A lot of news at the moment concerning matters pertinent to this blog, with Christian Porter announcing yesterday he will not contest the election, Greg Hunt universally expected to follow suit with today’s last parliamentary sitting day of the year, and voter identification legislation scuttled after a deal between government and opposition.
• Annabel Hennessy of The West Australian reports a nominee has already come forward for Liberal preselection in Christian Porter’s loseable northern Perth seat of Pearce: Miquela Riley, a former naval officer and current PwC Australia manager who performed a thankless task as the party’s candidate for Fremantle at the March state election. Other potential nominees identified are Libby Lyons, former director of the Australian Government’s Workplace Gender Equality Agency, and Alyssa Hayden, who held the state seat of Darling Range from 2018 until her defeat in March and was earlier in the Legislative Council from 2009 to 2017.
• The most widely named successor to Greg Hunt as Liberal candidate for the Victorian seat of Flinders is Zoe McKenzie, an NBN Co director and former chief-of-staff to Abbott-Turnbull government Trade Minister Andrew Robb. The Age reports other potential starters are Mark Brudenell, chief-of-staff at Latitude Financial and former adviser to Malcolm Turnbull as both Communications Minister and Prime Minister, and Simon Breheny, former Institute of Public Affairs policy director.
• A deal between government and opposition has resulted in the abandonment of plans to introduce voter identification at the coming election. In exchange, Labor has agreed to support a bill that will halve the expenditure threshold at which third parties will have to file disclosure returns, over the objections of critics who argue the associated red tape will discourage charities from political campaigning. It appeared unlikely the voter identification bill would have gained the required votes in the Senate, with Jacqui Lambie having announced yesterday she would vote against it.
• Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats are pursuing a High Court action against recently enacted legislation that will prevent parties other than the main ones having words like Liberal and Labor in their name. Absent a favourable outcome, this will presumably result in formal challenges against the Liberal Democrats and the New Liberals, the latter of whom have withdrawn their application to change their name simply to TNL.
Hammerhead says:
Thursday, December 2, 2021 at 8:14 am
Having been born and bred in the Northern Beaches and living in the adjacent federal seat of Mackellar, I can tell you that Zali is very popular. The overarching factors amongst the good burgers of God’s country are climate change and a federal ICAC so I would love for the Liberal party to select Gladys. It would guarantee a Zali re-election albeit with a slightly reduced majority.
————
Thanks Hammerhead – good to have a local perspective
Victoria @ #NaN Thursday, December 2nd, 2021 – 9:00 am
Honestly, Vic, America has been put into such a perverse place since the presidency of Donald Trump, that I’m not even sure that that will kill Trump’s hopes to run again in 2024, or his ability to win.
In fact, there’s probably plenty of Trump female supporters who are wishing today that they were that 14 year old girl back then.
The Voices of and similar independents are running on three things. Politicians that respect women, aren’t corrupt and want action on climate change. That message is resounding with voters, in certain seats.
Therefore, there are three things the Liberals can do, to guarantee they don’t win a seat against a Voices candidate. Preselect someone that disrespects women, has an adverse finding against them on corruption, or doesn’t want action on climate change.
If they actually wanted Gladys to run, they would be having this conversation with her privately, rather than through the media.
They are proposing Gladys, in order to flush out a Liberal candidate sufficiently outraged by the idea that they put their hand up for preselection to stop her. That candidate is the only one that has a chance to counter Zali’s message.
I suspect Gladys has been told that if she plays along, they’ll give her an overpaid role on some gov corporation.
max @ #NaN Thursday, December 2nd, 2021 – 9:07 am
It’s Time 2.0
Higgins and Tame on RN radio this morning saying that Morrison’s treatment of Archer shows he has learnt nothing from the last few months and that it was a typical example of coercive control.
Of course, if he had learnt something, there was no need to wait until the report to do something about it.
Alex Dore is the only other candidate I’ve seen suggested will run in Warringah. Former Young Liberal President, son of Chris Dore of Murdoch tabloid editor infamy, and guy who presided over the dinner at which Alan Jones spoke about throwing the first female Prime Minister of Australia out to sea in a chaff bag.
I think some more flushing needs to be done.
UK Cartoons:
Hammerhead,
You could add, no oil or gas rigs off the Northern and Central Coast beaches. It’s a big deal up here.
