Federal election minus 35 days

The campaign’s first leaders debate locked in, plus various electorate-level brush fires and candidate announcements.

As the campaign enters a lull over the Easter extended weekend, there is at least the following to report:

• The first leaders’ debate of the campaign will be held on Wednesday, to be hosted in Brisbane by Kieran Gilbert of Sky News and with the leaders to face questions from 100 undecided voters.

• Stephen Lunn of The Australian reports the Australian Electoral Commission will be operating 550 pre-poll booths at this election, up from 515 in 2019. The period for pre-poll voting has been reduced since the last election from three weeks to two.

• Liberal Ben Small has had to resign from his Western Australian Senate seat after becoming aware he was a dual citizen of New Zealand, where his father was born, which somehow escaped the notice of all concerned when he filled Mathias Cormann’s vacancy in November 2020. His term was shortly to expire in any case, and he will return if elected from third on the party’s Senate ticket at the election.

• Paul Starick of The Advertiser reports that Liz Habermann, who came close to winning the regional seat of Flinders from the Liberals at last month’s South Australian state election, will shortly announce her candidacy for the corresponding federal seat of Grey, held for the Liberals by Rowan Ramsey.

• The Age reports Zoe Daniel, the former ABC journalist challenging Liberal MP Tim Wilson as an independent in Goldstein, has apologised over an article she wrote in 2017 in which she said then US President Donald Trump was “satisfying his wealthy Jewish donors” when he declared Jerusalem to be the capital of Israel. The electorate’s 6.8% Jewish population as of the 2016 census was the third highest in the country, behind Wentworth and neighbouring Macnamara.

• A spokesperson for the Law Society of New South Wales told the Daily Telegraph that Sarah Richards, the Liberal candidate for the marginal Labor seat of Macquarie in outer Sydney, may have broken the law in describing herself as a qualified solicitor on her LinkedIn profile. Richards holds a law degree, but ceased to be a practising solicitor in 2007.

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.

1,259 comments on “Federal election minus 35 days”

Comments Page 1 of 26
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  3. JERUSALEM (AP) — Jalal al-Masri and his wife spent eight years and their life savings on fertility treatments in order to have their daughter, Fatma. When she was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect in December, they waited another three months for an Israeli permit to take her for treatment outside the Gaza Strip.

    The permit never came. The 19-month-old died on March 25.

    https://apnews.com/article/health-middle-east-israel-hamas-gaza-strip-3ae5abe4acd6467ed2e27733d056ddc6?fbclid=IwAR2yemQmFUv4bFVObcrNM4YCPpx6bGFhjiVqiHq-s-xG7Io7m5LBPuC6aj8

  4. Surprising that whoever it is who decides these things is persisting with Sky News hosting the debates. It kind of made sense when David Speers was still there, seeing as he had a moderating history with the format, but he’s gone to ABC now, and from what I’ve seen most of the good journalists from Sky departed some time ago.

  6. “Morrison has projected an air of confidence, a leader at ease travelling across the nation meeting with workers. But the bulk of his appearances have been staged managed within a inch of their lives.”

    I’m starting to wonder whether this style of campaign might better mitigate potential blunders for the ALP that otherwise give the media the tv footage and slips-of-the-tongue they desire?

    https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-04-16/scott-morrison-quiet-australians-anthony-albanese-election/100994550

  8. C@tmomma says:
    Saturday, April 16, 2022 at 6:37 am
    Kieran Gilbert is okay as they go. At least it’s not Paul Murray or Chris Kenny!
    ———————————–
    Or Peta Credlin

  9. Taxpayers have funded $55.6 billion in federal grants over less than four years under rules that give ministers sweeping powers to decide the payments, with new research fuelling an election row over calls to establish a national integrity commission to safeguard public funds.

    The findings show the grants reached $20 billion last year alone across federal departments from health to transport and industry, revealing the scale of the payments and sparking a new proposal for tighter rules and stricter oversight to prevent corruption.

    After Prime Minister Scott Morrison refused to commit to setting up an integrity commission in the next term of parliament, former judges have stepped up their calls for a powerful watchdog and accused him of breaking his election promise three years ago to act on the problem.

