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.
C@tmomma @ #1395 Wednesday, March 30th, 2022 – 4:28 pm
It’s punishment for backing a socialist Premier.
Goldman Sachs now expects RBA rate hikes in August, September, October and November. ???
That should cool the housing market, quite nicely!.
Lars Von Trier:
[‘I’m guessing they haven’t wasted much time in settlement discussions? Seems like a fight to the (legal) death) no pun intended.’]
I very much doubt it will settle but stranger things have happened.
Mavis @ #1381 Wednesday, March 30th, 2022 – 4:06 pm
I was speaking to my next door neighbour today and they were telling me that their nephew, an Electrical Engineer in Queensland, decided to go down and rewire some houses for people in Lismore. He’s heartbroken today to see that all his good work is going to be for nothing.
It will be interesting wwp.
Labor has scrupulously avoided any discussion of any plans. Assuming a win they will actually have to pick priorities.
The obvious starting point was Shorten’s 2019 agenda in terms of tax reform. If they wouldn’t do it post win when would they do it? CGT, franking credits etc
But then again maybe Biden’s example will encourage them to continue to be minimalist in their agenda.
”
Bushfire Billsays:
Wednesday, March 30, 2022 at 1:19 pm
BREAKING: Scott Morrison has pulled out of his scheduled #abc730 interview with Leigh Sales tonight, following Senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells explosive statement in the senate, where she described her leader as a racist bully who is unfit to be Prime Minister. #auspol
Why is Scott Morrison MIA? CFW didn’t even die of stress.
”
Who knows what happens in future.
Remember you posted David Crowe writing in his article about KKitching: died of ‘suspected heart attack ‘.
What does that phrase mean?
Rex Douglas @ #1401 Wednesday, March 30th, 2022 – 4:30 pm
It also tells you that Morrison is dead worried about losing seats in WA and Queensland, despite the political colour of their Premier.
Do you know when judgement is expected mavis?
1934pc
“Goldman Sachs now expects RBA rate hikes in August, September, October and November. ???”
Makes it difficult for renters when Morrison just told them to go out and buy a house.
Remember you posted David Crowe writing in his article about KKitching: died of ‘suspected heart attack ‘.
What does that phrase mean?
It means the autopsy hadn’t been done yet to definitively establish the cause of death.
a r
That’s what I was thinking, specially if comments by 66’s lawyer might suffice for the defamation case, in which case a certificate of immunity would then be a mistake. Justice denied? But I defer to the legally trained.
WI women have 4 wickets in hand and 12 overs to play to get another 167 runs. Never say never, but the Aussies are well in front.
” The obvious starting point was Shorten’s 2019 agenda in terms of tax reform. If they wouldn’t do it post win when would they do it? CGT, franking credits etc”
When Labor is comfortably in office. It probably has to be a second term agenda item.
nath @ #1108 Wednesday, March 30th, 2022 – 4:17 pm
He did not even think about it. Neither would I. The name of the letter is aitch, in my mind, and has been ever since my mother taught me the alphabet when I was 2. Haitch makes me wince, as does seeing ‘loose’ when a writer means ‘lose’, or being ridiculed by ignorant oafs when I say that I play in a recorder group.
Steve777 says:
Wednesday, March 30, 2022 at 4:44 pm
” The obvious starting point was Shorten’s 2019 agenda in terms of tax reform. If they wouldn’t do it post win when would they do it? CGT, franking credits etc”
When Labor is comfortably in office. It probably has to be a second term agenda item.
___________________________________
Then what’s the point? Governments get more risk adverse as they go along.
‘Cronus says:
Wednesday, March 30, 2022 at 3:54 pm
Andrew_Earlwood
I do wish the popular media would show a map of our region, including China, just to show how close they will be to our doorstep in The Solomons. Whilst they’re at it, they can explain the strategic importance of the location to shipping and freedom of movement in our region and the potential impact on Australia in the future.’
—————————————
Smack bang on the route to our strategic oil reserve, making locating the latter in the US doubly stupid.
Putin’s war as reported by Financial Times.
Late Riser
I fully intend discussing this topic with a member of a higher court at lunch this weekend and will let you know his/her opinion.
calyptorhynchus at 2.18pm re relative lack of media on the Solomons/China thing…
Its not because media don’t know where the Solomons are, but because part of the media’s role in the anti-Labor conspiracy is to minimise Coalition stuff-ups (and, conversely, maximise Labor ones.)
Hence, enormous coverage of the Kitching beat-up vs hardly any on Australia’s greatest foreign policy stuff-up in decades.
“It also tells you that Morrison is dead worried about losing seats in WA and Queensland, despite the political colour of their Premier.”
Must be VERY worried as this will piss off the other states no end given reports of………
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-29/ratings-giant-tips-wa-surplus-of-almost-8-billion/100944084
It will catch up with W.A. eventually i guess, and McGowan and Co seem pretty conscious of not tottaly pissing this up against the wall like Howard and Costello did.
Labor cannot take any plans to an election because they will be grossly misrepresented by Coalition, affected vested interests and their media allies (i.e. most of the mainstream media). Labor won’t lie about their agenda, unlike the Coalition, because ethics aside, they wouldn’t be allowed to get away with it.