Independents (or non-major party members more generally) seem to be pretty hard to defeat once they are in place. Keryn Phelps in Wentworth was an exception, but that was probably because she didn’t get time to establish herself. We have many examples of long-standing independents and minor party members in the House of Representatives and State lower houses. The major party that thinks it “owns” an indendendent/non-major seat normally reclaims it when the member resigns or retires (Indi being an exception).
Miquela Riley, who appears to be the front runner to stand for the Liberals in Pearce, lives in the Fremantle region.
She is said in one news report to have the support of “western suburbs Liberals”.
Will that be a problem for preselectors in outer northern suburban Pearce?
“Can do capitalism” is once against playing out before our eyes
The vehicle for individuals investing into “can do capitalism” is thru Equity Markets, where we are all invested courtesy of our superannuation contributions
And “can do capitalism” is again running for cover – this time, once again, from a public health issue of concern
Joining sub prime lending and the other catalysts which have resulted in Equity Market falls over time
So where is government?
Just standing by saying “this is capitalism, there are ebbs and flows”?
I note the 10 Year Bond Yield is quoted at 1.6%, so price bid up and yield down
My personal view is that what we see currently is transitory – that Markets are long term and science will once again set the parameters for economic recovery by developing a vaccine variant (if needed).
We still have the world population – it is just that the ability to go about your business is (or may be) again disrupted ahead of science (if again needed)
But it does go to show the frailty of “can do capitalism”, reliant on optimum conditions free of perceived disruption from events which have seen Stock Market reversals over history
And the reason we need government
Not just outsourcing to capitalism
Indicative of what we see of “government” today is the Federal treasurer presenting on internal Liberal Party matters
Not on National and international events and government in the wake of those events, events which impact on and concern all of us
We do not give a fuck about the Liberal Party
Today’s the 49th anniversary of Gough’s election as PM. Hopefully there will be a progressive government in Canberra this time next year for the celebration of the 5oth.
Time flies. Still remember the day. My last Uni exam the day before. Voted for the first time, shortly after polls opened. Naturally for the young local member, Paul Keating. Then it off to Cronulla Beach (by train) with friends. Watched the coverage of the vote that evening with family. At the end of the evening it seemed like a landslide, although postals whittled away the lead over coming days, it ended up a comfortable win.
Is there a credible source for that Trump/Epstein story?
Steve777 @ #61 Thursday, December 2nd, 2021 – 9:34 am
Watched Don’s Party last night for the umpteenth time.
Set on the eave of the ’69 election ….with the best bit still to come.
Will be another screening next March/May
Mundo is tragic.
Omicorn was one of the most neglected Greek letters until now because it looks too much like a zero. It was hard every used in Maths or Sciences.
The next greek letter is Pi….. mmmmm Pi.
I expect the next COVID variant is approximately 3.14159…… more dangerous.
Re C@t @ 9:09
”Witness going under pseudonym “Jane” testifies at Ghislaine Maxwell trial that Jeffrey Epstein drove her to Mar-A-Lago to meet Donald Trump when she was just 14-years-old.”
Here is a link: https://www.ft.com/content/66e62edc-6125-4f59-8a04-ca975aeb3507
It’s in a report in the Financial Times of witness testimony in the criminal trial of Ghislaine Maxwell.
Re INDEPENDENTS
Andrew Wilkie is well established in Clark Tasmania as an independent as is Rebecca Sharkie in Mayo SA. She would win the seat on her own even if her ex Xenephon party collapsed. Haines has her ‘voice of ‘supporters, she isn’t going anywhere in Indi. Successful independents pop up in different seats, it different circumstances and at different times.
It is, therefore, hard to get a blanket statement grip on where all this heading, but we can note that apart from Wilkie in Tasmania, Indys’ recently at least have all been born out of challenges in Coalition held seats.
There are five Coalition seats in NSW and two in Victoria which are being target ed by climate change advocates through financial support to Independent Candidates
These 7 seats are –
9.3 North Sydney [NSW]
9.9 Hughes [NSW]
9.9 Wentworth [NSW]
13.0 Hume [NSW]>
13.3 Mackellar [NSW]
5.7 Flinders [VIC]
7.8 Goldstein [VIC]
I don’t see any of these independent campaigns winning the seat but they will set a cat amongst the pigeons and piss off Coalition incumbents as we have already seen in Tim Wilson’s moaning about it in his seat. As for Warringah, I would not even try to guess what is going to happen there.