    Labor leader Anthony Albanese will sharpen the divide on the key issue of trust in politics on Saturday by pledging to pass laws this year to establish a federal integrity watchdog, with a challenge to Morrison to deliver on a promise made 1200 days ago.

    https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/taxpayers-fund-55-6-billion-in-federal-grants-over-less-than-four-years-20220415-p5adrg.html

    It wouldn’t be so bad if we actually got value for money. But as we’ve seen most of these ‘grants’ are allocated in LNP seats and towards projects that offer little value to the public.

  10. Confessions

    I too am nervous about Albo accepting a SkyNews debate, it seems like a high risk strategy and smells like an ambush.

  12. Cronus:

    They’ve hosted the debates for a decade now, possibly longer. As with the government, it’s way past time to change.

  13. This is a good line from the ABC article (fingers crossed that’s what happens):

    Ultimately, Australians will likely vote for what affects them, rather than what offends them.

  14. Does this have anything to do with that confidential settlement?

    The former government staffer who accused senior Liberal MP Alan Tudge of abusing her during a past consensual affair has alleged that another Liberal politician sexually harassed her at Parliament House more than a decade ago.

    The account is understood to form part of a negotiated settlement with the Commonwealth, reported to be worth more than $500,000. The government has declined to confirm details of the payment or explain why it was being made.

    Rachelle Miller’s allegations go beyond those she has levelled against Tudge, which he denies. They are understood to include a specific historical allegation of sexual harassment against a different Liberal MP who is still in federal parliament. The incident is alleged to have occurred in 2010.

    In what The Saturday Paper has been told is a lengthy statement made as part of a workplace claim against the government, Miller describes a series of alleged incidents of bullying, harassment and discrimination by more than one Liberal parliamentarian while she served as a Coalition adviser.

    https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/politics/2022/04/16/exclusive-harassment-claims-against-another-liberal-mp/165003120013707

  15. Does anyone else get the feeling there is a concerted anti Albo campaign going on in the media. On the radio news yesterday ( 4KQ) the story about the costings for Medicare clinics received prominent coverage in a very brief news report (this is a station where news is only covered for about a minute every hour). It was reported as another gaffe and the reader ended the story with a noticeable disdain for Albo. Former Murdochracy journo PK from the ABC can barely contain her breathless enthusiasm for Scomoe ( he is described as a bird of prey who swoops on the hapless Albo) major issues like federal ICAC being canned and the Tudge debacle have been pretty much left out of the discourse. Has last elections kill Bill strategy become starve Albo to death this time?. Amazing how powerful the partisan media is at forming opinion.

  16. Is it anti Albanese or just a reflection of a generally poor start to the campaign from Albanese? What would we expect if the latter was the case?

  18. Maybe Karen Middleton has an answer for you:

    After a blunder on day one of his campaign to run the country, Anthony Albanese received a discrete Liberal endorsement.

    Beyond the early sympathy from former prime minister John Howard – who initially absolved the Labor leader of forgetting key economic numbers – another former minister delivered an indirect but pointed affirmation.

    “I think the most valuable commodity in politics in the 21st century is authenticity – that you are authentic,” former treasurer Joe Hockey told ABC Radio in Canberra this week, in a conversation about Australian and American politics. “If people feel you’re a fake, if people feel that you’re pretending, they will see through you and punish you. And rightly so.”

    Declining an opportunity to join his former colleagues in attacking the Labor leader, Hockey refused to comment directly on Albanese’s inability to name the unemployment rate. He doubtlessly recalled his own political train crash on his first day as Financial Services minister in 1998, when he sought to parade his knowledge of Asian economies and wrongly described the ringgit as the currency of Indonesia rather than Malaysia. So he knows what it’s like to make a humiliating mistake. He also knows the pivotal role of authenticity in the current election contest.