“ Australia’s greatest foreign policy stuff-up ever”.
FTFY
Sure Steve777 – I understand zero target. But assuming a win – why wouldn’t you actually want to govern? Otherwise you end up being a pale echo of the Libs?
A dam-led recovery: a couple of dams on the Never Never – no environmental impact statement, no business case. There goes $5.7 billion just like that.
Shellbell sorry to hear you missed your concerts because of the weather.
In my hometown of Lismore people have died because of the weather.
C@t
“It also tells you that Morrison is dead worried about losing seats in WA and Queensland,”
Just “dead worried”, denying the internal Liberal movement outing his behaviour, denying reality, yelling and thrashing about during question time.
Morrison is now without any obvious dignity and the question is now whether Morrison ever possessed dignity.
Even if the unimaginable were to occur, and a win of sorts occurred, Morrison will need to resign from parliament to allow the scorn from large parts of the community to dissipate.
A Liberal/National government with a Morrison/Joyce leadership duet has so little regard in a nation acknowledging climate change that their colleagues would be forced to act.
“The end is nigh”
From economist Steven Hamilton
“ “There’s going to be a reckoning and someone after the election is going to have to do it,” he said.
“If you want to spend more in defence, on the [National Disability Insurance Scheme], on aged care and anything else, then you’re going to have to increase tax revenue.”
This level of spending by the Coalition suggests to me that they don’t expect to win the election so they are just throwing the baby and the bath water at it in the hope of re-election. In that event, they will deal with the opprobrium when it comes but if not re-elected, the ALP will be handed the problem. Just another example of Coalition budgetary and fiscal irresponsibility.
The Coalition have no agenda and they’re in government. Why should Labor have one in Opposition.
Oh L’arse. What an insincere gaslighter you are.
Far from there being a Zero target, what Labor has announced already – and there is more to come – would make for a term’s worth of worthwhile progressive reform in the Labor tradition.
No doubt after the election is won other priorities and opportunities will present themselves.
‘Why bother?’ Indeed.
yabba says:
He did not even think about it. Neither would I. The name of the letter is aitch, in my mind, and has been ever since my mother taught me the alphabet when I was 2. Haitch makes me wince, as does seeing ‘loose’ when a writer means ‘lose’, or being ridiculed by ignorant oafs when I say that I play in a recorder group.
_____________
Ah the adversity of a nobody would-be elitist!
Cronus – I’ll look for it. Thanks.
What do Alan Tudge, Andrew Robb, Christian Porter, Barnaby Joyce, Scott Morrison, Paul Fletcher, Gladys Liu, Andrew Laming, Stuart Robert, Bridget McKenzie, Gladys Berejiklian, Arthur Sinodinos, Josh Frydenberg, Tim Wilson, Michael Sukkar, Gladys Liu, and Mathias Cormann have in common.
They are all current or former members of the Liberal or National Party. After that they show individualism, initiative, enterprise – sometimes in broad daylight, sometimes allegedly.
leaving ministerial position despite following ministerial guidelines with respect to having sex with, and inflicting abuse on, a staffer. (There are unconfirmed reports that negotiations for a six figure deal are underway between the Morrison Government and the staffer)
walking into $880,000 job with a billionaire with close links to the Chinese Communist Party and straight after negotiating a free trade deal with China
resigning following a $74,000 donation to the Liberal Party by Australian Water Holdings. Sinodinos, who was Deputy Chairman of AWH at the time knew nothing
being treasurer treasurer and finance director of Liberal Party when $700,000 flowed into party coffers from ‘secret donors’. Denies knowing or having to do with any illegal donations
having ties to groups with links to the Communist Chinese Government
denying allegations of rape
allegedly standing to make millions from ‘dodgy dealings’
managing to sell land worth $3 million for $30 million
managing to sell water for $80 million which was allegedly worth nothing
getting called ‘autocrat’, ‘bully’, ‘fraud’, ‘complete pycho’, ‘horrible, horrible person’, and ‘lacking a moral compass’, by his Liberal colleagues
engaging in class war by telling brutally poor renters that they should buy a house
refusing to repay $8,000 in invalid claims following an official audit
allegedly changing explanations about the circumstances of official travel
resigned from the Ministry after being unable to name mystery donors to a blind trust that was supporting his defo action
implementing Robodebt – possibly illegal, definitely punitive, linked to suicides
voting for ‘It’s OK to be White’
displaying Chinese election signs made to look like AEC signs
delivering sports rorts
delivering car parks fiasco
resigning after something, something about ICAC
“The question that a Labor guy asked Menzies at a rally – what will you do about ‘ousing?
Ming replied: I will put a ‘h’ in front of it.”
It’s just as well Ming wasn’t asked about “honesty”, but then what did he ever know about it?
“ The budget papers revealed the clean up from the floods, the Black Summer bushfires and the 2019 North Queensland floods cost the government $10.3bn. With climate experts warning natural disasters will only pick up in frequency, the government has been criticised for not urgently investing in mitigation measures. But Mr Morrison insisted the funding was there, and the government was learning how to better respond to crises. “We’ve been through a lot of these natural disasters and every single time we learn how we can do it even better the next time,” he told ABC’s AM.
