wonder if Graeme would be prepared to do what nobody from the Pineapple Party cheersquad has done so far and tell us which twenty seats over and above the seats held now will be won by the Pine Apple party. Until they can tell us that I consider claims of a Springborg win as hotair.

One of the stories suggested that Brough would resign if he didn’t become Pineapple president. However, it’s rather unclear what he has left to resign from.

Note in the post the reference back to speculation over a tilt at his leadership - already. It’s pretty clear that the Parliamentary Liberal Party aren’t a harmonious happy family, and nor for that matter are the Nats - Seeney hasn’t taken his overthrow lying down. The same levels of indiscipline in factional infighting that exist in the Liberal organisation are there in their parliamentary wing - do you really think they’ll be successful in papering over the cracks? Unless they do what they did last time - essentially go to the election with no policy positions - that also will provide lots of fodder for argy bargy.

It’s also not electorally obvious, contrary to the line that’s been sold to the Courier-Mail, in that the Libs opposed to the takeover well know it’s going to play really badly in Brisbane seats, and there’s every reason to expect that - having failed in the initial (impossible) intention to hoover in all the dissident right wing rural parties - that the same will apply in the bush. Let’s not forget that Labor also hold a lot of regional seats because - in part - of sea/tree changes to the demographics, where voters have reacted increasingly negatively to the Nationals brand. Will the Liberal Nationals brand be any different - particularly when it becomes clear who’s running the shop?

We can deride the LNP with fruity epithets, but it is in the short term at least, a winner with electors.

There’s every chance The Borg will be the next Premier, and eventually labelled some kind of political genius, merely for achieving the: (a) electorally obvious in merging the parties up here, and (b) selfish thing in reinforcing the position of the National MPs and powerbrokers, even if it only papers over their longterm decline.

[However, Queensland Nationals senator Barnaby Joyce said the new entity would be constitutionally a division of the federal Liberal Party at the same time it was affiliated with the federal Nationals. “There’s nothing to stop me going into the Liberal partyroom and voting on who is going to be the Liberal leader,” Senator Joyce said.

“Under the party constitution, MPs can choose whichever partyroom they want to sit in. People could chop and change between partyrooms.”]

Now we have Clive Palmer’s franchise not only deciding who the alternate Queensland Premier is but now with Nats free to vote in Liberal leaders, Palmer can determine who becomes alternative Prime Minister. Nelson only won by a vote or two didn’t he?