    “If the Liberals think that the last three days are going to erase the last three years of Scott Morrison’s government, then they’re kidding themselves.”
    Political researchers and pollsters report that authenticity is one of the biggest things Albanese has going for him, among otherwise uncertain public sentiment about what he represents. They also report that authenticity is Scott Morrison’s Achilles heel.

    https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/politics/2022/04/16/can-albanese-overcome-messy-start-the-election-campaign/165003120013710

  19. That’s interesting about authenticity being Albanese’s strength. Perhaps that’s why the Liberals were trying so hard to run lines about him being fake etc.

    That seems to have eased up recently.

  20. Itep

    If you feel the media is handling Morrison’s errors in the same manner then it’s a poor start by Albanese but I don’t get the sense the two leaders are being handled in the same manner. Albanese’s errors are highlighted which is fair enough but Morrison’s appear to be brushed over or ignored which isn’t fair enough. I do feel however that there is a need to alter strategies in a way that will minimise errors.

  21. I’m also curious about the notion that people don’t know Albo. He’s been in politics forever, on the front bench and in cabinet.

  22. People don’t know most of the Cabinet members. People just aren’t engaged at all. I’d be surprised if a significant portion of the public could name more than two Cabinet members other than the PM.

    A disengaged friend of mine had never heard of Pauline Hanson, who I imagine would be one of the highest profile members of Parliament.

  23. I want Albanese to go on the attack much more aggressively once the Easter hiatus is over.

    The two obvious targets are:

    1. Federal ICAC. Now that Morrison has so brazenly dumped his 2019 promise, Albanese must relentlessly go after him on this. He has to try to replicate Morrison’s ability to take almost any media question and switch the subject to the points he wishes to make. He needs pithy, highly quotable attack lines perfectly crafted for 30 second TV news reports. Don’t beat around the bush: “Morrison won’t set up a federal ICAC because he leads a deeply corrupt government.” That sort of thing.

    2. The Rachelle Miller $500,00 plus payout. Now that Ms Miller has cleared the way for Morrison to disclose the reasons taxpayers’ money was used in this way, Albanese must hammer this theme again and again.

