The diversion of the South Australian election caused this site to take its eye off the ball during a highly eventful period for federal preselections, which it now endeavours to make good. We start in Victoria, where Labor’s process for the Senate is finally coming to a head. In common with the rest of Labor’s Victorian preselections, the matter has been in the hands of the party’s national executive, which asserted control in response to the branch-stacking scandal surrounding Victorian MLC Adem Somyurek. An already fraught situation was gravely complicated by the sudden death of Kimberley Kitching a fortnight ago, whose hold on the Right-mandated position at the top end of the ticket has since been a matter of fierce dispute.
• Kitching’s vacancy will be filled by Jana Stewart, a Muthi Muthi and Wamba Wamba woman and until recently the deputy secretary at the Victorian Department of Justice, who had previously been lined up to run in the safe seat of Pascoe Vale at the Victorian state election in November. Stewart will serve out the remaining months of Kitching’s term and take the one of the two seemingly unloseable positions on the Senate ticket, in an order to be determined. Tom Minear of the Herald Sun reported Stewart had backing from the Transport Workers Union and Shop Distributive and Allied Employees Association, the chief Right faction parties to a pact with the Socialist Left that has frozen out the Right forces associated with Bill Shorten. The Shorten forces reportedly favoured Natalie Hutchins, the state Corrections Minister and member for Sydenham. Minear further reported that Fiona McLeod, a barrister who performed creditably as the candidate for Higgins in 2019, was “another name in the mix”.
• Following Kim Carr’s retirement announcement on Sunday, the Left-mandated position at the top of the ticket will be filled by Linda White, retired former assistant national secretary of the Australian Services Union. Carr cited health concerns in bringing down the curtain on a Senate career going back to 1993, but it was widely expected he would lose preselection in any case, most likely to White. There were widespread earlier reports that the position was also being pursued by Ryan Batchelor, executive director of the McKell Institute, but both Stewart and White have in fact emerged unopposed.
• A contest has also been avoided in the south-eastern Melbourne seat of Holt, to be vacated with the retirement of Anthony Byrne, with Shop Distributive and Allied Employees Association organiser Cassandra Fernando emerging as the sole nominee. The seat will thus remain with the Right, despite what Tom Minear of the Herald Sun described as “a small push from the Left to claim the seat”. The faction’s favoured nominee appeared to be Jo Briskey, political co-ordinator of the United Workers Union.
In New South Wales, the Liberal Party’s long-delayed preselections for Warringah, Hughes, Parramatta and Eden-Monaro and Greenway are to be determined by a three-person committee consisting of Scott Morrison, Dominic Perrottet and state party president Christine McDiven, following an intervention by the party’s federal executive. Here too legal action is afoot, with earlier federal executive intervention being contested in the New South Wales Supreme Court by conservative activist Matt Camenzuli. The party’s conservative forces stand to benefit from party reforms to increase the power and the rank and file, which Scott Morrison and his centre-right factional ally Alex Hawke have been seeking to circumvent.
• The intervention entails the cancellation of a rank-and-file ballot to choose a candidate for Hughes, held by the once Liberal and now United Australia Party member Craig Kelly. Where previously it was thought an intervention would rubber-stamp the preselection of Alex Dore, a management consultant who lives in Manly, Murray Trembath of the St George & Sutherland Shire Leader reports there is “now speculation war widow Gwen Cherne, who was the inaugural Veteran Family Advocate Commissioner on the Repatriation Commission, is being considered”. The acknowledged front-runners for the now-cancelled rank-and-file ballot were state Holsworthy MP Melanie Gibbons and local lawyer Jenny Ware.
• Anne Davies of The Guardian reports that David Elliott, state Transport Minister and centre-right factional ally of Scott Morrison, is considering putting his name forward in Parramatta or Greenway. Elliott’s federal ambitions may be complicated by his recent efforts as minister, which placed him at the centre of a shutdown of Sydney’s public transport network last month.