And just to add, science has played its part
What has failed is distribution
So government and “can do capitalism” have failed the international community – despite WHO advices
Because government and capital are the distribution chain
Not science
https://www.news.com.au/national/politics/greens-senator-lidia-thorpe-accused-of-legs-shut-gibe-at-liberal-colleague/news-story/0c9d7e078ab0cd95a2b266b06953a4f0
The Greens have to deal with this loose cannon before she does more harm than good to her party.
Zoomster,
That’s your argument, is it? Four words? Such economy.
It seems that my defending Porter’s (and by extension everybody else’s, including yours) right to due process qualifies for the “We all know why she killed herself, and it was obviously over Porter” treatment.
You sound so sure you know the entire facts of the Porter matter from start to finish. But you only know what you’ve read in the papers, on-line and seen on television, most of which is speculation and gossip that can never be tested properly.
But with your fine forensic mind you’ve done what no police inspector over a year of interviews, no judge or jury or any other kind of forum that follows the rules of evidence could do: found Porter so obviously guilty, not just of rape, but of virtual manslaughter as well, that your entire argument amounts to four words of disbelief that anyone could think otherwise, or defend Porter’s right to due process.
I am not defending Porter the man. I don’t like him myself. I’m not particularly disagreeing with your line of reasoning, either.
But even arseholes like Porter have a right to due process, and to have their case assessed in an established court, by an established process, especially as regards serious felony matters, such as rape. If creeps can’t claim a right to due process, then none of us can claim it.
Porter’s problem was that he reverted to type – the well-connected, smartarse barrister – got cocky and tried a few legal tricks and gambits to bring the ABC to heel.
He succeeded only in that the ABC admitted that their article and the 4 Corners episode effectively did NOT establish Porter’s guilt, even moral guilt, in that it presented only one side of the case: the allegation. On the other hand, the story stayed in place.
The rest of the outcome for Porter was a near total failure. He first tried to use a barrister who was held to have a conflict of interest. Costs associated with unsuccessfully arguing this side issue cost Porter a fortune, which made it impossible for him to fund further proceedings.
These outlays also led him to bend the political donation rules via a legal artifice used to hide the identity of donors. He’d already resigned as Attorney-General, as the System dictated. After the blind trust rort he had to resign the ministry altogether.
When the Privileges Committee damned him with a merely a technical exoneration, the game was up, and he decided to leave politics.
All in all it was a pretty fitting result for such a nasty operator, and one jot far off what Porter’s critics were clamouring for: hiscexit from high office and from parliament. The System he tried to use against his accusers worked… against him. His gambits came back to bite him on the arse so badly that he had to jump the fence and flee the scene.
It was also a good result for the justice system, which wasn’t abused by way of creating special tribunals or whatever, to satisfy bloggers, lefty journos or the baying on-line Twitter crowd, or by bastardizing the Workplace OH&S environment with a pointless investigation that could make no findings.
Once quick and dirty precedents are established just to handle one-off situations they have a habit of sticking around to later devour the innocent and the weak, or the simply inconvenient.
One day you might need the System, Zoomster. But first it has to apply equally to everyone, both the good and the bad.
Porter and Hunt are gone…. resolve this anagram:
ratsshiptheabandoningthearesinking
The morning after Whitlams win I was in the kitchen at the farm of my future in-laws.
I was gobsmacked when the lady of the house declared the farm might as well be sold “because Labor will nationalise the farms”.
The Red Peril was still a thing in some minds in rural WA back then.
My future brother in law was in one of the last groups of national servicemen and was stationed in Victoria.
He told me later that some of his fellows who lived in NSW and Victoria and had transport went home on the Sunday.
He reported for work on the Monday and his NCO asked “what are you doing here? Why don’t you fuck off like the rest of them.”
I can’t recall how long it took him to get home, probably about a week.
C@t
Trump is not a Republican. He is a wanna be authoritarian,
The Republican Party has been on a long term journey of becoming an authoritarian party.
They are now in the stage of celebrating violence to get support for them.
I am confident that it will not be successful at the mid terms or 2024.
Trump will be drowning in so much muck. He will not run in 2024.
In fact, his health will also play a part in his downfall.
It isn’t going to be a pretty spectacle.
The “Voice for” might not win any seats but they will force the Liberal to expend resources and cash on seats they normally would not have. The amount that spent saving Joshie Boy in Kooyong last time was massive, all for a “safe” seat.
B.S. Fairman
Someone who can reduce Hollie Hughes to tears has real fighting talent – and not in a good way.