You see, the more we ignore climate change and stuff up, the more we learn. How good is Australia? Jebus, would somebody just shut him up!
https://www.news.com.au/finance/economy/federal-budget/scott-morrison-and-ally-langdon-clash-over-rent-relief-after-federal-budget-delivered/news-story/2e8208699dddcdfd9dc383d38e5055e7
Menzies: sold to the Japanese the wherewithal for WW2
Went to war with Germany without a nanosecond thought of the need so to do; did so despite the country not having a single modern fighter, tank or submarine; pissed off to London where he was tolerated (barely) by Churchill who despised him; sat on his duff while Australia was shunted down to 8 or 9 on the list of Britain’s strategic priorities and while Australia’s scarce military resources were bent to Britain’s needs – thus leaving Australia exposed to the IJA.
Menzies was a national security cretin. There is no difference at all from Morrison who is also a national security cretin.
I’m of the opinion that there are a long line of people waiting for Morrison to call the election before they start bringing all sorts of Skeletons out of the closet.
Normally those in politics will close around a candidate but Morrison is that despised by his own side that I would not be surprised if the opposite happens.
I’m surprised the WA Nationals haven’t preselected any candidates for WA’s regional seats yet. If there was ever an election where they had the opportunity to break through federally, it’s this one.
The aitch and haitch jibe is a throwback to the anti Catholic Irish tradition that was a feature of 19th and early 20th Century Australia.
It was a way the Protestants could identify their enemies.
The Liberals don’t care about “budgets” why should Labor.
100s of billions have been spent extra in the economy by the LNP, the sky hasn’t fallen in, government won’t run out of its own currency, budget repair is a nonsense.
Spending in itself isn’t the problem, skills, resources, health, education, environment and inflation are the problems that government should be focusing on.
Furher to GG’s comment…………
.
The ‘aitch’ or ‘haitch’ debate has a dark side
A good number of Australians hate it when people refer to the letter “h” as “haitch”. They hate it with a passion.
While the “haitch” pronunciation is often linked to Irish Catholic education in times when Australian society was divided along sectarian lines, no research has conclusively established its true history. But whatever its origins, it continues to be regarded as a marker of “lower” segments of society.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/the-aitch-or-haitch-debate-has-a-dark-side-20180519-p4zgc0.html
Fuck lumpy skin disease!
IMO, biosecurity is a complete shambles. Mission grass, Buffel Grass, Gamba Grass and African Love Grass are trashing Australia’s biodiversity and will generate many or most of Australia’s extinctions over the next couple of decades.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2022-03-30/lumpy-skin-disease-budget-funding-david-littleproud-nff/100950994
As bad as Menzies may have been Boerwar, Morrison doesn’t hold a candle to him.
Singularly the most cretinous invertebrate to dwell in The Lodge, various bugs included.
Regarding what I’m reading here about Menzies (who was way before my time) and what I saw of Abbott (who unfortunately was not), it occurs to me that their Australia is Little Britain looking towards Great Britain. We’re just ever so keen to show mummy (or daddy) what we can do. (I’m pretty sure it’s not a remotely original thought.)
While Federal Labor are definitely making themselves a far smaller target than in 2019, it’s dead wrong to suggest they are going to the election with no policies. They have lots of policies.
A-E
I am staggered by just how dangerous the Abbott, Turnbull and Morrison governments have been when it comes to national security.
For the first time in my long, long life I am thinking of going back to Europe, getting my EU passport and thereby perhaps providing a gateway for my family to a safe place should Australia go where it seems to be headed under the national security fuckwits in the Coalition.
“___________________________________
Then what’s the point? Governments get more risk adverse as they go along.”
If you are more risk adverse than the current ALP stance you just don’t get out of bed in the morning, and at least they are doing that.
But like Biden they are much more likely to drift to the right under corrupt pressure from donors and the elite establishment they are very very much part of. Much less likely that they suddenly find progressive beliefs and a new commitment to the long since dead heart that implicitly and explicitly pumped the life blood through the words of the light on the hill speech. Once were warriors huh.
I’ve always been a “haitch” guy. Just the way I learned to say it. “Aitch” sounds… wrong.
Yet another lovely day at the office for the PM.
How the LRP must be kicking themselves for not going in November 2021.
Enough said.
“ Maverick north Queensland MP Bob Katter wants to give every school student a rifle to defend Australia’s fuel supplies, claiming the nation’s energy supplies are under threat from China.”
“I would immediately move to providing a rifle for every single boy, and girls too if they want them, in an armory in every single school in Australia.”
I kid you not folks, a full moon must be on the way cos anything stupid that can be said by Morrison and supporters is being said today.
Lightly paywalled
https://www.afr.com/politics/federal/pm-labelled-a-bully-by-liberal-senator-20220330-p5a97g
“I would immediately move to providing a rifle for every single boy, and girls too if they want them”
No toxic masculinity or gender bias in that formulation at all, so sire bob, it is well thought and expressed.