  25. Good morning Dawn Patrollers

    Shane Wright and Katina Curtis sum up Week 1 of the campaigns.
    https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/labradors-beer-cans-pigeon-poo-and-interest-rates-and-it-s-only-week-one-20220413-p5adbm.html
    The Coalition fits the “daddy” template and Labor the “mummy” formula. Labor, in particular, needs to campaign as both, writes Peter Hartcher who reckons the parties are prisoners of stereotype.
    https://www.smh.com.au/national/bored-by-the-campaign-the-parties-are-prisoners-of-stereotype-20220414-p5adib.html
    Michelle Grattan says Albanese’s poor first week of campaigning raises big questions.
    https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/albanese-s-poor-first-week-of-campaigning-raises-big-questions-20220415-p5ado5.html
    Australia now remembers Scott Morrison can campaign. But will voters forget the past three years, wonders Katherine Murphy. At the end of her reflection, she encourages voters to think deeply.
    https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/apr/16/australia-now-remembers-scott-morrison-can-campaign-but-will-voters-forget-the-past-three-years
    After a messy first week, it’s increasingly clear that the election campaign will be about the authenticity of the leaders, opines Karen Middleton.
    https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/politics/2022/04/16/can-albanese-overcome-messy-start-the-election-campaign/165003120013710
    Here’s Paul Bongiorno’s take on Week 1. Worth reading, as usual.
    https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/opinion/topic/2022/04/16/nobody-likes-bad-dentist/165003120013718
    Josh Gordon analyses Morrison’s verbal gymnastics on his ICAC commitment.
    https://www.smh.com.au/national/fact-check-what-did-morrison-say-about-a-federal-icac-20220415-p5adq9.html
    And Stepen Charles declares that Morrison and his cabinet are frightened of an effective integrity commission. He makes a compelling argument for such a body. He also says that Morrison’s explanation his position is a pathetic attempt to justify the indefensible. This is in the MUST READ category.
    https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/morrison-and-his-cabinet-are-frightened-of-an-effective-integrity-commission-20220415-p5adro.html
    The PM’s stance on a corruption watchdog makes it hard to back him, declares the editorial in The Age. It says it does not normally endorse one party over another until the end of the campaign. But we would find it extremely difficult to support the return of this government unless it rethinks its approach to integrity and accountability issues, including an integrity commission and donation reform.
    https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/pm-s-stance-on-corruption-watchdog-makes-it-hard-to-back-him-20220415-p5ado6.html
    Taxpayers have funded $55.6 billion in federal grants over less than four years under rules that give ministers sweeping powers to decide the payments, with new research fuelling an election row over calls to establish a national integrity commission to safeguard public funds, writes David Crowe.
    https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/taxpayers-fund-55-6-billion-in-federal-grants-over-less-than-four-years-20220415-p5adrg.html
    Phil Coorey writes that Anthony Albanese has sharpened his commitment to establishing a national integrity commission, vowing to do so by the end of this calendar year, should he win the May 21 federal election.
    https://www.afr.com/politics/federal/albanese-promises-national-anti-corruption-body-by-christmas-20220415-p5adsd
    Paul Kelly writes about Morrison’s Easter revival.
    https://amp.theaustralian.com.au/inquirer/easter-miracle-for-a-revived-scott-morrison/news-story/2d17b12cb5e98aeb3dc2190fc3b7e284
    Never mind the bollocks: Albanese’s non-gaffe on immigration was just media hysteria, says Katherine Murphy.
    https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/apr/15/never-mind-the-bollocks-albaneses-non-gaffe-on-immigration-was-just-media-hysteria
    That a figure like Scott Morrison comes across as competent, able and free of imbecility after a day of electioneering in Australia suggests a broader sickness in politics, laments Binoy Kampmark.
    https://johnmenadue.com/stumbles-and-fictions-the-australian-election-campaign-begins/
    In the final days before the federal election was called, the new South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas came to Canberra to deliver a blistering National Press Club address. One seasoned journalist described the speech as Obama-esque, writes Ben Oquist who says that Canberra is increasingly outsourcing its national role. He says it was the type of speech to make you believe in politics again. And it was delivered in Canberra where such speeches should be made. A very good read!
    https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/7701142/canberra-is-increasingly-outsourcing-its-national-role-that-needs-to-stop/?cs=27845
    Peter van Onselen bemoans that the major parties have no plans for updating the engine of an ageing tax system.
    https://amp.theaustralian.com.au/commentary/major-parties-have-no-plans-for-updating-engine-of-ageing-tax-system/news-story/75762decc8906c17fd3bad4ab161f8e2
    Julia Banks tells us when voting for ‘the devil you know’ isn’t good enough.
    https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/politics/australian-politics/federal-election-2022/2022/04/16/julia-banks-scott-morrison-election/
    David Crowe reports that the Australian Christian Lobby has fired the opening shot in a campaign targeting rebel Liberal MPs who crossed the floor to amend the federal government’s religious discrimination bill. The vindictiveness is being rolled out.
    https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/christian-lobby-fires-first-shot-in-campaign-at-mps-who-crossed-floor-on-religion-20220415-p5adrj.html
    Michael Koziol tells us how Tony Abbott has defended Deves after the big “pile on”.
    https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/i-admire-her-abbott-backs-embattled-deves-to-remain-as-candidate-20220415-p5adri.html
    In the seat of Warringah, there is a peculiar pall of frustration in the air. But it’s got nothing to do with transgender issues, writes Julia Baird who says our children need climate action not culture wars.
