Tony Abbott fights for his political life for the second time this year, as Malcolm Turnbull makes his move.
Malcolm Turnbull, with Julie Bishop in tow, has reportedly met with the Prime Minister to request a leadership ballot. With only the weekly Essential Research looming in the way of federal opinion polling this week, that seems as good an excuse as any to launch a new thread.
UPDATE (Two minutes later): Malcolm Turnbull has resigned from cabinet.
UPDATE 2 (10pm): Turnbull 54, Abbott 44.
Author: William Bowe
William Bowe is a Perth-based election analyst and occasional teacher of political science. His blog, The Poll Bludger, has existed in one form or another since 2004, and is one of the most heavily trafficked websites on Australian politics.
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Where’s Abbott!?
Victoria
Well he was a merchant banker. It is a core competency.
it is hard being a bleeding heart, but I hope abbott has people to look after him. he went into a deep depression after howard lost. he’s not mentally stable, and this is a massive blow to someone who should never have been promoted so far over his pay-grade.
Turnbull off to a shaky start – waffly and condescending. streets ahead of abbott (he’s actually thinking and not spouting ‘messages’/slogans)
piss-weak on climate change. He an bishop look rattled and full of shit.
I feel better – he doesn’t look as good as I feared he might.
Shorten can take him.
disunity is death and turnbull will not be supported by many in his party and the far rigth media. he’ll lose the bogan vote to minor parties.
[Gary
….At least I can watch Turnbull.]
Bingo.
Turnbull does waffle.
Disingenuous re climate change. That will haunt him.
I am not sure Macolm is the consultative type.
We shall see.
I think Shorten will wear him down.
Liar Lies and the sheep love it
Morning TV will be a Turncoat wank fest
Gary
[At least I can watch Turnbull]
I feel like pressing the fast forward button though. He is overly loquacious. At least he’s slightly amusing.
Have I fallen in a coma for a year, and now Bill Shorten is the PM?
Because I’m looking at this guy who claims to be the PM and he’s saying everything that Bill Shorten was saying…
when do we abbott’s speech?
Not a bad opening speech, I think we will learn more after a new cabinet is sworn in
[He can’t it is how he bought the last 4 or 5 votes … Scott Morrison wouldn’t allow it.]
Yeah, but already Abbott is dead and gone and won’t be back, and Turnbull will be safe for a while. Turnbull will have a bit of wiggle room.
A whole week of Labor demanding Turnbull nominate the Minister’s he’d going to nobble? Surely not.
I can see a good decade ahead…..
Good night Bludgeroonies (and I R E A L L Y mean that)
🙂
Oh the talking points Drewski – I forgot the talking points. I trust TBA’s on the distribution list? Wonder who’ll be composing them from now on? Not Peta.
Give it a day and TBIdiot will be huffing a 2o16 win under his new boyfriend
Was that the first time boats weren’t mentioned by the Australian PM in a public appearance in 2 years?
I reckon Abbott will be waiting in a dark alley….
Abbott can only nod his head. Tony, youre not saying anything.
Sabra is being realistic.
So cut and run Abbott is cutting and running one last time?
I like feeling like I have a PM who actually knows what he’s doing. If only we could spill the whole Liberal party.
Might take a week.. but mark this comment TBA loves Turdband as LNP Savior
Thanks Oakeshott – so long since I read 1984 (well before 1984 in fact) that I missed the reference to Eurasia. How embarrassment.
Mate you exhausted Sabra and Chris’ limits of analysis by about 8pm.
[I can see a good decade ahead….]
I thought that of Rudd. Things can change quickly.
And the the nurse comes to check your orientation and says “Who is Australia’s Prime Minister?”
That reminds me of the day just over two years ago when I was visiting my sister in hospital on the day of Rudd’s second coming. A Doctor and Nurse asked that question of an elderly lady in the next bed. She gave the right answer.
The reaction of PhoenixGreen, as gullible as it is, will be quite popular. When a rich person waffles, it must be important, right?
And those dimples! THE DIMPLES!
