The Gillard Government

[Judd]

snip. And, as a Rhodes scholar, he's no intellectual slouch either.

True Julia, but so is Malcolm Turnbull - awarded in 1978 - and while such individuals have my respect for their achievements, I tend not to use these as being indicative of intelligence, especially in a political climate where I think adaptability to changing circumstances and appropriately managing that change is more reflective of being intelligent. A number of members on this forum probably know of someone who could qualify for membership of Mensa but as so lacking in "intelligence" they would be lucky to be able to tie their own shoelaces.

Anyway, we will see come 14th September or beforehand if the baying hounds have their way.

 

[sails]

I don't think they are expecting him to win the election, just to put in a better loss than Gillard will. It's about containing a loss, not playing for a win. If he did win then the ALP would be nuts to remove him. I don't think Rudd is all that interested in being opposition leader either. He wants to show just how popular he is. After that, he is probably more interested in being made ambassador to the UN.

I think the unions would want one of their own in the unlikely event Rudd actually one a second election for them. It seems they have no loyalty or scruples - they dumped the more popular Rudd last time for an increasingly unpopular Julia.

Now that she is polling much worse than Rudd when she knifed him, it seems that the polling was nothing more than excuse to get rid of Rudd after he had won the election for them.

Maybe that's not the case, but it sure gives that appearance.

 

[fiftyeight]

Just watched the re-run of Q&A and in the closing comments Tony Jones makes a comment that no Labor MP has volunteered to be on the show next week, could this be a sign of something brewing?

 

[sptrawler]

I see even Bob doesn't want to get caught up with dumb and dumber.lol

http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/po...t-on-leadership-stalemate-20130618-2of0o.html

Maybe even he will vote for the coalition.

Anyway Labor has already got the answer to its problems, just go and ask McTernan.lol what a hoot

 

[bunyip]

What I find truly amazing is that Labor is likely to substantially boost their polling and their chances of winning the election if they boot out Gillard and replace her with Rudd.
People must have very short memories if they’re now going to throw their support behind a man who as PM was incompetent in the extreme and very unpopular with the electorate. So unpopular in fact that Labor was headed for a landslide defeat if they stuck with Rudd, which is precisely the reason they got rid of him.
Any voter willing to put Rudd into the top job for a second time must be naïve in the extreme.
Read below to see Rudd’s track record as PM.....it’s a nightmare of epic proportions.

..................................................................................................................................................

No matter who wins – we all lose.

It is easy to forget that it was Kevin Rudd who got us into the fiscal mess we are now in in the first place: Julia might have kept digging, but it was Kevin who dug the hole.

Don’t believe me? Have a look at Kevin’s track record.

It was Kevin who utterly destroyed our nation’s finances by taking a budget surplus and turning it into a $27 billion deficit in just one year. In two years, it reached a mind-blowing $60 billion.

It was Kevin who brought our Industrial Relations system back to the 1960’s – his Cabinet actually over-ruling Julia Gillard who wanted a more business-friendly system.The result? Plummeting international competitiveness, small business closures up 48%,and record numbers crippling strikes across Australia.

It was Kevin who depressed the economy by bringing in failed tax after failed tax after failed tax. Remember the alcopops tax, which led to teenagers binge-drinking on spirits? The Mining Tax Mark 1, which would have crippled the most productive sector of our economy? The Superannuation Tax Hike? There is one thing all economists agree on: you don’t raise taxes in an economic downturn. Kevin Rudd hiked taxes not once, buteleven times.

And as for Kevin Rudd’s so-called stimulus, no credible economist – certainly no-one outside the Labor Cheerleaders in the ABC and Fairfax press and some hard-left taxpayer funded academics – believe it did anything but flush our money down the gurgler. In fact, Treasury got so desperate to pretend it helped, they got caught out faking the numbers in “Stimulusgate” by Professor Sinclair Davidson from RMIT! For a detailed peer-reviewed Analysis shredding Treasury modelling on the stimulus, I’d advise you to read our Deputy Director John Humphreys in the prestigious ANU journalAgenda)

In fact, even The Australian Treasury and the Parliamentary Budget Offices have now admitted that the deficit is structural, unsustainable, and the result of massive over-spending – all done by the Rudd Government.