    https://www.smh.com.au/national/our-children-need-climate-action-not-culture-wars-20220414-p5adia.html
    Now that the election has been called journalists-and not just those locked in the Canberra bubble will be salivating with anticipation over what will happen over the next six weeks: all the gotcha moments, all the dirt, the denials, the photographic moments. Everything but the detailed policy statements, declares Greg Bailey. He’s got a point!
    https://johnmenadue.com/election-2022-the-journalists-delight-and-the-avoidance-of-policy/
    Malcolm Knox looks at the loss of faith in traditional “horse race” polling and suggests the question being polled should be “If you are buying a car, will you fall again for the smooth swindler who really, really wants his commission and knows how to play you, or from the uncertain bumbler who seems more worried about his after-care responsibilities once you realise what you’ve bought?”
    https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/the-question-the-pollsters-should-have-been-asking-australians-is-too-frank-for-insiders-to-bear-20220414-p5adi4.html
    In what could hardly be described as a “scoop”, Troy Bramston says Anthony Albanese will replace the secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Philip Gaetjens, if he wins the federal election in May.
    https://amp.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/election-2022-anthony-albanese-will-replace-the-nations-top-public-servant-if-he-wins/news-story/3b07adf71e3108a6e4f3aaaddcc5f59c
    As a former government staffer moves to settle a $500,000 complaint over mistreatment, new details emerge of sexual harassment she allegedly suffered from another Liberal MP, (who is still in parliament) reveals Karen Middleton in another exclusive.
    https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/politics/2022/04/16/exclusive-harassment-claims-against-another-liberal-mp/165003120013707
    “I’m travelling with Scott Morrison, and we haven’t met a real voter yet”, writes the AFR’s Michael Read.
    https://www.afr.com/politics/federal/i-m-travelling-with-scott-morrison-and-we-haven-t-met-a-real-voter-yet-20220414-p5adgr
    Sarah Martin and Nick Evershed have been tracking the pork being distributed by the major parties.
    https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/apr/16/pork-this-way-which-electorates-have-been-promised-the-most-in-the-federal-election-campaign
    Ben Smee reports that the business case for the proposed Urannah dam in north Queensland – backed by a $483m federal government grant announced last month – reveals the project has been designed to support a massive future expansion of coalmining in the Bowen Basin. Well, fancy that!
    https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/apr/15/urannah-dam-business-case-assumes-massive-growth-in-queensland-coalmining
    Gerard Henderson pokes his silver head up and asks, “How independent are candidates if they have hidden past links to the Labor Party?”
    https://amp.theaustralian.com.au/commentary/how-independent-are-candidates-if-they-have-hidden-past-links-to-the-labor-party/news-story/ba994e73f20730c12097064452aff9c0
    John Hewson writes that, despite the efforts of the media to discredit the independents’ movement, attempting to tag them as “fake independents” and otherwise minimising their coverage, there should be little doubt that many conservative members sitting in what they had thought were “safe” seats are already recognising the strength of the contest.
    https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/opinion/topic/2022/04/16/independents-vs-broken-system/165003120013719
    With founder Brian Houston resigning from Hillsong amid scandal and allegations, and his wife, Bobbie, being pushed out, the global megachurch is now facing its own day of reckoning, explains Rick Morton.
    https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/religion/2022/04/16/hillsong-after-the-houstons/165003120013709
    A month after the Queensland-based party named Rebecca Lloyd as its candidate for Brisbane, she has been unanimously dumped for allegedly refusing to follow directions. So, PHON DOES have standards!
    https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/one-nation-dumps-freedom-aligned-candidate-for-brisbane-seat-20220415-p5adrr.html
    Health experts, from a former chief medical officer to an emergency doctor, have shared their vision on how governments should fix Victoria’s healthcare system.
    https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/hospital-bed-blocks-ambulance-ramping-here-s-six-suggestions-to-fix-them-20220412-p5acsu.html
    There have been few civil courtroom contests in Australia to match the sheer scale and drama of the Ben Roberts-Smith defamation case as it has unfolded over the last three months, writes Deborah Snow who tells us how the trial is reaching a crucial watershed moment.
    https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/marathon-ben-roberts-smith-trial-reaches-crucial-watershed-20220413-p5ad86.html
    As the people of Lismore attempt to rebuild following the second major flood this year, residents are divided over what to do next and whether to relocate the entire town, reports J.J. Rose.
    https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/environment/2022/04/16/what-lismores-future-after-the-floods/165003120013714
    Star’s chief legal officer has told an inquiry that its board held “calls that were not held as formal meetings and were therefore not minuted” during a 2019 crisis period. Oh dear.
    https://www.afr.com/companies/games-and-wagering/star-board-had-off-the-record-meetings-during-suncity-crisis-20220414-p5adgp
    Lawyers who have devoted years to representing gay-bashing victims will not be readily assured that a judicial inquiry in NSW will, at last, deliver all the answers. Rick Feneley details the differences between the two processes.
    https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/lawyers-wanted-a-royal-commission-into-gay-attacks-an-inquiry-is-not-the-same-20220415-p5adp7.html
    The Pine Gap base near Alice Springs is expanding, and so is its importance to the US military. It also means Australia is becoming a more obvious global target, whether we realise it or not, writes Brian Toohey.

