Bob Carr has resigned as NSW Premier.
Elsewhere: More at Cut Price Commentariat, wsa.caucus, Catallaxy, John Quiggin, The Daily Flute, For Battle!, Tree of Truth, Imagining Australia, Sailing Close to the Wind and The 52nd State.
Blogging politics, culture, sociology and life from Brisvegas
Bob Carr has resigned as NSW Premier.
Elsewhere: More at Cut Price Commentariat, wsa.caucus, Catallaxy, John Quiggin, The Daily Flute, For Battle!, Tree of Truth, Imagining Australia, Sailing Close to the Wind and The 52nd State.
Abe Lincoln reference in resignation speech - tick.
Goodness me. That’s a shock.
Hasn’t his government been pretty much on the nose for quite some time? Get out when you’re ahead is probably the reason.
Is going for Canberra?
True Mark, but it doesn’t make any of the alternatives palatable! Personally I find it terribly sus.
So who will step up? (Sorry, I’m out of the NSW political loop.)
Yes and no. There are various negative issues but they had a big win at the last election not so long ago, and the oppn making much headway.
Go Reffers!
oppn not making much headway
He said he did not intend to go to Canberra and had no job offers.
As I commented earlier, if he wants to move North along with many other New South Welsh-people, there are two by-elections in August, so I dare say we could organise him a gig as a Labor backbencher.
Yeah well, Brogden is a nasty private school bully if you ask me.
Yes, this is a bit of a surprise. There was some talk in the media earlier in the year that he might resign - was it at NSW ALP Conference? Something like that. But having not gone then all talk seems to have died away.
His government is pretty whiffy at the moment, but not dire. The Liberal opposition is still (IMO) very unconvincing.
Good lord. Bob has his faults but all the obvious alternatives re-define “dire” in my view.
“Hasn‚Äôt his government been pretty much on the nose for quite some time? Get out when you‚Äôre ahead is probably the reason.”
If history continues to repeat:
(a) the Right will insist on installing some mediocrity as his replacement even though better candidates are available (remember Barrie Unsworth);
(b) Labor will get its little bottom spanked at the next election (remember 1988);
(c) the Right will concoct some absurd piece of psepho-mythology to avert blame for their own arrogance and incompetence (remember the line that gun laws cost Labor the 1988 election);
(d) the Right in NSW and elsewhere will begin believing and acting on their psepho-mythological bullshit (remember the inaction of Federal and State Labor governments on gun control from 1988 to 1996, and Mike Kaiser in 1995 paying off the gun lobby with $22,500 of Queensland ALP funds in the belief that the gun lobby was this dreadfully potent force which could tip out Labor at the election);
(e) as a result of some disaster arising from the Labor Right believing and acting on their own psepho-mythological bullshit, a Liberal government somewhere will act to remedy this problem and fill the policy void, earning great kudos as a result (remember Port Arthur and the great boost Howard got from his subsequent response).
Costa! Costa! Costa!
[chokes, splutters, is sick on the floor]
another reason for a change of government in NSW.
We have no Carr and no Driver!
Costa, the man who proved looking like Mussolini wasn’t enough to make the trains run on time.
Apparently Scully’s the tip…or Iemma.
What do you NSW folk think of those names?
Not Iemma, though he might get enough votes to decide between Scully and Costa.
No chance of Iemma getting a rails run, if the other two don’t seem to be travelling awfully well?
From a media/talkback point of view Iemma has alot more respect and standing than Scully, who would give the oppn and radio jocks a lot of material straight away.
Come on, Steve, Costa can’t help the way he looks… on the other hand, the Mafioso dress sense?
People I know who have worked under Iemma’s various portfolios over the last few years (health and public works) thought he was the least competent minister they’d worked for. I also think he comes across badly on TV.
Was just thinking that if Scully and Costa beat each other up, Iemma could have enough to hang in there, maybe pick up enough votes from a potential fourth candidate to then still be there in a 3 way race….and maybe get enough to stay above either Costa or Scully, thus gifting him the win when the defeated man’s votes go to him.
At all likely?
If Costa gets in it’ll give Leninist paper-sellers everywhere hope that if they reform to reformism, they too can one day be Premier.
