Zed runs at Gazza

Zed will be dead.
Gary Humphries flogs that stupid Labour woman every week on the radio from what I’ve seen does a good job.

Back stabbing your own side should stay in the party that does it best, Labour

muscledude_oz said :

johnboy said :

p1 said :

Isn’t it a little unethical to get your self elected only to quit the next year?

Pretty common for defeated leaders to do it though.

Example: Anna Bligh following the shellacking Labor received in Qld last year. She didn’t even wait that long. Two months after the election she was outta there.

Difference being Anna was damaged goods, and her going didn’t make any tangible difference. Zed leaving takes away a big, loyal quota for the Libs and probably their best chance at the next election.

I’m not usually a Liberal voter, but I would give my #1 preference to Gazza if he had the number 2 spot in the hope of throwing a spanner in the works. Since I am born and raised Canberran I reckon I would not be alone.

Go the insurgency Gazza!

muscledude_oz said :

johnboy said :

p1 said :

Isn’t it a little unethical to get your self elected only to quit the next year?

Pretty common for defeated leaders to do it though.

Example: Anna Bligh following the shellacking Labor received in Qld last year. She didn’t even wait that long. Two months after the election she was outta there.

I think she got the hint.

johnboy said :

p1 said :

Isn’t it a little unethical to get your self elected only to quit the next year?

Pretty common for defeated leaders to do it though.

Yes, very true, I always forget he was their leader.

Retiring/taking time off to be with the family/hiding in shame/etc isn’t really the same as getting yourself parachuted into a cushy job at a higher lever though is it?

johnboy said :

p1 said :

Isn’t it a little unethical to get your self elected only to quit the next year?

Pretty common for defeated leaders to do it though.

Example: Anna Bligh following the shellacking Labor received in Qld last year. She didn’t even wait that long. Two months after the election she was outta there.

rosscoact said :

Getting a Minister in the government would have to be a pretty decent achievement

Haha, nothing but net!

Although, mixing religion and politics like the Speaker from the Canberra liberals did achieve a lot of headlines.

p1 said :

Isn’t it a little unethical to get your self elected only to quit the next year?

Pretty common for defeated leaders to do it though.

JB has been offered a lecturing post at UC?

Awesome! Congratulations!

Pffttt… I’ve known for years that place is run by the Reptoids.

Isn’t it a little unethical to get your self elected only to quit the next year?

Gungahlin Al said :

Baggy said :

Gungahlin Al said :

Well no doubt Zed can stand for preselection based on his track record of achievements since the recent ACT election. Oh wait…

Sour grapes, much?

Yeah hardly. Helped the Greens get over the line with Shane and maintain balance of power, and the ACT avoid another term majority government. Primary objective achieved. Nothing to be sour about.

Now back OT, am I forbidden from observing the virtual absence of Zed from any public indication that he’s actually done anything since getting re-elected? Mind you, he isn’t actually alone. The whole Liberal team (apart from Vicki Dunne’s Assembly-must-go-to-church performances, I can’t recall any of them sticking their heads above the trench… Happy to be corrected.

Of course you may, and I ordinarily enjoy your posts. But having run for a seat yourself and lost, commentsof the type you made come across sneering and full of ill will. I imagine that they’re probably taking a break after the election campaign, and have turned inwards to navel-gaze and ponder new strategies for the next four years (with the obvious exception of Zed who has been a busy bee behind the scenes).

One might point to the Liberals’ silence as evidence that the ALP haven’t fubared anything up yet.

caf said :

Roundhead89 said :

Already there are reports that the letters editor is spiking any letters criticising The Greens and Labor and that the Abbott haters will again be allowed to take over the paper.

If you think that the Letters page of the Canberra Times is a politically influential organ, then I believe you’re sadly mistaken.

(Is “reports” a modern synonym for “rumours”?)

What you do to start a rumour in Canberra is write a post on RA saying the something has been “reported”, as per this post.

For example, already there are reports that JB is intending to take up a post as a Journalism lecturer at UC with Ms Grattan. There you go…:-)

cmdwedge said :

Gungahlin Al said :

Well no doubt Zed can stand for preselection based on his track record of achievements since the recent ACT election. Oh wait…

Zed got 1.8 quotas. How many did you get, Al?

It’s been what, 3 whole months since the election. List the achievements of the ACT Greens in that time.

Getting a Minister in the government would have to be a pretty decent achievement

Roundhead89 said :

Already there are reports that the letters editor is spiking any letters criticising The Greens and Labor and that the Abbott haters will again be allowed to take over the paper.

If you think that the Letters page of the Canberra Times is a politically influential organ, then I believe you’re sadly mistaken.

(Is “reports” a modern synonym for “rumours”?)

Gungahlin Al said :

Well no doubt Zed can stand for preselection based on his track record of achievements since the recent ACT election. Oh wait…

Zed got 1.8 quotas. How many did you get, Al?

It’s been what, 3 whole months since the election. List the achievements of the ACT Greens in that time.