    Supratim Adhikari tells us how Musk, the professional agitator, would make Twitter a worse place.
    https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/musk-the-professional-agitator-will-make-twitter-a-worse-place-20220415-p5adpe.html
    Meanwhile, Twitter has adopted a “poison pill” measure that would shield it from hostile acquisition bids, taking steps to thwart billionaire Elon Musk’s unwelcome offer to take the company private and make it a bastion of free speech.
    https://www.afr.com/markets/equity-markets/twitter-adopts-poison-pill-to-ward-off-musk-takeover-20220416-p5adud
    Russia’s mass rapes in Ukraine are a war crime. Its military leaders must face prosecution, argues Gaby Hinscliff.
    https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/apr/15/rape-weapon-ukraine-war-crime-sexual-violence

    Cartoon Corner

    David Pope

    Jim Pavlidis

    Alan Moir

    Matt Golding

    Jon Kudelka

    John Shakespeare

    Richard Giliberto

    Leak

    From the US










  26. I think it’s definitely anti Albo. How would anyone compare a simple slip up on arbitrary numbers to the pathetic record in government over these last three years. Mr Bean would be a better PM. vaccine strollout, climate policy,big $ to to Harvey,robodebt, Tudge & Porter, constant fights with China, France etc. 5 billion for nothing on submarines, many on his own side can’t stand him, connection to discredited Hillsong. The Albo setup had all the hallmarks of a Murdochcracy/ LNP billiards trick. Hit him with a wtf question and then an hour later Scomoe nails the answer – Yeah right!!!! Also look at the hysterical coverage I’m seeing in WA s newspaper not Murdochcracy but near enough also the likes of PK,speersy and Stan on the ABC.

  27. It’s hard to think of many people within Labor that would have a higher profile than Albanese though. After Albanese you’d think maybe Wong (?) would be quite high, Shorten of course. Keneally I guess from her time as NSW premier. Then who? Plibersek, Bowen. You’d think Marles recognition would be fairly low.

  28. There are basically 3 factions in the NSW Liberal Party:

    1. the Hard/Religious Right – think Dom Perottet, Connie Fierravanti Wells and Tony Abbott
    2. the Moderates – think Trent Zimmerman, Marise Payne, Gladys B and Matt Kean
    3. the Morrison Club – Alex Hawke and chancers like Angus Taylor, Sussan Ley and Jim Molan

    Simple math is #1 hates #2; #2 hates #1 and #1 and #2 hates #3 with a vengeance.

    #3 has exacerbated the hate of #1 and #2 by taking control of preselections, the so-called dozen Captain’s Picks and a year long bastardry where party forums were manipulated to meet its ends, leading to court cases all the way to the High Court.

    This internal NSW Liberal Party feud is seen as an existential threat by those ‘losing’ through The Morrison Club bastardry, and this is playing out now and in coming weeks. Two examples to note:

    1. The Sydney silver tail seats, formerly safe blue-rinse, of Wentworth, North Sydney and McKellar have been abandoned by the Morrison Club. It is thought by the Morrison Club that if they lose out to the Teals, too bad so sad. This can be made up by culture wars and throwing cash at the tradies, aspirationals and religious bigots in the outer ring seats, with the boosters of Murdoch and 2GB. Major plus is that it reduces the incumbency of the Moderates.

    2. The Moderates and Hard Right see the tactics for what they are, but think this Morrison Club is an ephemeral construct. So best to tear it down, so that their power sharing can remain undisturbed. So watch out for more dirt dumps, leaks, character assessments against the Morrison Club. Here is an example overnight in the Katherine Deves Captain’s Pick for Warringah which is developing into a proxy war – Moderate Matt Kean is the NSW Treasurer.