And if you think Julia Gillard’s plan to censor the media was bad, Kevin Rudd wanted tocensor the entire internet!

And this isn’t even going into the debacles of pink batts, school halls, grocery watch, and what Kevin Rudd did to our nation’s borders.

Of course, Julia Gillard took all of this, and made it worse with a tax on carbon dioxide, more spending, and more waste – but at its core, the rot began with Rudd. As I said – no matter who wins this week, we all lose.

Sadly, it seems all our media care about is who occupies the top job – not what they do once they are there.

.

 

[drsmith]

Bob Hawke has wisely chosen to stay out of the nest of vipers. He wouldn't want his legacy tarnished by this mess and I can't say I blame him.

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/polit...t-on-leadership-stalemate-20130618-2of0o.html

As for Bill Shorten, he wouldn't even be any good as part of a side show game. His head nods up and down instead of sideways and at the risk of committing overweightogyny, he also looks like he could lose a few kg.

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/the-pulse-live/politics-wrap-june-18-2013-20130618-2of5j.html

 

[drsmith]

Just watched the re-run of Q&A and in the closing comments Tony Jones makes a comment that no Labor MP has volunteered to be on the show next week, could this be a sign of something brewing?

How it might play out,

Mr Rudd's spokesman said it was likely the former prime minister would miss all or part of next week's caucus meeting - the last official caucus of this Parliament - to attend the service.

Julia Gillard will also attend the memorial and miss caucus.

It means any leadership showdown is likely to occur later next week via a special caucus meeting.

A special caucus meeting can be called by the leader of the party or via a petition with 30 signatures and 24 hours' notice.

Any new leader I doubt will want to front for questions from the Opposition in Parliament.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/na...r-caucus-meeting/story-fni0xqrb-1226665467381

As for Julia Gillard herself, she's on the plank and it's now just a question of the final push.

When it came time for questions of the Prime Minister, there were none.

"It was embarrassing," one Rudd supporter said.

"One hundred and two caucus members and no one says anything."

Another in the Rudd camp said there was "a stony silence".

"When the leader doesn't get a question, you know you've got a problem," the source said.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/nat...ls-to-move-on-pm/story-fn59niix-1226665493770

 

[drsmith]

Next Thursday after Question Time is my tip.

 

[MrBurns]

Next Thursday after Question Time is my tip.

I don't think it will happen, too late, the whole nation will just give a collective groan and the Libs will go in for the kill and there's plenty of ammo, I think they're stuck with what they have.

Their only hope would be to have him take over the week before the election and capitalise on the shock value.

 

[sptrawler]

102 caucus members and not one question.

It says it all, "we are in deep $hit".lol,lol,lol

Just proves that Australians aren't mindless morons, that believe spin and bullying tactics.
I think this election is going to be a display of a free thinking democracy.

Just shows you can't run a Country as you would a union meeting.

 

[moXJO]

I don't think it will happen, too late, the whole nation will just give a collective groan and the Libs will go in for the kill and there's plenty of ammo, I think they're stuck with what they have.

Their only hope would be to have him take over the week before the election and capitalise on the shock value.

Next week is the last week to change leader I thought.

 

[drsmith]

Labor's difficulties are now clearly getting the better of Penny Wong and the PM as evidenced in Parliament today.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/the-p...une-18-2013-20130618-2of5j.html#ixzz2WZ00PEpi



This wouldn't have helped.

2:07pm: Shadow treasurer Joe Hockey didn't get the blue tie memo (but all the the other blokes on the Coalition front bench did). Labor MPs Nick Champion, Darren Cheesman, Dick Adams, Chris Bowen, Richard Marles, Ed Husic, Stephen Jones, Joel Fitzgibbon and Kevin Rudd are also pro blue.