This is disappointing. I was hoping Zed would stand against Gai Brotmann and win the seat giving us a lower house voice in the Abbott government. The way things stand it looks like we will be condemned to the status quo – ie: 3 Labor and 1 Lib. In fact, we might not even get that.

By the look of The Canberra Times this morning – the letters page and slant of the news stories – it looks like they will once again be going all out to get a Greens senator elected, like they did in 2010. Already there are reports that the letters editor is spiking any letters criticising The Greens and Labor and that the Abbott haters will again be allowed to take over the paper.

Baggy said :

Gungahlin Al said :

Well no doubt Zed can stand for preselection based on his track record of achievements since the recent ACT election. Oh wait…

Sour grapes, much?

No, just an accurate assessment. Got anything else useful to add?

Baggy said :

Gungahlin Al said :

Well no doubt Zed can stand for preselection based on his track record of achievements since the recent ACT election. Oh wait…

Sour grapes, much?

Yeah hardly. Helped the Greens get over the line with Shane and maintain balance of power, and the ACT avoid another term majority government. Primary objective achieved. Nothing to be sour about.

Now back OT, am I forbidden from observing the virtual absence of Zed from any public indication that he’s actually done anything since getting re-elected? Mind you, he isn’t actually alone. The whole Liberal team (apart from Vicki Dunne’s Assembly-must-go-to-church performances, I can’t recall any of them sticking their heads above the trench… Happy to be corrected.

A small man moving to a bigger house.

Not at all a surprise, the bigger question is who is taking the reins locally. I really can’t see anyone in the ranks who can do as well for them as Zed (which is saying something). It’s not hard to see why ACT Labor this morning has not been concealing their glee at this news.

johnboy said :

Very clever of Zed to stay in the Assembly, basically allows him to pick the next leader.

Please God (who seems popular on that side of politics), that it is not Alistair Coe. I’d be happy with Jeremy Hanson.

I predict Zed to be # 1 on the ticket and Gary to be #2 (based on internal Liberal Party numbers).

Let the voters then decide who gets up.

Gary has nothing to lose being #2 and getting up, Zed has it all to lose. Does private practice beckon?

I find it depressing that a guy that never seemed to do anything in ACT politics will (most probably) now replace a guy that never seemed to do anything in National politics.

Gungahlin Al said :

Well no doubt Zed can stand for preselection based on his track record of achievements since the recent ACT election. Oh wait…

Sour grapes, much?

Antony Green weighs in.

Well no doubt Zed can stand for preselection based on his track record of achievements since the recent ACT election. Oh wait…

And with Zed moving to the Senate, the Assembly will finally welcome Val Jeffery OA.
Congratulations Val.
Congratulations Jeremy on your elevation to Opposition Leader.
But what do we now call the Canberra Liberals – the Hansonites?

Geez, I bet Gazza’s very scared!

Anyway, considering that like many other ACT politicians, Zed struggles with the basic concept of time sheets, no doubt he’ll stuff up filling out the pre-selection form.

And the big question now is surely which joke will become the next ACT Liberal leader??????

Alderney said :

Zed Seselja, couldn’t cut it as a solicitor, so became an MLA.

Zed Seselja, couldn’t cut it as an MLA, so became a Senator.

Zed Seselja, couldn’t cut it as a Senator…

so became Prime Minister?

Tetranitrate said :

HiddenDragon said :

If Gillard and Swan make no further major cuts to APS staffing, the contrast to the fear and loathing in Canberra against Abbott will be such that the Liberals may well need Zed’s apparently higher (than Gary’s) profile and popularity just to hold the Senate spot.

Rubbish, it’s just not happening, Gary or Zed.
The Quota is 33.33%, Canberra leans labor, but not that much. Kerry Tucker couldn’t manage it and she was a far better candidate than what’s on offer.

Even in 1998 the libs still held the seat -though they dropped bellow quota. That was in the aftermath of the Howard cuts and with the Democrats as the 3rd party with a strong candidate. Simon Sheik is not such a candidate, the Greens can’t really pull the ‘doctors wives’ the way the Democrats could, and in that particular election One Nation took 5% of first preference votes. If it couldn’t happen then it’s not going to happen under the present party system or anything like it.

I don’t really get why people have such a fetish over the 2nd ACT senate seat anyway.

Even with the cuts that Howard and Costello made in their early years, I think there are reasons why the lived experience of the first term of the Howard Government would have been less unpalatable for many Canberrans than is the prospect of an Abbott Government. Aside from hip pocket issues, Abbott seems to be a somewhat more polarising figure on social and personal grounds than Howard was. Simon Sheikh’s national profile (had Q&A existed then, I doubt if Kerry Tucker would have been a panelist) may serve him very well with younger and more transient people, who might not otherwise bother to vote in what would be seen as a fairly blah election.

I don’t seriously believe that the Liberals stand to lose their ACT Senate spot, whoever their candidate is, but with a skittish electorate, they would be unwise to take it entirely for granted.

dungfungus said :

HiddenDragon said :

With Abbott and Hockey having made repeated comments to the effect that they intend to gut DEEWR and Health and Ageing, and probably do similar, or worse, to others yet to be named, it would be a very brave Liberal who would give up a safe – if dreary – gig in the Assembly to try his chances in a House of Reps seat in the ACT.