It appears certain “ players “ in the MSM are ramping up the theme that the religious discrimination legislation is a full on Morrison inspired wedge for labor. I beg to differ.
In his haste to launch this so called wedge and bring on a vote in the HOR today Morrison has agreed to a number of amendments and promises to get a number of “ moderates “ onside. This may well be the case. But, it will be interesting to see if these concessions get a few conservatives in the coalition offside and perhaps ignite a bit of noise from the right. Christian soldiers and all that.
What said concessions givith on one flank may well taketh (?) away on another flank. We shall see especially if a few of the Christian lobby groups get the shits.
Meanwhile, if the legislation does come to a vote in the HOR today, labor can simply wave it through, defuse any opportunity for Morrison and say their final position will be determined by the outcome of the already established committee enquiry due to report back in February. The main game will commence then and only if the Parliament resumes.
A Morrison own goal more than a wedge perhaps ?
We shall see.
B.S. Fairman says:
Thursday, December 2, 2021 at 9:57 am
The “Voice for” might not win any seats but they will force the Liberal to expend resources and cash on seats they normally would not have.
————————-
In a finely balanced House of Reps (which has mostly been the case in recent Parliamentary terms) flipping even one seat can have outsize effects.
I’m seeing on twitter that the former staffer of Alan Tudge is holding a press conference at Parliament House.
If the religious discrimination legislation was a wedge play it was an outdate wedge play. Society has very rapidly move on from where it was even just a decade ago and certainly where it was 30 year ago.
”
sprocket_says:
Thursday, December 2, 2021 at 7:17 am
Having some family ties in Warringah, and knowing the area quite well – in my opinion any high profile Liberal candidate will romp in. Steggal or no Steggal.
The area, like the entitled North Shore, Eastern Suburbs and emerging Sutherland Shire and Hills regions are Liberal heartland. Stacked with business owners, executives, wealthy home owners and cashed up tradies. And happy clappers thanking God for their prosperity.
You would have to be a complete doofus like Tony Abbott to lose Warringah
”
He behaved like a doofus because he must have thought he couldn’t lose in Warringah.
Come to think of it, 2 Liberal party leaders ( Howard and Abbott), whole were leaders of 2 Consecutive LNP governments were defeated in their electorates before stop being MPs and the Liberal candidate from the electorate of Liberal PM of 3rd consecutive LNP government was defeated after that Liberal PM resigned from Parliament.
Other than Scullin and electorate of Bob Hawke, Wills, I cannot think of it happening to any other ALP leader.
Okay I found her statement
https://www.news.com.au/national/politics/rachelle-miller-calls-for-action-against-alan-tudge-after-affair-in-bombshell-parliament-statement/news-story/e9302769d15e121862546f75080e4afc
“Labor has agreed to support a bill that will halve the expenditure threshold at which third parties will have to file disclosure returns”..
This will affect IPA too: “The IPA’s registered charity is called Trustee For Institute Of Public Affairs Research Trust”…. But expect IPA to find a way to show that their campaigning is “non political”…. Well, the same will do the other charities!!!
13
8
55
Bridget Rollason
@bridgerollo
·
1h
Health Minister
@MartinFoleyMP
says he wouldn’t be surprised if omicron was already circulating in Victoria given the situation in New South Wales. But still no official cases here
@abcmelbourne
#springst
In some positive news in Victoria
Bridget Rollason
@bridgerollo
·
27m
Premier
@DanielAndrewsMP
marking the start of construction on a new 22-bed acute mental health facility at the Royal Melbourne Hospital. The Royal Commission recommended 135 more mental health beds across the state.
@abcmelbourne
#springst
7 seats.
If Labor and the greens run dead or don’t run a candidate and preference the Teals I think the Teals will win a good slice. We could easily have more Teals (who are really moderate Liberals) than Greens in the Lower house.
It is going to be an interesting election. How will Labor react to a strategic opportunity? How will the Greens and Liberals react to what could be a threat to the very existence of their parties?
Just as the Porter disaster is quietly closed down, another senior Liberal reprises the Government’s “women problem”…..evidently it’s not so much of a “men problem..”
——————————————-
‘A former media adviser to cabinet minister Alan Tudge has described their affair as emotionally abusive and on one occasion physically abusive.