• One rank-and-file ballot that was allowed to proceed was that to replace John Alexander in Bennelong, which was won by Simon Kennedy, a partner at consulting firm McKinsey. Anne Davies of The Guardian reports that Kennedy, a factional conservative, emerged an unexpected winner in a rank-and-file ballot over moderate-aligned Gisele Kapterian, former chief-of-staff to Michaelia Cash, by 148 votes to 95.
• A weekend meeting of the party’s state council determined that incumbents Marise Payne and Jim Molan will respectively fill the first and third positions on the Coalition Senate ticket, the second being mandated to the Nationals. This amounts to defeat for the third incumbent, Connie Fierravanti-Wells, who has compared her situation to that of Kimberley Kitching. Another unsuccessful nominee was Mary-Lou Jarvis, a lawyer and Woollahra councillor.
Elsewhere:
• Andrew Charlton, economist and former adviser to Kevin Rudd, is expected to be imposed by Labor’s national executive as its candidate for Parramatta, where the Liberals are hopeful of overhauling a 3.5% margin with the retirement of Julie Owens, the Labor member since 2004. Michael McGowan of The Guardian reports Labor “spent weeks shopping for a celebrity candidate in a bid to railroad a local rank-and-file ballot”, with targets including former state Granville MP David Borger and Sydney barrister Cameron Murphy. A rank-and-file ballot would likely have yielded Durga Owen, a former staffer to Owens, who seemingly was not favoured by Anthony Albanese. Other prospective candidates for a rank-and-file ballot were Alan Mascarenhas, a former Sydney Morning Herald journalist, and Abha Devasia, a Left-aligned lawyer. All three are of of Indian background, and thus representative of a demographic with a strong presence in the electorate. The move to install Charlton, who lives in Bellevue Hill in the eastern suburbs, has predictably “infuriated local branch members”, and drawn criticism from Owens.
• Nick Xenophon announced last week he will seek to return to his earlier vocation at the election as Senator for South Australia, a position he held from 2008 until his ill-fated bid to gatecrash the 2018 state election. He has since maintained a profile as a partner of law firm Xenophon Davis. Rex Patrick, who filled Xenophon’s Senate vacancy in 2017 and later abandoned his Centre Alliance party, appears to have recognised that Xenophon’s return has ended whatever chance he had of being re-elected to the Senate, and is reportedly contemplating a run for the lower house seat of Grey.
• Joe Spagnolo of the Sunday Times reports the Nationals will field candidates in lower house seats in Western Australia against the wishes of Mia Davies, the party’s state leader and, thanks to the extraordinary result of the March 2021 election, the state’s Opposition Leader (a nicety that eluded Scott Morrison during his trip to the state a fortnight ago). The party’s strongest seats in the state are Durack and O’Connor, respectively held for the Liberals by Melissa Price and Rick Wilson.
Boerwar at 1:30 pm
I
I’d look here first, In with the chickens.
Simply put, what a gutless bastard!
Jaeger
Has Morrison stated that he will be headed to Melbourne for the memorial service?
AE,
I doubt anyone will muster your level of confected outrage once the prices drop in the next few days.
It will be quickly forgotten and you’ll just have to move on to another windmill to tilt.
Snappy Tom, you have described your religious convictions, so in a reply on the topic of “the devil” it’s only fair I do too. As an atheist I interpret “the devil” as a character in a story, and not one you want to trust. But I’ve always associated it with greed and selfishness, which are precisely those characteristics likely to inhabit (see what I did there) rich fuckers. That “the devil” doesn’t want you to be rich is kinda what I expect it to say.
Bushfire Bill @ #1197 Wednesday, March 30th, 2022 – 1:34 pm
Don’t you need a law degree?
As an atheist I interpret “the devil” as a character in a story that needs moar dragons. And lazerz.
Rex Douglas @ #1176 Wednesday, March 30th, 2022 – 1:21 pm
I won’t be.