Bob Carr and John Howard: political survivors, underestimated by their opponents, with grand intellectual pretensions and the princes of policy panic. Is this the best NSW can provide to politics?
It sounds not. So we’re back to Scully as the front-runner?
costa won’t be a candidate as it would involve a by-election!
A choice between Scully, Iemma and Knowles however I would go for cranky Franky
Scully would be electoral poison (everyone remembers he was transport minister), and Morris Iemma is in the permanently bad news Health ministry.
Costa is in the Upper House, so he’d need a by-election (Maroubra, say?), but he’s only been in parliament for a few years, and hasn’t been regarded as a successful minister in the media. Wran moved from the upper to the lower house in a by-election (as did Unsworth?) but that’s probably a bit difficult to organise. Costa would be awful.
If it’s someone from the right, I wouldn’t be surprised if Craig Knowles gets up, provided that the caucus doesn’t go silly and elect Scully. From an image point of view, Knowles or John Watkins are probably the best bets (although Watkins is in the left).
So if the right doesn’t go silly and vote for Scully, I’d put my money on Knowles… he has the best public image (despite the problems with nurses a few months ago, but he was ‘exonerated’).
Sachmo, no-one on the Left will ever be Premier. Ever. This rules out Watkins and Refshauge both, unless they rat.
Just think, Michael Knight (the olympics minister) might have been Premier. Uurrrggghhhh!
Knight jumped ship from the left to the right…
So it’s Knowles then….?
I think the question now is, how long will Beattie stay holed up in Brisbane? Could this be the start of the invasion of the premiers?
Knowles or Scully, but don’t rule out Costa. The NSW Labor Party aren’t renowned for their adherence to conventions, or rules for that matter.
Premier Morris Iemma: that actually rolls off the tongue quite well. Anyone but Costa. Anyone.
I’m not taking my medication today….aas a result I’m envisaging a rumour-induced ALP frontbench. If you believed every inside tip you were given, a post-2007 Federal ALP would include Eddie McGuire, Bill Shorten, Evan Thornley, Bob Carr, Peter Beattie, Geoff Gallop, Unlce Tom Cobbly, etc etc.
How about we worry about getting McMullan and Emerson on the frontbench before we worry about Carr and Co.
On flutey’s question, I’m less sceptical than I was. There’s just been a major reshuffle caused by the resignation of the Speaker (in a drinks expenses scandal), the demotion of the Health Minister (reasons obvious), and now the resignation from Parliament of Deputy Premier Mackenroth. Beattie has taken over Treasury himself, and hived off some of its functions to a super economics/trade/innovation ministry filled by the new Deputy Premier and his preferred successor Anna Bligh (a former UQU student pollie, btw). Bligh is in the Left, but I think she’d jump ship to become Premier. There’s always the less right wing Labor Unity faction here (compared to Labor Forum = the AWU). So who knows, Beattie might be seriously considering going federal down the track.
He could certainly argue he’s achieved his major goals in Qld - very sound budget position, embedding “Smart State” in education, research and innovation, consultative government and a major infrastructure/population plan for SEQ. Labor cannot hold its huge majority 3 elections in a row (though you never know in Qld) and there are big problems in Health. Could be time to declare victory and save the country!
Ok, it’s slightly off topic, but now that we’re discussing Qld politics, how about Murray Watt for Chatsworth (or Redcliffe) ! What do you think of that, Mark… hehe ?
Who knows, Sachmo? Won’t be Redcliffe - local Councillor Peter Houston looks like being the candidate. I know someone who’ll be very upset at Hollis’ timing, though.
Chatsworth is the wrong faction for Muzza. But who knows? Bright young lawyer, etc.
He could join other UQU alumni in Parliament like Bligh, Brother Lucas and Comrade McNamara.
As well as Comrades Lee (of the LVF) and Nolan (Ipswich). I didn’t know about Comrade McNamara - when was he at UQ?
How could I forget Comrade Lee? Comrade #1 will be pleased with the success of entryism.
Incidentally, I found some LVF posters when I was sorting out some old papers. I should scan a few and post them!
Comrade Andrew McNamara was my trusty (?) Assistant Treasurer in 1988. At that stage, a 26 year old (mature age!) Econ/Law student. Now Member for Hervey Bay. Was once AWU, now old guard (I think - might be wrong).
