The Australian reports the latest Newspoll has Labor’s two-party lead widening from 51-49 to 52-48 since the previous poll three weeks ago. Both major parties are down on the primary vote, the Coalition by two to 38% and Labor by one to 35%, while the Greens are up one to 13% (equalling their best result since 2011) and One Nation is steady at 4%. Scott Morrison’s personal ratings are unchanged after the hit he suffered in the previous poll, at 37% approval and 59% disapproval, while a spike in Anthony Albanese’s ratings last time has failed to completely stick, with his approval down three to 43% and disapproval up three to 40% (compared with 40% and 41% in the poll before). However, Albanese maintains the lead on preferred prime minister he opened up in the last poll, which is out slightly from 43-39 to 43-38. The poll was conducted Wednesday to Sunday from a sample of 1510.
Newspoll: 52-48 to Labor
Labor slightly widens the lead it opened in the previous Newspoll, and Anthony Albanese maintains his ascendancy as preferred prime minister despite a slight fall in his personal ratings.
Beemer,
Yes TPP, bit voters of all persuasions put their next flavour of poison as their descending preferences on the votong slip. So TPP would not produce much difference in results, as I see it.
In regard to the nuclear waste dump in near Kimba in SA,, the Labor gov’t here held a statewide discussion on the future of nuclear in SA and the people told them to shove nuclear anything up their clacker. This included the proposed dump.
So Marshall has really given the SA people the finger. As is usual for Libs.
One thing is for sure, Albanese’s leadership is secure. Hard to start leadershit with these numbers.
Updated BludgerTrack leadership trends:
https://www.pollbludger.net/bludgertrack2022/leaders.htm
A man has been shot dead by police in a “terror-related incident” on a busy high street in London.
The Metropolitan Police has said it is believed that a number of people have been stabbed in broad daylight on Streatham High Road and the incident has been declared as terrorist-related.
“At this stage, it is believed a number of people have been stabbed. The circumstances are being assessed; the incident has been declared as terrorist-related,” the Met Police said.
“Three people are known to have been injured in the Streatham attack earlier this afternoon,” police added in a later statement.
“One person is at hospital in a life-threatening condition. We are in the process of informing their family.”
Well done, Labor and well done, Albanese!
2PP up and PPM both up!
Pity about Alb’s netsats.
The Greens are to be congratulated as well. Only fair. Facts are facts. They have leapt back up to where they were three governments ago!
The really excellent news is that, after 7 years of supine crawling, the Fourth Estate has finally found some gorm. The MSM peeps who went along with 6 years of Kill Bill like it was some sort of fashionista fad have finally woken up to themselves.
Good morning Dawn Patrollers.
The SMH editorial describes the sport grant scandal as a stain on the Prime Minister’s tenure. It doesn’t accept any of Morrison’s BS on the matter.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/sport-grant-scandal-a-stain-on-prime-minister-s-tenure-20200202-p53x21.html
In quite a broadside the AFR’s editorial says that McKenzie’s exit does not end the PM’s problems.
https://www.afr.com/policy/tax-and-super/mckenzie-exit-does-not-end-the-pm-s-problems-20200202-p53wyk
Scott Morrison wants the sports rorts mess to be over with McKenzie’s exit. It won’t be, writes Katharine Murphy.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/feb/02/scott-morrison-wants-the-sports-rorts-mess-to-be-over-with-mckenzies-exit-it-wont-be
Michelle Grattan (correctly) says that McKenzie fell for the lesser of her political sins.
https://theconversation.com/view-from-the-hill-bridget-mckenzie-falls-but-for-the-lesser-of-her-political-sins-131011
Frank Bongiorno, at the end of a tour through rorts past, says that there are still few signs that anything like a majority of voters are alive to Morrison’s confidence tricks.
https://theconversation.com/remembrance-of-rorts-past-why-the-mckenzie-scandal-might-not-count-for-a-hill-of-beans-130793
Here’s Simon Benson’s take on the NewsPoll.