And the fact that he doesn’t look like a pair of deranged ears will sell well in the shllow markets methinks. And, really, that’s all they have to do. The Abbott nutters will calm down when they realise the alternative (in their eyes) is the Bandidos motorcycle club running the country. (Before you react, I have had otherwise reasonable people tell me that the CFMEU is a front for the bikies to run the ALP! Yup. Think of something really stupid, and double it, and you get right wing Australian public opinion.)
I don’t think Shorten can beat the dimples.
But if Rupert feels that, like Julia, he wasn’t asked permission to become PM by Malcolm and goes all native on the Turnbull government, then, well, we will be living in, as the Chinese say, interesting times.
Emma Alberici already saying that today’s leadership coup wasn’t as bad as Gillard taking over from Rudd.
Oh, right.
Abbott was 6 months shorter in the job than Rudd and a full year short of Gillard’s term before he was kicked out by his own party, after completely fucking up an economy.
And this isn’t so bad?
I guess Labor and Shorten will need to be fairly agile in order to sieze the opportunity to make friends of this exciting and disruptive event :P.
Alberici was clearly mocking the LNP claims that they weren’t anything like Labor with her into there.
It’s amazing how knifing a PM is good for one side of politics but bad for the other side. Isn’t it just bad full stop?
No doubt Turnbull will totally spoil my currently quite positive opinion of him first time he has to attack the Greens. But at this point I love his positivity and frankness about his liberalism. Abbott and the rest of the Liberals treated the country like children. No doubt this will all revert as Turnbull is briefed and settled in.
Heh… Simon Benson blames Abbott for his loyalty to Hockey, and Turnbull for backstabbing him.
No mention of his seminal article that caused all this shit last week.
Now blaming there own 😀
Josh Taylor @joshgnosis 3m3 minutes ago
Paul Sheehan on Sky is blaming it all on Peta Credlin.
I’ve had hangovers that lasted longer than this PM. He leaves a worse taste in the mouth as well.
It is already looking like a shambles. I think this will end in tears for the Libs.
Also I think Turnbull’s smugness is a bigger liability than people give it credit for. The little half smiles, the “we’re all mates really” faux joviality, the verbosity. It’s not going to be one way traffic.
“If Holt got a swimming pool, what should Abbott get?”
The Tony Abbott Memorial Budgie Cage
Seems like Steve Ciobo voted for Abbott.
Steve Ciobo not “getting caught up” in saying how he voted.
Get on with the job…”defeat the Labor Party”. Gee, I thought it was to govern.
We’ve had five PMs in five years. The five before that lasted about 35 years. Three PMs lasted only two years before being cut down by their own party.
Big Money will be happy with the change. They now have a more effective advocate.
Steve777 – but you still don’t know if she thought it was 2007-2010, or she was really with it!
BB,
Benson is a shit of the first water.
A crap journalist. He will wind up on Turnbull’s staff. Was close to O’Farrell in the late 2000s. Bitter he was overlooked for the job that David Pemberthy got.
Alberici hitting all the right notes. Ciobo clearly stressed.
There is a campaign to leave out either your speedos or onions as a mark of respect for Abbott. 🙂
Diogenes
Australia = Italy-R-Us ?
Regarding Bishop.
Three impressions of this faux deputy from that presser.
1. “My Eyes Adored You” gazing up at Turnbull = “This’ll show me to the punters a s someone who really is loyal”
2. Scanning the room ….. eyes continuously flicking left and right = “Where are the journos who I know can see through me ….. the ones who know that I know that I’m a fraud”
3. Immediate incongruence between the two …… Turnbull says “volatility and disruption and unpredictability is our friend; it allows creativity and opportunity”. Then he hand s over to Bishop whose very first words are “I’m proud to serve with MT in these challenging times”. She was too busy doing 2.(above) to listen to what MT was saying. Lightweight. May she bring MT down eventually.
Alberici nails it: with MT supporting ABbott’s positions on AGW, SSM etc haven’t the Libs only changed the salesman not the policy.
The Keogh Campaign can claim a victory tonight. We have helped fell the worst PM in Australian history and we have done so by arguing on the values and issues that matter to voters.