Australian Politics

[frenchkiwi]

Just read this:

Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd is reportedly being urged to challenge Julia Gillard for the leadership this month.

Senior Labor figures are pushing for Mr Rudd to move to take back the top job as early as the second last week of November, News Limited reported today.

Senior sources within the party's NSW right claim support is leaking away from Ms Gillard, who is in France for the G20 leaders' meeting.

"There are three things that are certain: there is a leadership challenge under way, Rudd doesn't have a majority yet but has enough numbers to be a contender, and they are strategising about how to get it done," a senior NSW right-wing source was quoted as saying.

But there was reportedly mixed support for the idea of an early move, with some MPs claiming they would "deliver the leadership" to Mr Rudd in February if he waited.

- AAP

Need someone to explain please. All i could think of was:

A- MPs decide they don't like being ruled by a woman after all

B- Large corporate power buying off MPs and have promised Rudd the throne again in exchange for some policy e.g. don't tax us.

C- Cunning electoral ploy by the party - you voters don't need to change the government, we do it for you regularly enough anyway

...?

[frenchkiwi]

"Senior sources within the party's NSW right claim..."

of course, could just be the rumour mill fabricating some news... NSW a long way from Canberra haha

[Warren]

Well it can be explained like this.

Some dogs return to their own vomit and Kevin has always been a little puke.

It really comes down to Labor knowing that they are finished and if they stay with Guillard they will be gone perhaps faster then if they dig up the rotting corpse of Rudd.

They are hoping that we stupid Australians have forgotten just how appalling Rudd was as PM, heck he was even intensely disliked by his own party when he was in office.

If the dog does eat it's own vomit then I think it's time we call the Vet and have it put to sleep.

[Trevor2118]

Well it can be explained like this.

Some dogs return to their own vomit and Kevin has always been a little puke.

It really comes down to Labor knowing that they are finished and if they stay with Guillard they will be gone perhaps faster then if they dig up the rotting corpse of Rudd.

They are hoping that we stupid Australians have forgotten just how appalling Rudd was as PM, heck he was even intensely disliked by his own party when he was in office.

If the dog does eat it's own vomit then I think it's time we call the Vet and have it put to sleep.

[bolivr]

It's a soap opera without the plot.

There is absolutely no reason to get rid of Gillard if only to bring Rudd back. Sorry I can't make sense of it, but I do know one thing; which ever one is 'leading' we still have stupid tobacco laws to come.

[Fuzz]

I've seen better political skills from a primary school prefect...

[Trevor2118]

..........but he's smart enough to wait until after the next election IMO.

"Smart" is an odd word to use when discussing politics.

[mazolaman]

You could always try Greek,Italian or even European politics for that matter.

Whatever the nationality,or leaning,they may not be clever,but they are usually cunning....

[Ken Gargett]

we may not always (ever?) agree on rugby but clearly we are both on the same page as to aussie politics - absolutely befuddled.

certainly, not A - most of the blokes in her party look better in dresses than she does and she is certainly tougher than most.

nor B. as much as business (and mosty of the rest of us) might think abbott is a grumpy little godbothering dishonest worm who'd sell his mother for a vote and who really isn't terribly bright, they think (hopefully rightly) they'll be better off with him than either rudd or giilard (and i say this as someone from a family where my mother is utterly mortified because apparently gilliard originally comes from a small village on the welsh border, about two miles away from where mum's family hails and some of them have the name, you guessed it - gillard).

C? they are not that clever. they really aren't. something about deckchairs and icebergs springs to mind.

the bizarre thing about all of this was that rudd really only got the job as opp leader because the alp knew they were stuffed under beasley, relatively nice guy that he might have been. latham was a nightmare, swan is a moron and crean was from the last century. few other options but the big bonus was supposed to be that because everyone in the labour party (bar about two people from his electorate and a few mangy dogs) utterly detested rudd, who was pushing very hard for it, they thought that if they gave it to him, they assumed he'd get done and they'd be rid of the grub (and that is almost word perfect from a mate who is very highly placed within the alp, not my words).