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/newspoll-coalition-vote-gets-burnt-by-fires-rorts/news-story/c027d9e4500e0fc151af4245589f582a
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/long-hot-summer-as-scott-morrison-weathers-storm-after-storm/news-story/1113f06852ea0a30b2cb95591b1007d1
Rob Harris explains how Bridget’s departure will put a strain on the Coalition.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/mckenzie-s-exit-puts-a-strain-on-coalition-20200202-p53x1f.html
Peter van Onselen tells us how Morrison’s blind loyalties only extend so far.
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/scott-morrisons-loyalty-to-bridget-mckenzie-ends-in-bid-to-cauterise-scandal/news-story/8d03212818e877445641fe5712000536
David Crowe and Rob Harris tell us about the latest Ipsos focus group study that shows that voters have turned on Morrison over his “pathetic” bushfire response.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/voters-turn-on-pm-over-pathetic-response-to-bushfire-crisis-20200202-p53wy9.html
The Australian tells us that Barnaby is circling!
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/bridget-mckenzies-fate-rests-on-sports-grants-report-finding/news-story/b48cfd244fe42929073c8e249578135a
Sean Kelly reveals where Morrison government’s true Achilles heel lies.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/where-morrison-government-s-true-achilles-heel-lies-20200202-p53wx7.html
A piss take on McKenzie from Mark Kenny.
https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6604253/shootin-star-the-adventures-of-senator-bridget-mckenzie/?cs=14258
Border security expert John Coyne says that Australia will pay for Morrison’s about-face on the $1000 Wuhan co-payment.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/australia-will-pay-for-pm-s-about-face-on-1000-wuhan-co-payment-20200202-p53wz9.html
Former South Australian premier John Olsen has received a personal recommendation from Morrison to become the new federal president of the Liberal Party.
https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6610083/pm-backs-former-sa-premier-for-libs-role/?cs=14231&utm_source=website&utm_medium=home&utm_campaign=latestnews
The temporary ban on travellers entering Australia from mainland China led to some families being split at Sydney Airport on Sunday.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/very-confused-tired-families-split-as-travel-ban-prompts-airport-chaos-20200202-p53x02.html
Anna Patty reports that the Business Council of Australia has warned that the termination of a wages agreement for McDonald’s staff will leave workers and the business worse-off.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/workplace/termination-of-mcdonald-s-eba-bad-for-workers-and-business-20200202-p53wzv.html
Scott Morrison is stuck in a time warp – more gas is not the answer declares Simon Holmes à Court.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/feb/01/scott-morrison-is-stuck-in-a-time-warp-more-gas-is-not-the-answer
ASIC revealed widespread problems with banks charging fees for no services in 2016. It was met with excuses and lies. It took a royal commission to bring accountability and public confessions, writes Pamela Williams.
https://www.afr.com/companies/financial-services/why-hayne-succeeded-where-asic-was-overlooked-20200202-p53wyg
From Beijing Lucy Kuo reports that footage of government officials in Wuhan appearing to take face masks intended for health workers battling the highly infectious coronavirus has fuelled a growing wave of anger over how Chinese authorities have handled the outbreak.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/feb/02/shameless-outrage-china-coronavirus-outbreak-mask
Katharine Murphy outlines how today a group of more than 200 scientists will urge returning parliamentarians to urgently reduce Australia’s total greenhouse gas emissions, and work diplomatically to achieve coordinated global climate action, after a catastrophic summer of fires.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/feb/03/scientists-call-on-mps-to-urgently-reduce-australias-emissions-amid-bushfire-crisis
Clean energy innovation delivers bang for buck. So why won’t the government fund it asks the Australia Institute’s Don Cass.
