Anthony Albanese MP Reflects on the Government’s 300th Bill Passing Through the House
3:27 Mar 23rd, 2012 | 1 note
The US Republican Party has been dubbed the ‘Party of No’ for its program of perpetual obstruction. Or, as former presidential hopeful Sarah Palin helpfully described it, the ‘Party of Hell No’. The Republican how-to manual seems to be firmly in the grasp of Tony Abbott as he sets out each day to rally his Noalition troops. There is nothing constructive in this manual. There is nothing in it about building a better Australia. Its sole instruction is to oppose everything and, hopefully, destroy the government in the process. And, just like in the US, the conservative leader is aided by his friends outside the Parliament with very deep pockets.
It’s hard to imagine the despair then, at the conclusion of the autumn session, as Coalition troops head home for the recess. For the Gillard Labor Government has just achieved something of a milestone with the passing of the 300th bill through the House of Representatives. All the bluster, all the raucousness, all the desperate opposition to everything, has not actually translated into any parliamentary success for this Opposition which has failed to knock back one single bill.
(Source: anthonyalbanese.com.au)
The Foreign Mystery: The Labor Party appears to enjoy shooting itself in the foot over and over again.
11:24 Mar 2nd, 2012 | 1 note
It’s almost as if we’re watching ‘Act II’ of a widely acclaimed piece of theatrical political satire. The first act was genius, but left many foreigners scratching their heads at such a weird plot. The Economist called it a ‘psychodrama’ about ‘good old-fashioned personal lothing’, making the connection with one of the production’s main influences: the Punch and Judy Show. TIME Magazine commented that the first act ‘doesn’t quite make sense’, while Slate Magazine none-the-less called it ‘amusing’. And The Guardian rather harshly editorialized that the show was more like a ‘soap opera’ than anything else.
Now, the show goes on.
Just a reminder to everyone; it was the Monday just passed that the Labor leadership ballot occured. Not at some distant point in the past, but last Monday. Four days ago. Mere days cannot pass before the Labor Party decides it is time for another damaging spectacle than achieves nothing and leaves me banging my head against the desk.
The Economist has a great post about Labor’s leadership troubles that went up yesterday. Here are the more memorable highlights:
“Ms Gillard has come out of her bitter rivalry with Mr Rudd as a strengthened leader who will be able to stare down her critics. Their fight, after all, was never about policy or strategic direction.”
“In the end, her colleagues held their nerves: they voted for the woman they liked, not the man voters liked better, in what amounted to a refreshing repudiation of poll-driven politics.”
“But her delivery showed a steeliness and a confidence that has been missing up to now. She has prevailed twice over Mr Rudd in a leadership contest, and once over Tony Abbott, the opposition leader, in a federal election. Her challenge will be to use these victories as a springboard to re-build her relationship with voters.”
Read the entire post here, and while you’re at it, The Economist have a tumblr which you should follow.
Dear Friend,
I’m sure you’ll have closely followed the leadership election.
As a member of the ALP I wanted to write to you personally about those events.
I share the frustration of many Labor Party members when you see the Party turning inwards.
Well yesterday we put that behind us. I received the overwhelming support of my colleagues to continue as Labor’s Leader and as Prime Minister. I thank them for their faith in me and my capacity to lead the nation.
Members of the ALP are passionate people – it’s because we have a great cause. And that is the welfare and the well-being of our great country.
Our determination to build a stronger and fairer Australia could not be greater – and ultimately, that outweighs everything else.
For the record, I would like to acknowledge the many achievements of Kevin Rudd as a former Prime Minister and Foreign Minister.
We must honour without reservation Kevin’s leadership during the global financial crisis, his proud achievements for reconciliation, his strong advocacy for his nation on the world stage and so much more.
As we face the future, I accept there are things I need to do better.
The fact is that while good policy stands on its own, the job of governments is to strongly advocate for that policy, to strongly advocate for change. And we need to do that better – to make the case, to explain it fully, to connect each of our reforms to our vision for Australia.
I don’t have a defeatist bone in my body and I know that if we unite and work hard we will win in 2013 and entrench our reforms.
I know there’s a lot of work to do to convince the Australian people that we’re on track.
And we all understand that we don’t have a day to lose.
My commitment to you as ALP members is to continue to be guided by what is right for the country – not newspaper polls; to govern for working people first; to ensure they’re the biggest beneficiaries of our strong economy - and not just the fortunate few.
Above all, to keep on getting things done in the interests of working Australians.
Words are important, but action is even more so. I’m proud of what my government has delivered, but I’m not satisfied.
Because there’s so much more to do.