  29. fess

    Been chatting to someone whose organisation – a sporting club – got a bushfire recovery grant.

    More money than the club’s seen in their lives and they don’t want to seem ungrateful BUT…

    the submission was put together by the committee almost two years ago, and the present committee doesn’t support the project the grant’s for. They have far more pressing needs, which could be covered with half the money.

    But the grant has to be spent on what the grant was provided for, no negotiation possible, and so the club is going to be left with having to build something they know is going to be a white elephant.

  30. Albo and/or Gartrell made 2 key strategic decisions before the campaign:

    1) The small target strategy;
    2) Not to court the media especially News Corporation

    It’s too late to complain about these decisions, they are locked in and cannot be reversed 5 weeks out. The calculus was that they could win with these decisions.

    At 53-47 and double digit polling swings in WA+QLD you would have to say they are still on track for a smallish majority (high 70’s in seats). Dropping 4 points on primary in Newspoll was always soft support so not surprising.

    I’d be surprised if Albo isn’t advertising heavily this week on TV (to define himself) and triple checking announceables to prevent a Medicare clinics repeat.

  31. Re: alias if the ALP has a smart campaign strategist they will have Albo spend week two attacking the ICAC decision and keep it terse. Scomoe is on super shakey ground with this one. His normal MO is to say no, look like an idiot for a week then backflip. Either way ALP can’t lose. They need him to agree to an ICAC with teeth as this will definitely end the careers of many sloppy LNP characters. This is an anti politician policy that will really swing things in this election – please jump on board Albo and Labor.

  32. Ltep – Plibersek is Labor’s best bet should Albo go under. More likely Chalmers gets burned through first ( a la Downer) and Littlefinger returns in mid 2024 for a 2025 poll in that scenario.

  33. Insiders Sunday, 17 Apr

    Campaign Special – 9:01 AM – 10:29 AM [88 mins )

    David Speers joins Samantha Maiden, Andrew Probyn and Peter Hartcher for a 90 minute election special looking at the first week of the campaign including Anthony Albanese’s jobs gaffe, a federal integrity commission and more

    Guests – Marise Payne And Mark Butler

  34. Lib kill Albo TV add just on ch9. Memes of retirees tax and his apparent hypocrisy on coal.
    And on the “Albo is an unknown” meme wasn’t Albo a regular for ages on morning TV (Today or Sunrise with Chris Pine)?

  35. Confessions @ #NaN Saturday, April 16th, 2022 – 4:41 am

    Taxpayers have funded $55.6 billion in federal grants over less than four years under rules that give ministers sweeping powers to decide the payments, with new research fuelling an election row over calls to establish a national integrity commission to safeguard public funds.

    The findings show the grants reached $20 billion last year alone across federal departments from health to transport and industry, revealing the scale of the payments and sparking a new proposal for tighter rules and stricter oversight to prevent corruption.

    After Prime Minister Scott Morrison refused to commit to setting up an integrity commission in the next term of parliament, former judges have stepped up their calls for a powerful watchdog and accused him of breaking his election promise three years ago to act on the problem.

    Labor leader Anthony Albanese will sharpen the divide on the key issue of trust in politics on Saturday by pledging to pass laws this year to establish a federal integrity watchdog, with a challenge to Morrison to deliver on a promise made 1200 days ago.

    https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/taxpayers-fund-55-6-billion-in-federal-grants-over-less-than-four-years-20220415-p5adrg.html

    It wouldn’t be so bad if we actually got value for money. But as we’ve seen most of these ‘grants’ are allocated in LNP seats and towards projects that offer little value to the public.

    The Government should be able to write the rules and say how much money is available.

    After that the process should be completely out of their hands.

  36. Tele headline: “Labor insiders spill the beans on Albo’s shitshow”

    I wonder who these insiders could be? Could it be the same people Beattie referred to as “backstabbers” yesterday?

  37. Good morning all and thank you, BK. Beautiful sunny day today. A cool single figure temp but heading towards the high teens.