https://thenewdaily.com.au/life/science/2020/02/02/arena-clean-energy-australia/
There are danger signs here for CIMIC (formerly Leighton Holdings) as it is facing fresh claims over its financial reporting, amid accusations it is exploiting accounting rules and using controversial “reverse factoring” techniques to hide weak cashflows and double count profits.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/more-skeletons-in-the-closet-cimic-under-fire-over-use-of-reverse-factoring-20200202-p53wzd.html
Thousands of native fish have died in a series of ongoing mass death events at more than 20 different locations across the Murray-Darling Basin and in coastal areas of New South Wales in the past two weeks.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/feb/02/murray-darling-thousands-of-fish-have-died-in-nsw-in-past-two-weeks
The Trump administration says in a court filing that two dozen emails revealing details of President Donald Trump’s decision-making regarding withholding military assistance to Ukraine, which goes to the heart of his impeachment, are protected from a lawsuit under “presidential privilege”.
https://www.smh.com.au/world/north-america/trump-emails-that-could-shine-light-on-impeachment-case-remain-hidden-20200202-p53x16.html
The Guardian editorialises that in looking the other way over the president’s corruption and lawbreaking, the Republican party has offered up its soul in exchange for power.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/feb/02/the-guardian-view-on-trumps-impeachment-trial-the-perils-of-outrageous-immunity
Robert Reich explains how Democrats share the blame for the rise of Donald Trump.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/feb/01/donald-trump-impeachment-trial-state-of-the-union
Emmanuel Macron is as determined as ever to push through changes to France’s revered pension system.
https://www.smh.com.au/world/europe/macron-still-standing-as-protests-and-strikes-wind-down-in-france-20200203-p53x3e.html
John Pesutto explains how safe Australia depends on a stable region.
https://www.smh.com.au/world/oceania/a-safe-australia-depends-on-a-stable-region-20200131-p53wjl.html
Cartoon Corner
David Rowe





John Shakespeare
Matt Golding
David Pope
Leak supports Trump – of course.
https://cdn.newsapi.com.au/image/v1/1df7c38844299ef95e98c43fa7738c0a?width=1024
From the US
The BeetRooter is baaaaaack…
“Barnaby Joyce says he will challenge Michael McCormack for the leadership of the Nationals if there is a spill.
Sky News host Laura Jayes said Mr Joyce had confirmed to her he would stand if both position for the deputy leadership and the leadership of the Nationals were put to a vote.
The Nationals leadership has been thrown into question after Bridget McKenzie resigned on Sunday as deputy leader over the sports rorts scandal.
Nationals MPs have approached Mr Joyce, who resigned as deputy prime minister and leader in February 2018, to challenge the incumbent, The Australian reported on Monday.
Nationals MPs will gather in Canberra on Tuesday ahead of federal parliament resuming for the year to vote on a new deputy leader.“
And people wonder why Bernie and his bro’s are considered rats in the ranks…
Well, if Joyce returns, if he tries the old ‘Carp!’ line, Labor should just bellow back, ‘Pork!’
sprocket_
It was reported yesterday that at a rally for Sanders last weekend, supporters loudly booed when Hillary Clinton’s name was mentioned.
I still think Sanders’ conections to Russia haven’t been explored enough.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/pm-given-incorrect-advice-causing-backflip-on-1000-charge-for-australians-fleeing-wuhan-20200202-p53wx4.html
Yeps somebody done somebody wrong ♫♫♪
♫ It’s lonely out ♪ tonight
♪ And the feelin’ just ♫ got right for a brand ♫ new love ♪ song
♫ Somebody done ♫ somebody wrong ♪ song
♪ Hey, wontcha play ♫ another somebody ♪ done somebody wrong ♪ song
Mr. Dutton has put the whole “somebody forced the Gummint Saga into dropping the collective daks in public” thereby revealing the Gummint shortcomings -into proper perspective – with
I knew it ❗ I suspect the duty astrologer has been hitting the turps again. What has happened is that the outing of Ms Palszczuk as the culprit behind this complete empathy free effup should have been announced very clearly and very often and the $1000 dollar business carefully hidden.
I understand that representations to the Gummint by sporting organisations for increased Olympic funding has been knocked back and therefore the Gummint “Backflip Team” is having to be privately funded – prolly through applications for change room grants.