Has Morrison stated that he will be headed to Melbourne for the memorial service?
______
He wouldn’t DARE show his face there!
Victoria:
Wednesday, March 30, 2022 at 1:22 pm
[‘Mavis
[‘I daresay the Queen is not long for this world. She is attending a memorial for her departed life partner. She of course won’t care what the world thinks if her maligned son accompanies her to her seat.’]
At nearly 96, you’re on the money. However, I’m sure she’s still concerned with her legacy and the survival of the House of Windsor – “the” imperative of “The Firm”.
Some pics & analysis, albeit it’s the Daily Mail:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10665563/Royals-dismay-Prince-Andrew-role-Duke-Edinburgh-service.html
poroti
“ brave Sir Robin”.
I laughed and laughed and laughed. Vid of the day award to you.
Majd khalaf
@majdkhalaf1993
·
56m
The head of the #WhiteHelmets said in @SOAS
regarding to Russia using a playbook in #Ukraine that was written in Syria. He said: “We are the same as Ukrainians in every way except one.For us as we are Muslims Russia called us terrorists. In Ukraine they call them Nazis”- Raed
The lying bully boy cant face the public of Lismore and Leigh Sales. Everybody knows hes a twat so I dont know why he is hiding.
Victoria
“ The demise of Morrison, Putin and Trump at the same time would be one great trifecta.”
I’d dearly love to add my local member in Dickson (Dutton) to that group .
If they keep this up our Aussie women will get to 300 in 45 overs. Currently 3/273.
Mavis
I doubt the tabloids are focussing the mind of the Queen. She is looking to surviving until her milestone jubilee in the next month or so.
I hope she does make it.
Everything else is mere noise.
If he does appear, he can expect to be loudly booed given that is in Melbourne. Going on 730 with Leigh sales would probably be a better option.
‘Morrison has two very good reasons to pull out of a scheduled 730 interview tonight.
“Surprise” appearance at the MCG, anyone?’
Morrison appearing in front of tens of thousands of (mostly) Victorians at the MCG would not go down well. He is hated here.
re “Albo hiding under a doona” Morrison and his cabal have been trying (and failing) to neutralise his perceived (ha!) negative qualities by projecting them onto his opponents, for months now. They are wasting their breath.
This bloke is Murdoch’s creation, from start to finish, as CFW reminded us yesterday. He has manifestly undermined the country and its people at the bidding of his Putin-loving boss. Coal, don’t be afraid, etc. Who cares about civilisation when you can tot up some massive number in a secret account. A sociopath who rears narcissists to prey on his audience
Cronus
That would be a great added bonus!
Mavis
I will add that once the Queen exits stage left, the monarchy will go through a very unsettled period. It will change quite dramatically.
Bushfire Bill
“ Prime Minister Scott Morrison has defended a lack of increased support for renters in the federal budget by suggesting they buy homes.”
He is so consistently, amazingly, unselfaware (I know that’s not actually a word).
Morrison doesnt care about anyone but himself and anyone who thinks he does is as deluded as it gets.
Steve Davis
Unfortunately a proportion of the population think he is re electable. Sigh
So, the latest north-eastern NSW floods, a ‘3 in 500 year’ event?
This is another place that people have supposedly flocked to live in due to covid etc.
————-
Byron Bay CBD goes under
Popular holiday destination Byron Bay is underwater after what long-term locals say is the worst flash flooding they have ever seen.
3/300. One over to go. (limited to 45 overs)
Snappy Tom
It has sadly been quite relentless.
Cronus
Or is it ? If it’s good enough for Harvard it’s good enough for PB. 🙂
.
.
Working with People Who Aren’t Self-Aware
by Tasha Eurich
Un-self-aware colleagues aren’t just frustrating; they can cut a team’s chances of success in half. According to our research….
https://hbr.org/2018/10/working-with-people-who-arent-self-aware
The residents of Lismore require long term alternative accommodation.
What are the feds and NSW govt doing in this space?
