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Tony Abbott for PM

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I thought Tony Abbott's delivery of his speech and answers to subsequent questions at the Press Club today was quite good. I missed the earlier part, but the part I saw made him look PM material. None of the "A A A A" before each answer.
 
bellenuit said:
I thought Tony Abbott's delivery of his speech and answers to subsequent questions at the Press Club today was quite good. I missed the earlier part, but the part I saw made him look PM material. None of the "A A A A" before each answer.
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I'd be rapt if he could correct that, it makes such a difference.
 
bellenuit said:
I thought Tony Abbott's delivery of his speech and answers to subsequent questions at the Press Club today was quite good. I missed the earlier part, but the part I saw made him look PM material. None of the "A A A A" before each answer.
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I only saw the tail end of the speech and the questions that followed. I thought he got a warmer applause to his speech than Julia Gillard yesterday, but one does not know the political structure of the audience, as noted by one of the questioning media.

He's backpeddled on removing Labor's means test on the Private Health Insurance rebate.
 
drsmith said:
I only saw the tail end of the speech and the questions that followed. I thought he got a warmer applause to his speech than Julia Gillard yesterday, but one does not know the political structure of the audience, as noted by one of the questioning media.

He's backpeddled on removing Labor's means test on the Private Health Insurance rebate.
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Dr , My take was that he wasn't actually backpeddling. He did say that the means testing would be revised when the fiscal timing was right. Given the fact that Labor has dug such deep debts it will take time to unwind the damage done. He said he was committed to private health for all Australians unlike Labor who want everyone on the public system.
 
drsmith said:
I only saw the tail end of the speech and the questions that followed. I thought he got a warmer applause to his speech than Julia Gillard yesterday, but one does not know the political structure of the audience, as noted by one of the questioning media.
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Given it's the Press Club, wouldn't the bias, if any, be more toward Labor?

I hope Tony Abbott won't be drawn into too much commentary about Craig Thomson. The fact that he has finally been arrested speaks for itself, and imo the Libs will be better not being too triumphant about it.
(Though, hell, it's great news.:D)
 
Ijustnewit said:
He did say that the means testing would be revised when the fiscal timing was right. Given the fact that Labor has dug such deep debts it will take time to unwind the damage done. He said he was committed to private health for all Australians unlike Labor who want everyone on the public system.
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Wouldn't it be great is politicians would make conditional statements such as this, rather than insulting our intelligence by making absolutes set in concrete.

We are intelligent enough to understand that everything can't be implemented on day 1, or even term 1. Set the goals and give the conditions under which the goals will be achieved. Voters will, IMO, be more understanding if the goals aren't achieved because the conditions for those goals weren't in place through no fault of the government. Contrast this with Labor's talk of achieving a current account surplus this year. It was not phrased in terms of "if the conditions are right" or "subject to mining revenue not falling", but they used terms like "we guarantee the surplus" and "not having a surplus is not an option".

It is their use of absolutes and then subsequent backtracking when the absolutes cannot be achieved that makes the populace so cynical about anything said by a politician.
 
bellenuit said:
Wouldn't it be great is politicians would make conditional statements such as this, rather than insulting our intelligence by making absolutes set in concrete.

We are intelligent enough to understand that everything can't be implemented on day 1, or even term 1. Set the goals and give the conditions under which the goals will be achieved. Voters will, IMO, be more understanding if the goals aren't achieved because the conditions for those goals weren't in place through no fault of the government. Contrast this with Labor's talk of achieving a current account surplus this year. It was not phrased in terms of "if the conditions are right" or "subject to mining revenue not falling", but they used terms like "we guarantee the surplus" and "not having a surplus is not an option".

It is their use of absolutes and then subsequent backtracking when the absolutes cannot be achieved that makes the populace so cynical about anything said by a politician.
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Agree. Tony Abbott made a good start in being honest with the electorate by including in his speech today to the Press Club the reality that if the Libs win government they will wipe the School Kids Bonus. His reason: we would need to make savings, and this has nothing to do with education.
 
Julia said:
Agree. Tony Abbott made a good start in being honest with the electorate by including in his speech today to the Press Club the reality that if the Libs win government they will wipe the School Kids Bonus. His reason: we would need to make savings, and this has nothing to do with education.
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Only thing I can say is that with the piggy bank empty both sides are now finally forced into tackling a lot of the middle class welfare that has bloated the budget.

Now to see if they have the stones to actually follow through. Populism is an addictive drug that both major parties have succumbed to :(
 
sydboy007 said:
Only thing I can say is that with the piggy bank empty both sides are now finally forced into tackling a lot of the middle class welfare that has bloated the budget.

Now to see if they have the stones to actually follow through. Populism is an addictive drug that both major parties have succumbed to :(
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One major problem syd.

The majority of voters in Australia are "middle class" , particularly in swinging electorates.