Very interesting observation by Sean Kelly:
https://www.smh.com.au/national/where-morrison-government-s-true-achilles-heel-lies-20200202-p53wx7.html
So, Morrison was full of hot air about Gas?
The Age has the findings of an IPSOS focus group, not good for SFM.
https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/voters-turn-on-pm-over-pathetic-response-to-bushfire-crisis-20200202-p53wy9.html
Good morning.
Pleasant day so far
Newcastle 24℃ – Projected top of 29℃
Maybe thunderstorms. Wind SW 7KPH
Thanks BK for the “Dawn Patrol” now with additional items from “The Australian” to expand our horizons.
P.S. Dreadful day yesterday – top temperature said to be 39℃ but feels like 44℃ – my failing refrigerator may have announced that I need to get a new store bought fridge. Dammit ❗
China refused to acknowledge the seriousness of the virus, leading the WHO to do the same, and in turn the rest of the world was slow to act.
https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/world/2020/02/03/coronavirus-china-cover-up/?utm_source=Adestra&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Morning%20News%20-%2020200203
E. G. Theodore @ #10 Sunday, February 2nd, 2020 – 10:13 pm
True, however medical familiarity with inevitable death does provide a somewhat different perspective…
“We haven’t exactly had a long line of great orators as PM.”
***
Rudd is easily the best on that list in that respect.
PuffyTMD @ #49 Monday, February 3rd, 2020 – 2:39 am
You just have to hope that, as the oldies die off, the IQ of the nation rises a little.
“All the effort to spin the blame for the fires to the Greens has back-fired.
Such a relief that such nonsense didn’t really shift voters
Those gullible enough to believe it weren’t going to vote Green.”
***
This. We Greens weren’t worried that the scare campaign would hurt us. Only the far right believe such nonsense and they already loathe us anyway.
Bellwether
A ‘cunning plan’ you have. 20 years ago it was the same ‘plan’ we were told would see the demise of Howard’s Liberals and in particular Poorlene’s One Nation . Still waiting waiting waiting for it to ‘work’.
Bellwether
As an older person, I strongly object to your ageist attitude. It would be more useful for the middle aged leaders of the conservatives to disappear.
Amusing to see that the Newspoll result is up the top of The Age website, yet the news.com.au website has no mention of their own poll.
Hang on, I found a link mentioning it in very small print under the Australian Banner.
“It was reported yesterday that at a rally for Sanders last weekend, supporters loudly booed when Hillary Clinton’s name was mentioned.”
***
With good reason. What do you expect when she came out and publicly attacked Sanders and made the absurd claim that nobody likes him?
Besides, right wingers like Clinton aren’t likely to get a warm cheer from the true left.
A0,
The article on The Age is about an AGE/SMH IPSOS focus group, not Newspoll.
Firefox
WTF was Hilary “nobody likes Bernie” Clinton doing at his rally anyway ?
It seems that Bridget was beavering away at assisting rural communities when we thought all she did was to fly from one sports venue to another.
“And people wonder why Bernie and his bro’s are considered rats in the ranks…”
***
In the documentary, [Clinton] rips into Mr. Sanders and declines to say if she would endorse him and campaign on his behalf if he were to win the Democratic nomination.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/21/us/politics/hillary-clinton-bernie-sanders.html
Yesterday:
***
“ You just have to hope that, as the oldies die off, the IQ of the nation rises a little.”
Builders and Bommers have both been phoning it in since the end of the Cold War. I’ve just finished watching ‘The Loudest Voice’ and perhaps the most telling line that Russell Crowe as Roger Ailes said regarding the ‘other’ 50% of the population not serviced by ‘the liberal media’ was ‘People don’t want to be informed, they want to feel informed’. Fox News – just like centre-right parties across the Murdochsphere – Dominates the over 50s market. Especially amongst Anglos.
Lizzie – you may strongly object to Bellwether’s post all you want. Doesn’t make it any less true: without the greedy, vindictive and fact resistant attitudes of your generation, carefully cultivated by the dark arts of marketing types of all ages, Bush II, Cameron, Abbott, ScoMo, BoJo and all the other pirates would never have seen the light of day.
