Re: Aus Federal Politics thread (XI)

[JGK]

And Science.

[taipan]

They reckon he's home.

Good to see that the Coalition has already achieved something.

Looks like it's abolished climate change.

I didn't realise they were that powerful

[JGK]

Not politics but the bad person in me is having a little smile today...

http://www.smh.com.au/business/hadley-hocks-homes-as-taxing-times-take-toll-20130922-2u7v9.html

[horace]

aye...who are the other Ozmaniacs that one could have a secret smile if they went down the tubes...Rheinhard?...Murdoch...Jack Elliot (oh yes I had forgotten that corrupt turkey has already gone to the wall)

[Bradman]

The price of tickets to the finals did seem a bit steep. I can't tell from this article what Hadley's beef was.

[embee]

Australian Sports Party hopeful Wayne Dropulich looks set to miss out on a WA Senate spot, after a late shift in the projected results.
The ABC's vote count is now predicting that both Mr Dropulich and the incumbent Greens Senator Scott Ludlam will miss out.
In their places, Labor's Louise Pratt is poised to hold on to her Senate seat, and Zhenya Wang of the Palmer United Party is also on course to be elected.
With 89.14 per cent of votes counted, the results are now firming up, with the Liberals already having claimed three of the six available seats.
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Labor's top pick Joe Bullock has also been elected.
Early projections indicated that preferences would deliver Mr Dropulich to Canberra despite the Australian Sports Party attracting a primary vote of just 0.23 per cent.
That prospect fed into a debate about the growing prominence of microparties, particularly after Mr Dropulich's revelation that he did not have policy positions on any issues besides sport.
The Palmer United Party polled a more respectable 5 per cent of the primary vote, although it is projected to trump the Greens, who attracted more than 9 per cent.
A spokesperson for the Australian Electoral Commission said the results would not be finalised until the end of this week.
Assuming a typical participation rate of around 93 per cent, that leaves about 4 per cent of the total vote still to be counted.
Ms Pratt has been an outspoken critic of Tony Abbott's new government while waiting to find out if she will retain her Senate seat.
In an interview with Fairfax last week, she said it was "extraordinarily alarming" that Tony Abbott's cabinet contains just a solitary woman in Foreign Minister Julie Bishop.
She described the lack of a climate change ministry as an "incredibly large oversight", alongside the axing of portfolios for science, youth, mental health and ageing.
If elected, Ms Pratt would be among a contingent of prospective Senators expected to block the Abbott government's legislation to repeal the carbon price.
But the absence of Scott Ludlam would remove another Senator expected to fight hard against the legislation.
The race remains among the tightest in the country, and depends on a complicated system of preference flows.
Election analyst Antony Green said it comes down to a race between the Australian Christians and the Shooters and Fishers Party.
"If Dropulich survives and the Christians outpoll the Shooters and Fishers then Dropulich and Green Scott Ludlam are elected," he said.
But if, as now seems likely, Mr Dropulich is eliminated and the Shooters and Fishers outpoll the Christians, then Ms Pratt and Mr Wang will be victorious.


Read more: http://www.watoday.com.au/wa-news/sports-party-and-greens-set-to-miss-out-on-senate-20130923-2u9ax.html#ixzz2fh67maxQ

[JGK]

Good news for Abbott. Means that the Carbon Tax is gonski from 1 July.

[JGK]

Meanwhile, the new Lib lass is certainly showing her credentials to represent Dobell after Thommo...

The new federal Liberal MP for Dobell, Karen McNamara, has been drawn into controversy about political donations on the NSW central coast due to her role as campaign manager for a state MP whose office has been raided by corruption authorities.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/karen-mcnamara-dragged-into-controversy-about-political-donations-20130923-2u9kh.html#ixzz2fhLeLjR9

[horace]

"Election analyst Antony Green said it comes down to a race between the Australian Christians and the Shooters and Fishers Party.
"If Dropulich survives and the Christians outpoll the Shooters and Fishers then Dropulich and Green Scott Ludlam are elected," he said.
But if, as now seems likely, Mr Dropulich is eliminated and the Shooters and Fishers outpoll the Christians, then Ms Pratt and Mr Wang will be victorious."

....wow...the wozzies are mounting a challenge on the Qbillies for the title of 'most red necked Hicksville state'

[embee]

[skully]

[snigger]

I see Albo is trying hard to usurp Krudd's role as the biggest showpony clown in the Pinko ranks. And Shorten is just...well...a dud.

[JGK]

Voters have approved of Prime Minister Tony Abbott's performance over his first days in office.

The first post-election poll to gauge voter approval ratings, conducted by Essential Media, has found 41 per cent of voters approved Mr Abbott's performance, with 36 per cent disapproving.

The poll released on Tuesday put the coalition's primary vote at 43 per cent, down 2.5 points on the election result, and Labor on 37 per cent, up 3.5 points.

Voters preferred Mr Abbott over Labor leadership aspirant Bill Shorten 37 per cent to 32 per cent.

The margin between Mr Abbott and Mr Albanese, the other Labor leadership contender, was 37-31.