Rachelle Miller released a statement before addressing media in Parliament House on Thursday, saying she wanted to tell more of her story, which first became public in an ABC Four Corners program a year ago. She said she’s speaking out again in part because she wants the nation’s leaders to implement in full the recommendations from a review of parliamentary workplace culture.’
https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/former-alan-tudge-media-adviser-alleges-their-affair-was-abusive-20211202-p59e4g.html
Boerwar says:
Thursday, December 2, 2021 at 8:49 am
Yes!
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/01/marcus-lamb-covid-19-daystar-christian-tv-network-dies
Victoria says:
Thursday, December 2, 2021 at 8:56 am
Boerwar
There has been a few of this Christian leaders and radio hosts who have succumbed to covid. Karma does work sometimes.
_________________
Celebrating the death of people because they have a different ideology. What a wonderful contribution to political speech you have provided.
lizzie says:
Thursday, December 2, 2021 at 9:59 am
B.S. Fairman
Someone who can reduce Hollie Hughes to tears has real fighting talent – and not in a good way.
_______________________________________
At least she apologised unreservedly. That said, it was an incredibly appalling thing to be said to a woman, whatever the circumstances.
”
Politicians must be open about their progress – or the lack of it – on dealing with sexual harassment and bullying in Parliament otherwise nothing will change, former sex discrimination commissioner and senior Liberal figure Pru Goward has warned.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/transparency-is-vital-to-ending-sexual-harassment-in-parliament-goward-20211201-p59dol.html
”
What a sad situation that a person who believes in harnessed Proles was our Sex Discrimination Commissioner. She probably is “speaking out” on this topic because Liberal women were affected.
nath says:
Thursday, December 2, 2021 at 10:10 am
Boerwar says:
Thursday, December 2, 2021 at 8:49 am
Yes!
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/01/marcus-lamb-covid-19-daystar-christian-tv-network-dies
Victoria says:
Thursday, December 2, 2021 at 8:56 am
Boerwar
There has been a few of this Christian leaders and radio hosts who have succumbed to covid. Karma does work sometimes.
_________________
Celebrating the death of people because they have a different ideology. What a wonderful contribution to political speech you have provided.
=============================
They are selfish vectors who kill other people by infecting them. Nothing better than plague rats.
Boerwar
I usually describe them as plaguers. But plague rats will do too!
It appears Morrison is now in the “ wack a mole “ stage of government as the political year edges to a end.
Boerwar says:
Thursday, December 2, 2021 at 10:18 am
They are selfish vectors who kill other people by infecting them. Nothing better than plague rats.
____________
Yes I can see that the sancitity of life is very important to you.
Kelly certainly received a good send-off this morning. Mornings won’t be the same without her but Karvelas will be more than a capable replacement.
_____________________________________________
As for Warringah, if Berejyklian were to stand and defeat Steggall, which I think she would, it would mean diddly squat to Labor, the latter being more of less an independent in name only, the seat being Tory heartland.
_____________________________________________
It’s great that Porter is going. I suspect they’ll be more Tory resignations before the election, particularly if polling continues to look dire.
Ven @ #88 Thursday, December 2nd, 2021 – 10:12 am
—
Lets hope the voters, men and women, in Tudge’s seat of Aston take a chunk of his 10% 2PP margin at the election. What a horrible man he turned out to be if what his staffer said is legitimate.
Each week is a week closer to the federal election being called
Jeez, the sounds coming form the US Supreme Court are very grim indeed.
B.S. Fairman @ #68 Thursday, December 2nd, 2021 – 6:52 am
I wonder when the defence of Thorpe’s comments will start here?
Also it will be interesting to hear SHY’s thoughts on the matter.
The current house of reps seats
Labor 68 seats
Liberal/QLD LP 60 seats
National / QLD NP 16 seats
Greens 1 seat
Ind/minor Parties 6 seats
”
Stuartsays:
Thursday, December 2, 2021 at 8:29 am
There has been plenty of reference on the part of Josh Frydenberg this morning about his friendship with Greg Hunt. This friendship is apparently so deep that he and Greg are reciprocal godfathers to their respective children. Although I know very little about religious ritual, this seems to me to pose a theological question.
This question is how is it that the church of Hunt’s faith allows someone whose religious beliefs preclude the acceptance of Jesus Christ to take on the role of a godfather? Also, how does the opposite work in the synagogue? Or, have these two religions now become so liberal that anybody can make the required commitments to be deemed a godfather?
”
Can we safely say that the Jewish community in Australia represent the Likud party idealogy and not its majority community views in USA?