“Do you have children/grandchildren? If so, are they concerned, and do you accept that their concern is genuine? Do they increase the level your personal interest, knowledge and concern about the topic?”
The first question is none of your business.
I just don’t accept an argument that one must have children to be able to understand the challenges of climate change. In the same way the Mr Morrison doesn’t need to have a wife/daughter to understand the significance of domestic violence etc.
There’s many reasons why people may not have children, either by choice or otherwise. It doesn’t make their views on matters of public policy less informed, or less valid. There is also a gendered element of such phrases being thrown out – they would never be hurled at a man, only ever a woman.
Morrison could be hiding from quite a few questions in ditching the 7.30 Report tonight. See this quote on Channel Nine this morning:
“Asked during an interview this morning why there was no help for renters, who have seen costs rise – particularly in regional areas – Mr Morrison said the budget was “about Australians getting into homes”.
“The best way to support people who are renting a house is to help them buy a house,” Mr Morrison told Channel Nine.
How out of touch does a man paid $600,000 a year have to be to assume renters can afford to buy a house? The average house in Sydney and Melbourne now costs over $1,000,000. Across the whole of Australia the average house price is over $500,000.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/australia-news-live-hundreds-of-millions-into-voters-pockets-as-treasurer-flags-fuel-excise-cut-tax-offset-before-federal-election-russia-ukraine-peace-talks-make-some-progress-20220329-p5a95x.html
Victoria
As little as possible. Morrison too scared to converse with them.
Will Morrison able to resist the MCG? If he pops out from under the doona for one thing today I hope its that. He might imagine the crowd can’t ask him any dangerous questions, and that sports fans just love ScoMo. After all, he’s looking for/expecting a miracle.
Wet Tropics World Heritage Area at risk of becoming an invasive ant hot-spot after federal budget snub
https://invasives.org.au/media-releases/wet-tropics-world-heritage-area-at-risk-of-becoming-an-invasive-ant-hot-spot-after-federal-budget-snub/
According to BOM, NSW has to expect more flooding events in the next few months.
What plans do Morrison and perrotet for alternate accommodation for the people impacted by these ongoing floods?
Australia will be a nation of renters eventually.
First innings, 305/3 (in 45 overs). WI to bat.
Do people think that the crowd would boo Morrison?….at the footy, most certainly….but at a funeral?
I see Coffs Harbour has been added to the flooding list of Byron Bay, Ballina and Lismore. Climate change! What climate change? I don’t think a few extra bob from the budget will help these folk in the long run PM but some real action on climate change might just mitigate it into the future. Just a thought.
Pauline Hansen supporting CFW.
Someone may be able to refresh my memory: have there been any Kitching stories in today’s media?
Beaglieboy
It’s a memorial. And it is taking place at a sporting stadium. Not the same as in a hall or church. So yes, booing could easily occur.
Pukka
Oh dear. Morrison is losing friends everywhere. Lol!
I might add that although the rain has abated in Brisbane, we’re now receiving some very strong and constant wind gusts which makes sodden, falling trees increasingly risky.
Cronus
Strong winds stress me out. Take care
ltep –
I totally agree with this. I would, though, point out that the specific context of Wong’s comments was about Labor’s position on school students going on climate strikes, with Kitching making some sort of comment that Labor should have a position of being against the student protests because some parents might want their kids to be in school and not at protests.
So the entire argument was about children and their parents. Wong subsequently recognized that she shouldn’t have said what she said and apologized, but it wasn’t an out of the blue attack on Kitching being childless.
Pauline Hansen has repeated and enthusiastically endorsed CFW’s low opinion of Scott Morrison just now in the Senate. Unexpected.
I don’t like Pauline Hanson, but when she takes a moment to throw a boot at the PM you know he’s fucked.
CFW may be the best thing to happen to labor so far.
poroti
Unselfaware, well there you go, my old English teacher would be proud ….. and not a little surprised. I’ve mangled my fair share of words over time.