The Keating-Howard legacy has given previously unimaginable prospects to a population previously confined by the arid Whitlam-Fraser-Hawke years.

They like to work and save, and they will not tolerate muppets for government.

gg
 
bellenuit said:
It is their use of absolutes and then subsequent backtracking when the absolutes cannot be achieved that makes the populace so cynical about anything said by a politician.
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Oh so very true.

i also hate the way they'll take credit for any good news, and have a list of reasons if something goes wrong. You get a similar response from CEOs too.

At the end of the day no one can manage an economy. You can hopefully put the right incentives out there, have the right fiscal policy, but at the end of the day I don't think a Government can take too much credit. It's like Abbotts' 2 million jobs over 10 years statement. Is that 2 million more than would have normally been created or just 2 million? How many of the 2 million could he actually take credit for? Will he be around in 10 years? Will the LNP still be in Govt in 10 years? While it's good to have long term goals, there should also be in term milestones that can be checked to see if they are actually on their way to achieving their aims.

I'm happy with the tone from the PM and Abbott though. We might actually get some honesty from both of them, and they will hopefully work within the reality that tax revenues are quite low as a % of GDP, that the revenue growth will not be there for many years to come, and in some ways I hope it wont. The last thing this country needs is another debt fuelled binge that might make Gerry Harvey happy, but leaves us far more vulnerable to any financial shocks that come along.
 
I can't believe that Abbott is going to persist with demanding the government not accept Thomson's "tainted" vote when parliament resumes. It is a tedious and fruitless exercise.

Whether we like it or not, he represents the people of his electorate. How does the government not accept his vote? Apart from doing a silly like having one Labor MP bolting for the exit when a vote is called "to compensate", the only other way that I can think of is that the government immediately rescind a motion that has just been passed, if there was only a majority of one and that majority included Thompson's vote. But what if the motion concerns an issue that Thompson's electorate are in favour of? That's disenfranchisement.

It's a silly and childish tactic that will only make the coalition look like idiots as it will force themselves to not accept Thomson's vote too, which will mean they will have to repeat the infantile tactics used on the last occasion. It will also likely attract sympathy for Thomson, as he will be seen to have his rights not respected.

Let the court case run its course and act like adults. There are enough issues that can surface in the next 7 months that will make it impossible for a Gillard government to win, particularly the Wilson/AWU issue which is gaining traction.
 
bellenuit said:
There are enough issues that can surface in the next 7 months that will make it impossible for a Gillard government to win, particularly the Wilson/AWU issue which is gaining traction.
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An aknowledgement of how rotten to the core Labor in its current form is seen to be ?

It is Labor that has brought its present problems upon itself. No amount of Abbott, Abbott, Abbott from Labor can change that. The opposition is right to hold the government to account for the decisions of its leader and the party as a whole.
 
drsmith said:
...He's backpeddled on removing Labor's means test on the Private Health Insurance rebate.
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The Libs sound so confident of going straight into surplus, it makes me very suspicious. I think we're in for some draconian measures. Quite a few Commonwealth public servants will be scouring the want ads.

There'll be a dose of harsh reality (although parental leave will be quarantined) for those living the culture of entitlement. But never fear 'Working Familees', dollar bills will rain down on you like confetti during the campaign, just put it all by.
 
Logique said:
The Libs sound so confident of going straight into surplus, it makes me very suspicious. I think we're in for some draconian measures. Quite a few Commonwealth public servants will be scouring the want ads.

There'll be a dose of harsh reality (although parental leave will be quarantined) for those living the culture of entitlement. But never fear 'Working Familees', dollar bills will rain down on you like confetti during the campaign, just put it all by.
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I genuinely don't understand why they keep saying this. Once you get out of the partisan political commentary its well known that there are no big fat cows walking around to be slashed in the Federal Budget. Current debt piling up is driven by revenue growth short fall.
Abbott has said he will take money off the lower income earners already but that wont do a whole lot except of course hurt lower income.
 
To Mr Shermerhorn, back a page, who the machine will not seem to allow me to quote



Look I wont have it. Get me back where I'm comfortable; in the intellectual ankle deep, the hairdressers and half thought-out discombobulated rehashed but oh so soothing ratting's of Ackerman Devoid Henderson and Blot.

Sherm... I'm out back now, swept in a torrent of demanding interconnected ideas, floundering, going down for the first, now second time, thrashing now, desperate lounges toward the salve of old copies of 'New Idea' & 'WHO weakly' the insight of Richard Wilkins and my abridged Atlas Shrugged(unread)... There's no way I'll make it to September 14... blup blup blup blup blup

But this last page has dragged me from the depths and up the beach and with each pressing on my puny chest as lucidity returns from the surrounding seaward gazing huddle the murmuring becomes louder 'the boats the boats the boats' my first garbled utterance 'fear not our navel will protect us '
 
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