Malcolm Turnbull, Greg Hunt and Joe Hockey were among the non-attendees at the Rally of Crazy Tony Abbott addressed today [see previous post].
Pauline Hanson (with some grabs on Lateline from the rally), sundry lunatics, and organised crews from the League of Rights, One Nation, and other unsavoury organisations were certainly among those who attended.
Greg Combet is right to decry the absolute disgrace involved in this extremist schemozzle effectively being endorsed by one of Australia’s two major parties.
I wonder how Malcolm Turnbull is feeling right now. Had he run, as was canvassed, as an independent or as leader of a new party in Wentworth at the last election, he would have been in a very different (and very powerful) position now.
Following on from a comment on the last post, though, could anyone who’s not off the planet lead the crazed and manic rabble that is now the federal Liberal party?
We ascribe so many noble things to Malcolm, some of us thought he’d start another party, some of us thought he’d stand up for his personal beliefs, but really, he never deserved any of the benefit of the doubt we gave him.
Kinda implied in the post. A bit more courage of his convictions, and a bit less Most Popular Among Those Who Tweet About Q&A, would have impressed me more about Malcolm.
I think if Malcolm, Hockey and god forbid Rudd teamed up together they could make a go at another Democrats party. Although I have a feeling too much water might have passed under the bridge for Rudd and Hockey to mend their friendship.
We are watching Tony’s last run, hence the pathetic destablilising theatrics as he staggers towards his finishing line in July, when Malcolm will step up, and we can all return to normal transmission.
I hope so Grace. But I believe Tony could make it into the seat of power. And then we’ll all cop payback for unseating Howard.
Turnbull or Abbott – they’re still Liberals. Be careful what you wish for. It might come true.
How long will Tony Abbott remain leader of the Liberal Party after the NSW election?
In Victoria we are waiting for the NSW election to see if Mr Baillieu really lets rip with even more unpopular policies. ie Has Baillieu been holding back so as to not jeopardise the NSW Liberal chances of election, after all the only thing O’Farrell has going for him is that he isn’t Labor.
I’ve always wondered if “greatest opposition leader ever” was going to be Tony Abbott’s epitaph. He is excellent at whipping up short term hysteria, but doesn’t seem to have the disapline to maintain a clear line.
I think Labor, through their bungling, almost created the perfect environment for him and he almost grabbed govt last year. Unlikely to be the same situation at the next election.
It’s going to be fascinating to watch the way this plays out. There’s something exhausting about Abbott. Plus he’s starting to wedge himself e.g. he attends a rally of climate change deniers and tells them that he believes in climate change – sure he didn’t look particularly convincing.
edward o@1 I agree. Assuming he has personal beliefs and wasn’t just telling people what he thought they wanted to hear.
If he *does* believe that anthropogenic climate change is an issue the he should be selling the case to the public and his party but he’s been playing Abbott’s confusion game.
Everyone seemed to wish so hard for the existance of a rational, reasonable, evidence based conservative and put Malcom in the role.
edward o @1 & Paul Burns @6, agree. Turnbull only looks good in the misty light of a bygone era.
He still has the same faults which got him rolled by the loony Abbott, who has now slipped his leash and is rolling around snapping and snarling and biting his own limbs.
This would have happened a lot sooner if the ALP hadn’t descended into an imitation of Medici Florence.
However, they now seem to have pulled themselves together and turned a basilisk eye on the Smuggles Set and its leader’s behaviour and love affair with certain shock jocks.
Most demonstrations are dominated by the extremes of political opinion, whether it be the league of rights or the Socialist Alliance.
The polls still show most Australians oppose a carbon tax. You are trying to smear the motivations of millions of people with the actions of a tiny handful of hotheaded protesters.
I really thought he might decide to reinvent the ADs so as to insure his legacy, but then again the man is a student of history, he must know that that idea of a third force situated between the two major parties doesn’t make much sense after the age of Hawke/Keating/Howard/Brown. And I reckon the Oz Greens are well in the middle of a move towards Joskcha Fischer-esque ‘realo’ politics. Minor party Turnbullism just isn’t needed.
He’ll have another shot at the Coalition leadership, and his whole rationale will be based on the idea that only he can challenge the particular traits displayed by either Gillard or Shorten in 2016. And if Labor pulls a genuine rabbit out of the hat for new PM before then he’ll probably be shit out of luck in selling himself as The Definitive Breath of Fresh Air.
The coalition has to decide whether it wants to follow the US Republicans and do long term damage to itself by morphing into Tony’s Tea Party or go somewhere else.
On the subject of the carbon tax it also has to decide whether it wants to be the party that opposes the carbon tax because “more can be achieved by climate action alternatives that aren’t de-facto tax schemes”, the party that opposes the carbon tax “because AGW is a load of rubbish” or the party that changes its mind and decides to support a carbon tax.
The irony of course is that the coalition introduced the MRET scheme which is effectively an emission trading scheme that doesn’t function as a de-facto tax. The other irony is that Malcolm’s use of regulation to drive the acceptance of high efficiency globes was one of the better pieces of climate action in recent years.
“Oh, hello, Pauline… Uh… no hard feelings about me helping get your party de-registered and you sent to jail… right?”
Kim @ 0
I’m not at all sure your analysis that M Turnbull would have been the member for Wentworth and therefor powerfull as an independent or yet another minor party leader is any kind of certainty.
The Wentworth demographic seems to me (I’ve only ever worked for them, (and/or had sex with them)) very class conscious and they own some quite ‘modest’ stock portfolios. I just don’t know if they would have betrayed brand loyalty.
oops did I say I’d has sex with one or more Wentworth constituents?
No No it wasn’t me!!!!
It was Dolly! Dolly made me do it!
David@8
Tony is starting to wedge himself?
OMG to much cheek and not enough red budgie smugglers!
I don’t think we need to hear about your sex life, harleymc!
However, what I was getting at was more Malcolm Turnbull’s views of what might have been.