He’s the Bert Newton of Australian politics: the polished performer whose gift for spontaneous, stiffly splenetic wit was honed in tougher vaudevillian times, times when having a personality meant more than booking an in-store appearance from Sophie Monk. “He” is of course Paul Keating, a man who knows how to milk a moment in the public gaze, a man who also knows how to fill that moment with something pointedly amusing and worth the repeating.

Two brackets of achingly sharp political standup from Keating yesterday have hogged the airwaves and set a handful of agendas in the 24 hours since. That Keating need only floss his teeth in public to turn the news cycle on its ear says a lot for the standard of over-massaged, verbally neutered performance we have come to expect from the modern political operator.

And then there was this in the Tips and Rumours section:

Keating speaks for all of us: Will Paul Keating’s unsolicited but sage advice to Kevin Rudd prompt a change in style and direction? The view among many Labor staffers and most of the ministry is hopeful. Prompted by Kerry O’Brien on The 7.30 Report, Keating took aim at the government’s lack of “narrative”, strategic direction and ability to work to a theme, a story. The PM’s speechwriters should take note. Keating also took aim at the propensity for “little press secretaries” to keep the PM captive to the 24-hour media cycle while ignoring the bigger picture and time to think. He also ridiculed the PM’s penchant for small-time micro-management, recalling Jimmy Carter’s control of the White House tennis court time sheet. It was a big call for Keating to give the PM a gentle slap in these areas, but he knows he can because he is being urged to by the many players in Canberra he is still in contact with. While the Government is travelling well, mostly due to Nelson’s poor performance, there are underlying signs of worry that Keating has picked up from the odd minister, staffer and party official. He speaks for all of us.

Here’s the other part of what Keating had to say – aside from the bit about narrative – on the 7 30 Report on Wednesday night:

KERRY OBRIEN: Kevin Rudd has been painted as micro manager. Now whatever you and Bob Hawke were accused of as prime ministers I don’t think micro manager was one of them. Can a Prime Minister afford to engage in the small detail in running Government? In the end do you have to invest trust and significant autonomy in your ministerial colleagues?

PAUL KEATING: Absolutely. You can’t micro manage a thing like the Commonwealth. And I noticed the other day that the US presidential candidate Obama was overheard with a microphone on.

KERRY OBRIEN: With the British Opposition Leader.

PAUL KEATING: With the British Opposition Leader saying in these jobs you must have time to think and I used to say that to that Gary Gray when he was secretary of the Labor Party, he thought we should have been out all the time talking. I mean John Howard turned the prime ministership into something like a state police minister. He was at the scene of every crime, twice a day on radio. The guy did no thinking. When a country has a lead they’re does not think, think then that country starts to move back.

KERRY OBRIEN: You would have to form the impression that Kevin Rudd is not giving him that much time to think either?

PAUL KEATING: Well frenetic activity in the end suiting journos, running at the behest of little press secretaries does not pay off.

…And it looks like PJK’s push for increased super contributions may be having an effect.