He seems to have to a better job than bugger all Bob.
On the Libs/Nats side of things, I’ve heard Matthew Boland’s name come up a number of times as a potential member for Ryan, and Christian Rowan was the Nat. candidate for Gympie last election.
Julian Sheezel has popped up as the Vic director of the Liberal Party, and Jason Aldworth has also popped up as someone in the Lib. party hierarchy down there.
*laugh* I’d forgotten about Comrade #1 and Entryism (I think that it deserves a capital E). I wonder how the eight-legged essay is going?
The funniest thing was when Comrade Webb of the ISO and other comrades were reading the first LVF poster, and they couldn’t work out if it was real or not!
I still have one of the t-shirts. Have to say, they sold like the proverbial hot-cakes, and my mum saw someone walking down coronation drive wearing one of them soon after! Very funny.
Carr will definitely go to Canberra.
Apparently he’s told Beazley he’s not going. So it’s a cert then.
I thought he was a bit of a twat.
I will miss him too.
But we’ll miss Beazley less, so it will work out.
Carr was seen in an airport talking to a couple of roosters this lunchtime, or so I’ve fantasised.
bit of a twat’s not bad tho is it - it’s the complete twats we need to worry about
I thought that Scully was pretty unpopular by the time Brogden became leader - he only became leader in 2001 or 2002.
That’s right wbb, no match for Brogden in the dickhead stakes. He’s probably going to get tapped on the shoulder to be replaced by O’Farrell or some other carcass so the ALP could replace Carr with any old bozo and still look good. Just not Costa.
Hopefully Carr will run for Kingsford-Smith.
WBB, what’s your reasoning on that one? I’m not arguing, but if you could explain your confidence…?
Naomi, I think Iemma is a big big goer.
OK, I’ll say it. Vote [1] Popper for Premier!
Or, being hopelessly optimistic, Sydney.
Mark wrote:
“Bligh is in the Left, but I think she‚Äôd jump ship to become Premier. There‚Äôs always the less right wing Labor Unity faction here (compared to Labor Forum = the AWU).”
Do you think she’d need to in order to become Premier, rather than staying with the Left, and the Left dealing with Unity on terms which were generous to the latter on matters other than the immediate succession to Beattie? Wouldn’t she be asking for payback if she jumped ship for reasons of ambition?
Will someone take pity on a latecomer - who the f*** is Popper?
Mark, do you know the left/unity/awu/others breakdown of the Qld caucus?
Ah, Luke, let us induct you into the odd freemasonry of Larvatus Prodeo. 50+ threads incur a mention of Karl Popper. 100+ threads incur a metion of F. von Hayek.
Whoever it will be it will be a Fabian. World domination anyone?
Beattie is going nowhere, because (as I understand it - and I’m 6,000km away, so I could be alot wrong), Bill Ludwig is his, ummm, benefactor. And Big Bill is a Beazley fan. So I can’t see Beattie going anywheres in a hurry.
And Liam - thanks.
Beattie is old guard, Ludwig is AWU.
All the same, wouldn’t Beattie need Ludwig to get there?
Naomi,
My reasoning is Knowles is a much-vaunted bully boy with a reputation for fucking stuff up, who recently pissed off everyone in Kurnell with his rather rude (but entirely justified) remarks about their suburb. He doesn’t do good media.
Happen to have known Craig for years, and worked with him for a while. Not a bully-boy bone in his body. On the contrary, one of nature’s gentlemen. I agree he doesn’t come across as very dynamic in the media, however, an unfortunate side-effect of an arrogance bypass. Still, he’s enormously capable (witness his form during the crypto crisis), and I’d love to see him get up.
CS, I listened to Knowles speak at a recent Fabian society forum when he set the audience snoozling quietly in their seats.
He seems like a nice guy, and I agree about his lack of bullying but he needs a bit of fire. Like, um, Costa?
“but how many does it have to be before someone quotes Latin? then how many before someone abuses someone else in Gaelic?”
Caesar si viveret, ad remum dareris.
Actually I’m waiting for the obligatory BB reference re selecting the new Premier.
Costa would be an unmitigated disaster.