If Gillard and Swan make no further major cuts to APS staffing, the contrast to the fear and loathing in Canberra against Abbott will be such that the Liberals may well need Zed’s apparently higher (than Gary’s) profile and popularity just to hold the Senate spot.

And how many cuts have Gillard and Swan already made to the APS staffing?

Quite a few, so far as I can see, and (unsurprisingly) there hasn’t been that much fuss made about it locally – not much more than predictable, but measured, huffing and puffing from union spokespersonages.

The only comment of real note that I recall on the Gillard/Swan cuts came from Gallagher and/or Barr – to the effect that the ACT Government can probably spend enough money to offset cuts by the federal Labor Government, but if Tony (“mad, bad and dangerous to know”) Abbott sneaks his way in to the Lodge, all bets are off and there is no way the ACT Government could spend enough to compensate for the slashing and burning he would unleash on Canberra. The subtlety of that really was admirable.

My view is that a federal Coaliton Government would find it somewhat harder than they imagine to make truly signficant and sustained cuts to APS staffing, so the contrast to what we have at present may not be nearly as great as feared. Whatever the outcome of the federal election, I would prefer the ACT Government to stick to its knitting and turn its mind to how it will deal with its own deficit when, sadly, the “economic cycle” fails to produce a miraculous solution to that problem.

Getting back to the car chase, my guess is that Gary is probably more popular with people who are going to vote Liberal anyway – particularly older, small(ish) “l” Liberals – while Zed’s appeal would be more with Howard battler/Abbott aspirationals, and others whose vote is up for grabs.

Zed Seselja, couldn’t cut it as a solicitor, so became an MLA.

Zed Seselja, couldn’t cut it as an MLA, so became a Senator.

Zed Seselja, couldn’t cut it as a Senator…

HiddenDragon said :

If Gillard and Swan make no further major cuts to APS staffing, the contrast to the fear and loathing in Canberra against Abbott will be such that the Liberals may well need Zed’s apparently higher (than Gary’s) profile and popularity just to hold the Senate spot.

Rubbish, it’s just not happening, Gary or Zed.
The Quota is 33.33%, Canberra leans labor, but not that much. Kerry Tucker couldn’t manage it and she was a far better candidate than what’s on offer.

Even in 1998 the libs still held the seat -though they dropped bellow quota. That was in the aftermath of the Howard cuts and with the Democrats as the 3rd party with a strong candidate. Simon Sheik is not such a candidate, the Greens can’t really pull the ‘doctors wives’ the way the Democrats could, and in that particular election One Nation took 5% of first preference votes. If it couldn’t happen then it’s not going to happen under the present party system or anything like it.

I don’t really get why people have such a fetish over the 2nd ACT senate seat anyway.

HiddenDragon said :

With Abbott and Hockey having made repeated comments to the effect that they intend to gut DEEWR and Health and Ageing, and probably do similar, or worse, to others yet to be named, it would be a very brave Liberal who would give up a safe – if dreary – gig in the Assembly to try his chances in a House of Reps seat in the ACT.

If Gillard and Swan make no further major cuts to APS staffing, the contrast to the fear and loathing in Canberra against Abbott will be such that the Liberals may well need Zed’s apparently higher (than Gary’s) profile and popularity just to hold the Senate spot.

And how many cuts have Gillard and Swan already made to the APS staffing?

With Abbott and Hockey having made repeated comments to the effect that they intend to gut DEEWR and Health and Ageing, and probably do similar, or worse, to others yet to be named, it would be a very brave Liberal who would give up a safe – if dreary – gig in the Assembly to try his chances in a House of Reps seat in the ACT.

If Gillard and Swan make no further major cuts to APS staffing, the contrast to the fear and loathing in Canberra against Abbott will be such that the Liberals may well need Zed’s apparently higher (than Gary’s) profile and popularity just to hold the Senate spot.

Primal said :

After his recent showing down Tuggeranong way, I thought he could have been their best chance to bump off Gai Brodtmann.

Agreed. For the Liberal party that would have been the best move.

Well, if he’s doing it he’s almost certainly done the numbers already. It’s not really that big a loss, Gary Humphries really didn’t do very much.

Should spice up local politics for a brief moment.

I would love to see the back of smarmy Humphries, yet can only think he would actually do a lot more for the people of the ACT than the seemingly lazy Zed could ever do.

After his recent showing down Tuggeranong way, I thought he could have been their best chance to bump off Gai Brodtmann.

Unfortunately, I’m not sure that Zed can even manage pre-selection. I don’t really care who is in that Senate seat particularly, but I think that he should still get the hell out of the Liberal leadership. It may however be a good spot for him – one where you can rest entirely on your laurels and get re-elected time after time – no change for him really. This may also give the Greens the in they need if they think that there’s hay to be made in Liberal stoushes.

“Come at me, Broo”