then he shocked them by winning but the vultures behind the party always wanted him out, so as soon as the rudd express became so obviously derailed, he was gone. gillard has been a specatular failure, which they didn't see coming. this is why rudd sees an opportunity to get back (and make no mistake, since the moment he was ousted, he has been angling for it). problem is that so much of the party detests him beyond almost anything, for some he is on a par with abbott. some have even said they'd quit if he came back, meaning an instant election. the party seems to have forgotten that rudd had gone from hugely popular - everything he did was solely about advancing kevin rudd and eventually that comes unstuck - to as welcome as crap in a bed.

who knows what will happen? they seem to be gone for the next election so either desparate enough to try anything or perhaps thinking at least this time, we really will get rid of rudd.

and anyone who thinks rudd is not angling for it - think about that concert for kids that he bullied his way into - he is a disgusting peice of excrement. he is the most arrogant, egotistical, self-interested scum on the planet (and in case this is seen along party lines, i assure you my opinion of abbott is almost as bad). for those that missed it, during the CHOGM conference hosted by the prime minister, he gets up on stage and carries on at a kid's concert, knowing the media will lap it up and he'll steal the headlines. he could not stand to allow anyone else have the spotlight for a second. i'd report on a few other things he has done but it might give away the source and cause embarrassment but suffice to say he makes my skin crawl).

the best thing for australia would be a fast bus going right over the top of him (and then setting sights on a few more).

[ARRV]

Sad day in Australian politics where your choice is between Gillard, Rudd and Abbott. Has it ever been this bad? Basically the public is split between who they detest the least.

And Gillard is only there at present thanks to two NSW country independents who you can bet will not survive the next election as they have betrayed their electorates in any event by siding with her.

[frenchkiwi]

Well it can be explained like this.

Some dogs return to their own vomit and Kevin has always been a little puke.

It really comes down to Labor knowing that they are finished and if they stay with Guillard they will be gone perhaps faster then if they dig up the rotting corpse of Rudd.

They are hoping that we stupid Australians have forgotten just how appalling Rudd was as PM, heck he was even intensely disliked by his own party when he was in office.

If the dog does eat it's own vomit then I think it's time we call the Vet and have it put to sleep.

ha ha - that is a brilliant analogy with particular resonance for parliamentary politics - love it.

[frenchkiwi]

we may not always (ever?) agree on rugby but clearly we are both on the same page as to aussie politics - absolutely befuddled.

too right, my superficial impressions of Rudd match up with your detailed description... surely they will not go back to him??

sounds like there needs to be a generational cleanout if none of these boys and tomboys are fit to be figureheads. although you can thank your lucky stars that you don't have the french elitist tradition where all the MPs come from the same exclusive school and dodgy deals are made in function of who slept with who way back then.

i'm just thankful that over this side of the ditch, PM and party in power have a lot less power than under our former non-proportional voting system... "who's who" is now relatively less important than party policies when heading to ballot box (not that the nitwit media have really cottoned on to that). So a bit easier to ignore the distasteful personalities involved.

[Rehman]

Any politicians here? If so, why would you bother? Over here it's simple: you can get rich and laid. Is it the same over there?

[Fuzz]

Any politicians here? If so, why would you bother? Over here it's simple: you can get rich and laid. Is it the same over there?

Admitting you're a pollie in Australia these days will most likely get you lynched instead of laid.

[Ken Gargett]

Admitting you're a pollie in Australia these days will most likely get you lynched instead of laid.

we did have the horrorfying situation of a few years ago when we discovered that gareth gareth evans was knocking of cheryl, the feather duster (sorry, boa) kernot. and if that doesn't make you claw your eyes out, nothing will.

[frenchkiwi]

Well it can be explained like this.

Some dogs return to their own vomit and Kevin has always been a little puke.

It really comes down to Labor knowing that they are finished and if they stay with Guillard they will be gone perhaps faster then if they dig up the rotting corpse of Rudd.

They are hoping that we stupid Australians have forgotten just how appalling Rudd was as PM, heck he was even intensely disliked by his own party when he was in office.

If the dog does eat it's own vomit then I think it's time we call the Vet and have it put to sleep.

[Revives thread with still-applicable quote] Plus ca change...