But yeah, I don’t know about Craig’s media presence. Perhaps he can develop it, as he’s excellent company. In case folks don’t know, he was one of the state’s most talented public servants prior to his pre-selection.
Costa for PM, Liam!
PM? Not a chance. Costa for General-Secretary of the First Australian People’s Supreme Soviet.
We’re now on the same page Naomi.
He’s been long targeted by the conservatives because of his obvious leadership credentials, but I think that a two year lead-in to the election would give him plenty of time to see a lot of that stuff off. Incidentally, Carl Baby has already announced that he has the numbers - we’ll see.
Scully wants to be NSW Premier…
http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Scully-wants-to-be-NSW-premier/2005/07/27/1122143895877.html
Craig Knowles is under-rated in my view. He’s certainly the best Health Minister I’ve dealt with. Morris Iemma isn’t in his league. Carl “Railway Disaster” Scully - who once called up a a govt car to transport his pooch (which poo’ed on the seat enroute) - would be a boon to the opposition and cartoonists everywhere.
Dear God in heaven. Scully….heaven help us all. And I don’t even live in NSW.
How many of the people contributing to LP have worked with NSW Labor ministers? It’s almost as if there were a surfeit of them!
Word is that Iemma has the numbers…
That is the word.
God help us all!!!
Would one of the Sydneysiders mind knocking up a quick profile on each of the contenders? I’ve never heard of Iemma. What’s his background?
I tried to put a bob or two on Iemma this morning, before that word got around, but Centrebet was a bit slow off the mark…
After commenting and Flutey’s and Liam’s blogs I have firmed on a campaign for Sandra Nori for Premier. Not because she is any good. But it would be interesting.
Robert:
Iemma: practicing Catholic, rusted-on Right. Born 1961 to Italian migrant parents. Lawyer, Unions, Adviser to Graham Richardson, entered Parliament in 91 for Lakemba in Sydney’s mid west. Currently Health Minister. Low profile. Sussex St’s man.
Scully: Lawyer, 48, practiced as a solicitor before entering Parliament about the same time as Iemma. Member for Smithfield in the aspirational outer western suburbs. Faction switch from Left to Right. Chucked out of transport after disastrous rail run culminating in Waterfall rail crash. His successor, Michael Costa, has been just as inept so probably doesn’t mean much now. Currently Police minister.
Famously arranged for his dog, Belle, to be transported via specially ordered Ministerial car. Belle did a big poo enroute. Just announced that he’s “ready for a higher plane” So is Belle no doubt.
Scully said he was going to bring some “sparkle” to the leadership? Wha? I’ve never even seen the bloke smile, let alone sparkle.
Iemma is the man. I’m taking bets against him at 3/2.
I have never ever known a vegan to “sparkle”.
“I have never ever known a vegan to “sparkle”.”
But apprently they do “compost” well.
Nice precis Geoff. But are they really the front runners? What about Knowles and Rehfuge, Refugee, Rhe- oh fuck it, you know who I mean. Are they really locked out for factional reasons” More thumbnail sketches woul be welcome as I tend to stay well away from NSW ALP politics for the same reasons I don’t attend topless mudwrestling events.
Let’s face it, Nabs — a topless mudwrestling event would be much more attractive than the NSW ALP. And less misogynistic, too.
Cheers, Geoff.
Maybe this is morbid (blame your other thread on feeding tubes), but he’s not doing a Jim Bacon on us? Not got something unpleasant & going off to die?
Hope not, or I’ll feel terrible for calling him a softcock egotist who is going off to sulk because his approval ratings are dropping and he’ll never be PM.
I can’t believe we’ve gotten this far without any “Scully and Mulder” puns.
On the Queensland stuff, Beattie and Ludwig hate each other. Talk to anyone in the party. Ludwing would have zero chance of blocking Beattie.
Sachmo, I don’t know what the breakdown is. A lot of people have gone over to the Old Guard under the Beattie regime.
It’s vaguely possible for Bligh to become Premier without leaving the Left. But unlikely. My bet would be that she leaves the Left and becomes an Independent (on the Goss precedent of leaving the AWU when he became leader) rather than joins the Right. But the AWU are whinging in the papers today about losing their graps of “their” economic ministries. So I don’t know if I’d put money on Bligh. The fact that Beattie wants her to succeed him will diminish in importance as he gets closer to leaving.
