Turnbull demonstrates his fundamental selfishness with his decision to abandon the voters of his electorate and the people of Australia.
In a unique position to position himself as a powerbroker in the lower House by becoming an Independent and then standing again on his own terms, Turnbull will take his ball and go home.
First he wrecked the Republican referendum and now he has done his best to wreck Australia and, his ego dented, he will just wash his hands of any responsibility.
What a washout of a man.
Well done, Damian. That’s a more accurate headline. Come talk to me about Collingwood some time. Or headspace.
Damien, You’ve gone early. Possibly an American trait. Albeit, an Aussie expression. Read Annabel Crabb on ABC News. He’s not dead yet. The whole Liberal Party might be, though,. Not necessarily a bad thing.
Could it happen here? Nope! You’d have to have a spine, rather than just bone spur supporters!
The real question is what will Australia do about its enormous and growing problem with climate change? When will the right wing in that country finally be defanged enough that a government can take credible and essential action to address its growing environmental catastrophe? The droughts worsen, fires get worse, the country boils, the sea is dying, the Great Barrier Reef's death warrant has been all but signed, and the right wing continues to bury its head in the sand, determined to turn the country into a dystopian hellscape. Once again, a case of the people getting exactly what they voted for and, maybe, what they deserve.
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Tony Abbott is the big spoiler. I wish there was a law that made ex Prime Ministers ineligible to remain in parliament - but then again...I was a big John Howard fan. I'd like a centrist to lead the country. One who puts the country's future ahead of his or her own.
Were I eligible to vote, I'd be thinking of voting labour for the first time since my teens - but then again...
We often compare Australia to my home, Canada, since on the surface they seem so similar. Dig just below the surface and it reveals that they are so different from one another it beggars belief.
Never ending backbench rebellion and a strong second chamber, compared to our pliant backbench and rubber stamp Senate.
While stable Cabinets is good for efficiency, I revel in exercise of Parliaments prerogative to decide whom they have confidence in. It is sorely needed here in Canada, but maybe a little less rough and tumble. We here are for Peace, Order, and Good Government after all.
Several years ago, when Kevin Rudd, was elected to lead the country, I was stark raving mad that his party could just turn in him and replace him. I was appalled that a prime minister was being replaced without the people’s say in the matter. Having lived in the US for the last four years, I’m quite okay with a party turning on its leader and replacing him.
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@MS -- This approach requires that the party have some meaning, beyond as the club of the guys in power or seeking power.
In the US today, they pretend to, but only their own partisans pretend to believe that.
While for example Bernie could not happen in the Republican Party, he also has no real influence on those in power in DC among the Dems, or in the Dem party leadership. He's window dressing for people who are not at all like him. Those in power are Republican-Lite, "embrace the suck" compromisers.
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Politicians in Australia are supposed to be an integral part of the electoral body and deeply connected to their constituents. Unfortunately the gilded ivory tower of the Parliament House building in Canberra reflects the aloof and privileged circumstances of many politicians. The revolving door of prime ministers has a lot to do with overwhelming media scrutiny and the influence of powerful media figures on the public. Clearly there are similar issues in the USA, however it would seem to be much more difficult to remove a president from office.
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7 leaders in 11 years? when is this govt going to pull together for stable policy? we cant keep throwing out leaders everytime there is a debate on one particular policy. we might as well not a Prime Minister at all! having said that Morrison will be next; Dutton is too extreme to last long term (probably just months)
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@Roger -- That is about twice as stable as Italy. Congratulations.
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Just goes to show a country plods along with or without a leader...Lower level departments do the real work. Systems in place that take years to dismantle. That’s why the effect of Trump’s dismantling of the State Department for example, won’t be felt until long after he’s gone. As an expat watching Australian politics from abroad, one patsy seems to be replaced at regular intervals these days, but as previously stated, the country continues to function.
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The voting public need to be made more aware of the toxic meddling in our political system by an extremely influential media baron whose tentacles reach around the globe. He rescinded his Australian citizenship so that he may be involved in the media in the USA, he also has interests in the UK .
It is well known that he has been 'interfering' in Australian politics since the 1970s - witness the headlines of such newspapers as the Age, The Daily Telegraph, countless suburban papers, and listen to the shock jocks of radio 2GB and SkyNews as they hurl shrill invective and, often, outright lies at their listeners and readers.
Why does he do this? It's simple, much of this can be traced right back to this man's business interests and how that decisions made in our parliament, for the betterment of the Australian people, may impact his business empire. I refer particularly to our NBN. What was supposed to give Australians lightning fast internet access so that they may compete on a world stage in business, education, etc., was perceived as a threat , by this man, to his television streaming service ( already struggling because its' costs were too high to compete with Netflix). What did our lily- livered pollies do? Gave us NBN lite which is no better than the ADSL we had AND cut many businesses off from their client base - many are still struggling.
This spill can only be a very good thing - these politicians behind this spill are not representing us, the Australian people.
Waiting to Board our flight to Melbourne right now. What a nice distraction from the daily train wrecks in DC...
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@Daddy FrankPay attention when you get here. This is pretty much the end result of where youre country is going: an endless cycle of disruption by a minority of noisy conservatives until they are all politically dead.
Unfortunately it's still a train wreck, as you will find out.