These days the attitudes of Boomers and Builders have degenerated further than the time that Ailes made his infamous remark in the 1990s. These days they don’t even want to feel informed: they want to be vindicated for every greedy and shortsighted bad decision they have made over the past 30 years.
I’ll give you this though: my generation – GenX has proven itself completely feckless as a counterbalance to Boomerism. Witness the complete inability of ANY GenX candidate to cut through in the Democratic Primary race. Maybe Prot0-Millenials will ultimately prove more effective, but we are a whiles away from that point I fear. Bellwether is right: more oldies need to die off before the generations following the Bommers can take centre stage.
Andrew_Earlwood
Unfortunately you’re hitting the wrong target. I’m not a Boomer, thank god. They’re the privileged post-war generation whose parents worked hard to provide the things they’d missed out on themselves.
PuffyTMD – calling voters stupid, wow your attitude will definitely win the next election for Labor. Are you sure you don’t work in Chris Bowen’s office ?
I hope you don’t think Gen Selfie are going to boost the IQ of the nation…
Andrew_Earlwood
When ‘your’ generation gets to be oldsters please do not be surprised to find that they are no different to all the previous generations. As I said, 20 years ago all was to be good as the 64+ demographic shuffled off. In 20 years you will hear the same bitching about the greedy oldies.
It sounds as if Ezra Klein’s latest book “Why We’re Polarized” has the Labor dilemma in a nutshell.
It talks about why the democrats in the US are losing the “war” against blatant conservatism … but just from what he recently said on CNN — it’s the same here.
Huzzah ❗
We have standards. Hand up all those who knew and kept silent. 😇
Bluebottle
Ah yes, it is to be a golden age where instagram ‘influencers’ lead us into paradise 🙂
I’d agree with this judgement. Parenthood was never Barnaby’s goal.
“ When ‘your’ generation gets to be oldsters please do not be surprised to find that they are no different to all the previous generations. As I said, 20 years ago all was to be good as the 64+ demographic shuffled off. In 20 years you will hear the same bitching about the greedy oldies.”
It is already happening to a certain degree. I just hope that ‘we’ wont end up as thick headed and greedy-stupid-entitled as Boomers. But if that hope proves false, I’ll settle for an oldies brigade that isn’t as demographically dominant as the undead Builder and Boomer cohorts currently are.
Here’s an idea: tell the young “firebrands” who are always whingeing about Old Farts to get off their Xboxes and Instagram for long enough to actually, y’know, VOTE, instead of blaming everyone else for their troubles.
That’s if we’re going to start condemning whole demographics, of course.
Live shot of McCormack’s press conference right now…
There has never been such a self-entitled, self-absorbed generation as the Boomers IMO.
LongMemory82 @ #85 Monday, February 3rd, 2020 – 8:43 am
Time has shown that the small proportion of the voting public that dragged the LNP across the line nine months got it terribly wrong. To refer to them as idiots is not too wide of the mark. For anyone who took even the most cursory interest in politics in the six months lead-up to the election it was absolutely crystal clear that this was a government that had run it’s meandering course and was in terminal decline. Those within with anything more than a smattering of brain cells were jumping ship.
Wow! This labelling is getting out of hand. Before the Bernard Salts of social demography were invented, we were all just ‘people’.
Honestly, the own goals are just ridiculous!
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2020/iowa-caucuses-02-02?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage#john-kerry-president-joe-biden
KayJay @ #89 Monday, February 3rd, 2020 – 8:49 am
Of course we do – it’s called the flag. Surely that’s the sole meaning.
A war flag, also known as a military flag, battle flag, or standard,[1] is a variant of a national flag for use by a country’s military forces when on land
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_flag
Tom
Monday, February 3rd, 2020 – 9:02 am
Comment #97
I stood to attention and saluted while reading your post. 😍
Thank you. 🌏 There we are. 😎