Thread: Abbott is going to go

Abbott the budgie smuggler will be deposed



Turnbull the puppet of Murdoch has publicly made his challenge for the leadership

Malcolm Turnbull, former Liberal opposition leader and communications minister, has announced he is launching a challenge to Tony Abbott's leadership during a packed press conference.
Here is his speech in full:
A little while ago, I met with the Prime Minister and advised him that I would be challenging him for the leadership of the Liberal Party, and I asked him to arrange or facilitate a meeting of the partyroom to enable a leadership ballot to be held.
Of course, I've also resigned as communications minister. Now this is not a decision that anyone could take lightly. I have consulted with many, many colleagues, many Australians, many of our supporters in every walk of life.
This course of action has been urged on me by many people over a long period of time. It is clear enough that the Government is not successful in providing the economic leadership that we need.
It is not the fault of individual ministers. Ultimately, the Prime Minister has not been capable of providing the economic leadership our nation needs. He has not been capable of providing the economic confidence that business needs.
Now, we are living as Australians in the most exciting time. The big economic changes that we're living through here and around the world offer enormous challenges and enormous opportunities and we need a different style of leadership.

In full: Malcolm Turnbull's press conference announcing challenge to Tony Abbott's leadership - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Don’t think the Liberal Party will all get behind Malcolm Turnbull if he is elected leader

THE Liberal Party faces the threat of a civil war if Malcolm Turnbull replaces the hero of 2013, Tony Abbott.

The so-called base of the party despises the man from Sydney’s eastern suburbs. Their hostility will bar them from giving him a smooth entry to the Prime Minister’s office.
The term “the base” is not accurate. In no way are its members the foundation of the party.

It’s simply a name for the ultra conservative minority, a few shards of reactionary thought urged on by right wing Liberal Party agitators in the media.

But they know how to hate and will not want to give up their sense of entitlement to dictate to other Liberals which they believe they gained when Mr Abbott rolled Mr Turnbull in 2009.

Mr Turnbull’s primary defence will be in two ranks. In the first rank will be the dozens of Liberal MPs who accept the consistent thumping the Government has received in opinion polls was an undeniable sign they were done for.

The polls indicate there are at east 30 of them and even the MPs not as vulnerable as them see they would lose Government. Malcolm Turnbull is their best hope of survival.
The second defensive line is Foreign Minister Julie Bishop who confirmed to Mr Abbott he had lost critical support. The fact Abbott did not see his deputy as an active dissident underlines his disconnect with his colleagues.

She will be seen as the knife wielder, not Mr Turnbull. It’s largely a debating point as to who struck the leader first, but in party debater terms it will be important.
A key question will be whether the Malcolm Turnbull who becomes Prime Minister is the same Malcolm Turnbull of old.

It is likely he will continue policies on climate change, and a national vote on same sex marriage — policies on which he had alternative views. We know he wants the marriage act changed now and endorses a market response to carbon reduction but will not impose himself on the existing Abbott programs.

He will instead sell those programs, and a few of his own, in a way he believes will be more convincing and politically effective than the tendency for diktat by Mr Abbott.
Another substantial bonus for Mr Turnbull will be that Mr Abbott’s chief of staff Peta Credlin will no longer be enforcing that atmosphere of diktat.
A breakdown in relations between Ms Bishop and Ms Credlin led to the Foreign Minister leading the Turnbull offensive.

Liberal Party leadership spill: Malcolm Turnbull still has enemies

What happened today, I cannot really comment as I know little about Australian politics ,but interesting that our Aussie cousins can keep us updated. Thanks Bruce.

Abbott got the boot and my MP got in - good. Let's see how he does before the knives are out

Originally Posted by wasabi

What happened today, I cannot really comment as I know little about Australian politics ,but interesting that our Aussie cousins can keep us updated. Thanks Bruce.

Heh...

Originally Posted by Boon Mee

Originally Posted by wasabi

What happened today, I cannot really comment as I know little about Australian politics ,but interesting that our Aussie cousins can keep us updated. Thanks Bruce.

Heh...

Excellent contribution, BM - but why are you posting in an Australian thread?

You stated clearly that only Americans could post in an American thread . . . so?

But yes, good contribution, like most of yours.

Wasabi - nothing spectacular - this seems to happen quite often lately that a sitting PM is usurped - not quite a democracy as we know it, but it's Aussie style. The leader that led a party to victory is dumped (in this case not a bad thing)

Has our Queen appointed the next ruler of our distant outpost yet?