  38. ltep @ #27 Saturday, April 16th, 2022 – 7:32 am

    It’s hard to think of many people within Labor that would have a higher profile than Albanese though. After Albanese you’d think maybe Wong (?) would be quite high, Shorten of course. Keneally I guess from her time as NSW premier. Then who? Plibersek, Bowen. You’d think Marles recognition would be fairly low.

    Pat Dodson would also have fairly high recognition, seeing as he was the face of Indigenous reconciliation before entering parliament.

  39. If the 2022 federal election is anywhere like the trend of the 2016 federal elections, lib/nats are in serious trouble

    2016 federal election
    Lib/nats combined primary vote 42% decrease 3.5% from the 2013 federal election (45.5%)
    Net lost of 15 seats 91 seats (2013) – 76 seats (2016)

    2022 Federal election why anything under 40% in the combined primary vote for the lib/nats is impossible for them to retain government
    Lib/nats combined primary vote 41.5% (2019 federal election) currently hold 75 seats

    if the lib/nats suffer another 3.5% swing against them – the Lib/nats are heading for a 15+ seats lost

  41. Lars Von Trier says:
    Saturday, April 16, 2022 at 7:54 am

    Tele headline: “Labor insiders spill the beans on Albo’s shitshow”

    I wonder who these insiders could be? Could it be the same people Beattie referred to as “backstabbers” yesterday?
    ________________
    Littlefinger has waited 3 years to dump on Albo. The Kitching Saga, the Cameron Milner article asking where the ‘real albo’ was, the court challenge to the National Executive, now the leaks. Expect more of it.

  43. Lars, the Daily ToiletPaper is embedded in the Liberal Party Dirt Unit.

    Their job is to manufacture stories against Albo and the Labor Party. I would advise not believing a word in any of the Murdoch press.

  46. Sprocket, your loyalty to Shorten is commendable. If he pulls off dragging Albo down, this will be 3 leaders taken off the board, 2 governments destroyed and one potential Labor government. When will enough be enough?

  47. I see lars and nath are spinning like tops again this morning

    Considering how bad things are going to get in fiberal world in next few weeks, im finding all their spinning quite entertaining.

    Fun times ahead.

  48. I must say that I have some (slight) sympathy for Sarah Richards the Liberal candidate for Macquarie.

    On the one hand she wanted to impress on potential voters that she had professional qualifications and had experience in the law, whilst on the other hand she was at risk of being in breach of the law if she touted that experience in a context which implied that she was a current member of the legal profession.

    Law is one of those professions where, when you don’t hold a practice certificate, you can only realistically describe yourself as a retired practitioner or a former practitioner. An unemployed plumber, truck driver or mechanic have no such restrictions on how they chose to describe themselves.

    When you are clearly fairly young and applying for a job as a politician, the words former solicitor or barrister can beg the question “Why former, what have you done wrong?”

    So she can’t currently benefit from a professional status she once had, even if she left the profession for perfectly legitimate reasons.

  49. Can we just judge the party leaders and the governments they would lead on what they would mean to us, as opposed to tittle tattle out of school and strategically-designed leaks with ‘V for Vendetta’ inscribed on their bloody papers?

    Thank you, Katharine Murphy:

    What Morrison told voters this week, in very clear terms, was that he believes in the clash of rights between the political class and the public, the political class should win. Politicians have more of a right to safeguard their reputations than the public has to a strong anti-corruption cop on the beat keeping close watch on the most powerful people in the country.

    Given the Morrison government is excoriated semi-regularly by the Australian National Audit Office, that position is deeply troubling. We can thank Morrison’s precision communications skills for laying this choice out so clearly.

    I’d encourage voters to reflect on that very carefully.

    https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/apr/16/australia-now-remembers-scott-morrison-can-campaign-but-will-voters-forget-the-past-three-years

    Vote for Scott Morrison. Get Scott Morrison’s captain’s picks. Get Scott Morrison’s bastardisation and bowdlerisation of Australian democracy.

    Actually consider your vote. Don’t go for the titillation of petty score settling and shallow assessments.

  50. Our media have worked overtime to make the narrarive all a disaster for Albo. Granted he did stumble on some basic stats.

    The media has never been kind to team Labor.
    But the scandals surrounding the fibs will be impossible to ignore.

    Lol

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