Nice to see a couple of former ALP heavyweights in the press today.
Stephen Loosely has joined the fray with a piece arguing that Gillard may be doing a Keating in fighting the hard policy yards, and so long as she gets the time she will get the outcome.
Meanwhile John Kerin has thrown his hands up in horror at the organisational state of the ALP.
It is hard not to see a link between the two. To fulfil Loosley's statement "Keating always observed accurately that good policy is good politics," the "good policy" that the PM wants to pursue needs to be told in a way that attracts dedicated support to the party.
The irregular arrivals (asylum seekers/boat people) issue is a good place to start. The policy the Government is currently pursuing aims to INCREASE the number of people we settle as refugees, while discouraging people from making a dangerous voyage.
This is the story that message that needs to be repeated (and maybe calling those arriving "irregular arrivals" might be a good place to start).
The PM should aim to win this on its merits, not just win it because it is a safe course between the extreme Left and extreme Right.
The other issue is the insane moment developing for the "new election" position. Paul Sheehan gives it a good run this morning. Interesting to note that this is a trucker initiative - and quite frankly we've had so many truckie protests over the years that no one will notice.
But more seriously, where did we get this idea that just because a Government mid-term becomes unpopular there should be an election? I've long been an advocate of annual elections and actually think they could work. But the current thinking is sheer lunacy.
Novae Meridianae Demetae Dexter delenda est
No comments:
Post a Comment