This year we will be moving on with our agenda. Rolling out the National Broadband Network. Putting a price on carbon and building a clean energy economy. Introducing new ideas for schools. Helping workers who need new skills. And taking the next steps in introducing a National Disability Insurance Scheme.
I look forward to your ongoing support and involvement as we continue with our great objective.
Julia
—Prime Minister Gillard, in an impassioned letter to Labor Party members sent out today
Labor’s Next Problem
11:00 Feb 27th, 2012 | 3 notes
‘Haha there are so many, James, where do you even begin?’
Yes, yes, you’ve had your fun. Back to work.
Prime Minister Gillard has one glaring problem staring her in the face as we speak: four of her ministers voted for Kevin Rudd in the leadership ballot this morning. This can mainly be seen as a result of Labor Party politics. Labor leaders do not historically choose their own cabinets; the caucus does. No points for guessing who chose to buck this trend. Hint: his name rhymes with ‘Kevin Rudd’.
If there isn’t a major cabinet reshuffle before the next election (sooner rather than later), the Liberal party need not bother to write any ads, and could instead run clips of Labor ministers speaking out in support of someone who is not their party leader:
I remember having discussions about John Howard and the consensus in the body politic being John Howard would not be defeated until he retired. Kevin Rudd proved that to be wrong in a massive election victory in 2007 and I think the man who beat John Howard is best placed to beat Tony Abbott.
— Chris Bowen: Immigration Minister
I’m a party loyalist, I’ve always sought to serve the interests of the Labor Party, I’ll be supporting him (Rudd) and I think that he will do very, very well in this coming parliament … We’ve all learned from the unhappy events of the last little while. It’s my opinion that the man has a great breadth of vision and a commitment to the future of this country that stands us in good stead.
— Kim Carr: Manufacturing Minister
Kevin Rudd is best placed to take on Tony Abbott and potentially [in the] best position for us to win the next election. It’s on the basis of that assessment that I have declared my position today as I should.
— Martin Ferguson: Resources Minister
He has overwhelming public support and I don’t think that we can ignore the fact that he has won an election from opposition.
— Robert McClelland: Minister for Housing, Homelessness and Emergency Management
So there’s that. But the optics of turfing out four ministers straight after they voted for the other guy probably wouldn’t look much better than keeping them there.
Either way, this is something Labor must get ahead of before the Liberals start using it against them. Time to go on the offensive. ‘Game on’ again, I guess.
(quotes via the ABC)
Retrospective
8:41 Feb 27th, 2012 | 1 note
I’ve often wondered why there hasn’t been an Australian political TV drama, and then I realized that it would have a hard time competing with reality.
Time for a bit of retrospective. I don’t think anyone would assume that tonight the caucus is sitting around the campfire singing Kumbayah and toasting marshmallows. From what I’ve been reading, the level of vitriol we heard Labor parliamentarians flinging at each other is almost unparalleled. What I think is more troubling about this whole episode, however, is the way policy discussion has been treated by the party. Rather than being the first thing mentioned in front of the cameras, it has been used by Labor members deflecting tool away from the spill. Not exactly comforting, and not exactly a good way to sell policy.
However, we should not presume that the Labor party is in tatters—it’s just not going to win the next election (or two, or three). If you recall, the Liberal Party came out of their 2009 leadership spill far more divided:
Labor Party 2012 Leadership Ballot:
- Julia Gillard - 71 caucus votes (69.6%)
- Kevin Rudd - 31 caucus votes (30.4%)
Liberal Party 2009 Leadership Ballot:
- Tony Abbott - 42 caucus votes (50.6%)
- Malcolm Turnbull - 41 caucus votes (49.4%)
Like many, I hope todays ballot puts the soap opera to bed. I think we’re all in the mood for politics more akin a boring documentary—for at least the next seventeen months at least.
"There’s no way Labor would be so stupid as to even think about changing leaders again during this term. It would be electoral suicide to even mention leadership change. They won’t do it."
- Me, for the past two years. Guess I was wrong.9:01 Feb 24th, 2012 | 4 notes
In amongst all the turmoil in the Labor Party, this picture is still amazing in every way.
Kevin Rudd has confirmed two things – that the faceless men are running the Labor Party and that the instability at the top of this government is damaging our country.
Kevin Rudd’s statement tonight confirms that this government is unworthy to continue in office.
Only the Coalition can provide the strong and stable government that will address the issues facing our country and restore hope, reward and opportunity for all Australians.
Tony Abbott MHR, Leader of the Opposition—and the man Labor is handing the 2013 election to—on the resignation of Kevin Rudd. I despair.
(Source: tonyabbott.com.au)