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/the-pulse-live/politics-wrap-june-18-2013-20130618-2of5j.html

My bolds.

 

[Julia]

I don't think it will happen, too late, the whole nation will just give a collective groan and the Libs will go in for the kill and there's plenty of ammo, I think they're stuck with what they have.

Their only hope would be to have him take over the week before the election and capitalise on the shock value.

Could they actually do that? See moXJO's post below. I'd have thought to change leaders so close to an election as that would be to abuse the rights of those who will have already voted via postal and special votes, and also seem entirely wrong, given the longest election campaign we can remember when they have presumably had more than enough time to select a leader.
Just can't see that happening, but I didn't see the assassination of Rudd coming either.

Next week is the last week to change leader I thought.

Labor's difficulties are now clearly getting the better of Penny Wong and the PM as evidenced in Parliament today.

Not just Ms Wong, it seems. Ms Gillard - in response to a question from Julie Bishop - engaged in her usual obfuscating non-answer.
I can't imagine the pressure Gillard must be feeling.

 

[MrBurns]

Could they actually do that? See moXJO's post below. I'd have thought to change leaders so close to an election as that would be to abuse the rights of those who will have already voted via postal and special votes, and also seem entirely wrong, given the longest election campaign we can remember when they have presumably had more than enough time to select a leader.
.

I think there's a precedent but cant find it right now.

 

[drsmith]

Trish Crossin's valedictory swipe at Julia Gillard,

http://media.watoday.com.au/news/na...democratic-and-not-the-labor-way-4500372.html

Ouch!

 

[drsmith]

Not just Ms Wong, it seems. Ms Gillard - in response to a question from Julie Bishop - engaged in her usual obfuscating non-answer.
I can't imagine the pressure Gillard must be feeling.

I think she's come to a realisation about what her fate will be but is still having difficulty accepting it. This is made worse by it being the men from her own side trying to facilitate her downfall as PM now more than anyone else.

Penny Wong too I feel is in the same place regarding as Julia Gillard as PM.

 

[Calliope]

Bill Shorten takes an apocalyptic fit.

 

[jank]

Your POV is delusional IMO.
I think Abbott will surprise a lot of people with his competence in the top job.
Labor is gone for years = good for Australia

Never under estimate the short term thinking of the electorate. We see it all over the world, at least I have. Paries once thought dead and buried are back in power after a few Years. Don't forget Australia is due a nasty recession and property crash.
I would love the alp to be dead and buried but I am not delusional or that naive.

 

[drsmith]

Never under estimate the short term thinking of the electorate. We see it all over the world, at least I have. Paries once thought dead and buried are back in power after a few Years. Don't forget Australia is due a nasty recession and property crash.
I would love the alp to be dead and buried but I am not delusional or that naive.

As has been the case with NSW Labor, I suspect the aftershocks of federal Labor's present problems will remind the electorate for some time to come.

Much though will also depend on the performance of the Coalition in government. They have a difficult task ahead and one I hope they don't underestimate or take for granted.

 

[McLovin]

Could they actually do that? See moXJO's post below. I'd have thought to change leaders so close to an election as that would be to abuse the rights of those who will have already voted via postal and special votes, and also seem entirely wrong, given the longest election campaign we can remember when they have presumably had more than enough time to select a leader.
Just can't see that happening, but I didn't see the assassination of Rudd coming either.

That's an interesting question, Julia. I'd hazard that it doesn't matter because, in theory, we are electing a member to the parliament not electing a leader.

What would be interesting is if say Rudd wins the Labor leadership after Parliament rises but before the writs are issued and the independents say they have lost faith in the government. Can the GG recall the parliament in order to test confidence in the government? Obviously if it wasn't, then both houses could be dissolved which would create a far worse scenario for Labor than an ordinary election. If the independents said they were swapping to support the Coalition then it could get even more farcical with Abbott becoming the caretaker PM until September elections.