© 2013 AAP

[horace]

Albanese at least has a sense of humour...this will make him unelectable

[JGK]

Looks like the Sex Party fell 244 votes short in Tassie.

PUP could now have 4 Senators.

[JGK]

So, the Coalition cabinet is based on merit and experience - hence no chicks. But Abbott doesn't even trust his ministers to talk to the press without his office's approval.

Sounds like Abbott thinks he is the only person in cabinet with any merit. It's Kruddy all over again.

Button up: Abbott to keep ministers in check

September 26, 2013
Heath Aston
Political reporter

Tony Abbott, who once described Kevin Rudd as a ''hyper-control freak'' for his autocratic media management, has gagged his own ministers from media interviews without prior approval from the Prime Minister's office.

The communications clampdown was issued hours after Education Minister Christopher Pyne revealed in an interview with Fairfax Media the government's agenda to take an axe to the university sector.

It comes less than a week after Immigration Minister Scott Morrison put the announcement of asylum seeker boat arrivals behind a curtain of censorship.

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Mr Abbott has declared his personal intention to be measured in his media appearances and ''take politics off the front page''.

In an email leaked to The Australian Financial Review, Mr Abbott's senior press secretary, James Boyce, informs ministerial staff that all requests for interviews, right down to ABC local outlets, must be vetted by Kate Walshe who has taken over leadership of communications in Mr Abbott's office.

"All media co-ordination and requests should go through Kate first. This covers all national media interviews on television, radio and print. This includes any ABC local radio or ABC television interviews, the Sunday program, Sky News, and metropolitan print media longer-format interviews, etc,'' he wrote.

"With any regular appearances on shows such as Sky AM Agenda, they should first have been coordinated through Kate at least the day before."

Mr Boyce said there was no change in process to how the Coalition operated in opposition.

The directive jogged memories inside Labor of Mr Abbott blasting Mr Rudd in 2007 after it was revealed that all media releases from government bodies must go through his department.

''It seems like an early exercise in hyper-control by the new Prime Minister's office,'' Mr Abbott said at the time. ''A lot of people said before the election that Kevin Rudd would turn out to be a bit of a control freak and this seems to be an interesting suggestion that those fears were quite well grounded.''

On Wednesday, it was revealed Mr Abbott's office, led by chief of staff Peta Credlin, had intervened to stop Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull going through with the clean-out of the board of the NBN before Mr Abbott's office could have input.

Mr Abbott wanted a board still in place while cabinet considers a new leadership, expected to feature former Telstra boss Ziggy Switkowski.

A spokesman for Mr Turnbull said regulatory requirements were that any director removed by the minister had to be approved by the Prime Minister's office.



Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/button-up-abbott-to-keep-ministers-in-check-20130925-2uelx.html#ixzz2fx8uRlvu

[embee]

[skully]

Saw an interview on Sky. The glasses are gone and she spoke at a normal tempo, instead of the heinous grating, slow nasally drawl. Came across as so much more genuine than when she was acting out McTernan's bullshit manufactured persona.

[JGK]

Saw an interview on Sky. The glasses are gone and she spoke at a normal tempo, instead of the heinous grating, slow nasally drawl. Came across as so much more genuine than when she was acting out McTernan's bullshit manufactured persona.

Aye. She was so poorly advised while PM.

[skully]

McTernan & Hawker would have to go down as the two greatest behind-the-scenes misguided arseclowns ever to be involved in Aus Politics.

[JGK]

McTernan & Hawker would have to go down as the two greatest behind-the-scenes misguided arseclowns ever to be involved in Aus Politics.

Whereas Peta Credlin is fast getting Karl Rove status.

[embee]

McTernan & Hawker would have to go down as the two greatest behind-the-scenes misguided arseclowns ever to be involved in Aus Politics.

Whereas Peta Credlin is fast getting Karl Rove status.

Kim Beazley thinks she is Rove McManus?

[skully]

Milne in trouble?

"Greens leader Christine Milne has denied her leadership is in doubt after revelations that six of her senior staff have quit.

Among the staff to resign is Senator Milne's chief of staff Ben Oquist, who released a statement saying he quit due to "fundamental differences of opinion on strategy".

The other staff are believed to include Senator Milne's climate change advisor, economics advisor and campaign coordinator.
...
Senator Milne played down the statement from Mr Oquist, who had also worked with former Greens leader Bob Brown, telling Lateline they did have differing opinions but they were related to office matters rather than party strategy.

She also dodged a question about whether the resignations were a vote of no confidence in her leadership."

--------------------------------

On top of the win by the Good Guys in the Fed Election, the demise of the heinous & hateful withered old windbag Milne would make my year. I would've settled for SHY getting the arse from the Senate, but she seems to have survived.  

[Big Dog]

Senator Milne denied that the Greens need to readdress their strategy in light of the recent election, where they lost more than 500,000 voters.

I think therein lies the problem.   Stoopid bint.

[embee]

Simon Sheikh doesn't get into the Senate ... how sad

[horace]

and the attack poodle has been muzzled by the MadMonk...

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