, but their voting habits prove otherwise. They’ll stick with the tried and true. Forget the Libs for a minute, or forever. They love to back unknowns and even Zed. Perhaps the Libs will pick up some disgruntled Labor voters who want to make a very light rail protest. Very silly indeed.
Labor voters mightn’t be happy with some/many of Labor policies, but can’t/won’t make the jump to the Greens – even though Greens policies on refugees, climate change and other matters align more closely with their personal views. It’s quite a puzzle.
The Greens have impressive candidates in the ACT. Christina Hobbs would make a very good senator – certainly much better than the Liberal incumbent. Patricia Cahill, the Greens candidate for Canberra, has campaigned hard and effectively on the southside and on social media. Pushing past the Libs and unseating Labor’s Gai Brodtmann would send a very big message to those who take the ACT for granted. Carly Anne Saeedi, the Greens candidate for Fenner, has a much harder task against Labor star Andrew Leigh.
Why not vote for the Greens? Be courageous, be different and don’t be put off by the scare tactics of the traditional powerful elites.
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