Could the NSW Labor party really look further than Hayek? An obvious right wing candidate!
I don’t think he’s ever really loved the job Tony, but now that he’s done his duty and set the record, he’s off, and fair enough.
I’d also be a little cautious about jumping to political conclusions on the transition. Perhaps it is merely a contest between Iemma and Carl Baby. Yet I for one find it a little hard to believe that Carr could resist a final play behind the scenes, no fingerprints of course. Never to be underestimated,the question is: who is he campaign managing how?
Carr goes to Canberra just prior to next election or just after, I’m still confused?
I’ve added a stack of links in the post to just about every centrist or centre-left or left blogs’ comment. While a lot of commenters on this thread are from NSW, some are from WA and Qld, and possibly other places. It’s interesting how predominant in the media and our political imaginaries NSW state politics is that so many of us have an opinion, and in particular, that there’s so many posts on non-NSW blogs.
Would the same occur if Rann or Lennon resigned?
Yeah - but Carr has been around a long time - and he does have a certain gravitas and charisma that the other blokes ain’t got - we don’t really care about NSW - it’s just the Carr factor - which is why I wanna know when he announces his Canberra run.
People commented on an earlier thread that Beattie wouldn’t play outside Queensland if he went Federal. Similarly, I have my doubts whether Carr would play outside NSW.
The record of state premiers entering Federal politics is a succession of either tragedies or mediocrities (including Joe Lyons as PM).
Witness Fahey in the second category.
In the first, T. J. Ryan, and E. G. Theodore (both legendary Premiers of Queensland of huge electoral standing and political stature).
I reckon the NSW numbers men are tossing up between Pol Pot and General Franco.
It is all utter bollocks.
Is it not a trifle disturbing that the identity of the next Premier of Australia’s largest state will probably be determing by Eric Roozendahl, Eddie Obeid and the flagitious Joe Tripodi?
Mark, spot on with regard to Premiers.
Joe Lyons who as a 39 year old Education minister in Tassy fell in love with a 15 year old and waited until she was of age so they could marry.
Legend
“determing” should be “determined”. Sorry.
*falls around laughing* I can’t believe you linked to my post. Bet I win the ‘crappest post award’ of all of the ‘Carr resigns’ ones.
I also have my doubts as to whether Carr would be tempted to go federal. I’m not sure he’s that kind of beast.
Flatigious?
I think you mean, Paul, ‘doughnut-eating pants-dropping sleaze’.
Bob Carr, friend of war criminal Henry Kissinger, a man of the Right proud to have increased NSW’s prison population.
Read on: http://antonyloewenstein.blogspot.com/2005/07/bob-carr-friend-of-war-criminal.html
Liam,
flagitious
Dictionary: fla¬∑gi¬∑tious (fl…ô-jƒ≠sh’…ôs)
adj.
Characterized by extremely brutal or cruel crimes; vicious.
Infamous; scandalous: “That remorseless government persisted in its flagitious project” (Robert Southey).
[Middle English flagicious, wicked, from Latin flāgitiōsus, from flāgitium, shameful act, protest, from flāgitāre, to importune, to demand vehemently.]
fla¬∑gi’tious¬∑ly adv.
fla¬∑gi’tious¬∑ness n.
Thesaurus
flagitious - adjective
Utterly reprehensible in nature or behavior: corrupt, degenerate, depraved, miscreant, perverse, rotten, unhealthy, villainous. See clean/dirty, good/bad.
As a good mate has pointed out, it was obvious last Sunday something was up. At Leichhardt oval in front of 22,000 people, Sanda Nori had the honour of the kick off.
She knew something. She was kicking off her campaign! Angela D’Amore for deputy premier.
Yeah, D’Amore’s not bad. Could do much worse.
Link’s broken. Who’s D’Amore?
Try link again.
Local member for Drummoyne. Friends of mine are heavily into the local Labor scene so I went to a fundraiser with them for D’Amore a few years back. Got drunk (as you do these shindigs) and told her why I was voting Green instead.
It is sort if a in-joke. I have no idea if she has done anything since elected.