Kevin Rudd ends the year on a remarkable high. He has pushed Malcolm Turnbull, whom we all expected to make life more difficult for the Government, back to Nelsonesque polling numbers. Employment held up in November, despite near-negative economic growth. His stimulus package is rolling out, and it won’t be the last handout. He’s copping criticism from both the Left and Right for his climate change strategy — right where he wants to be. And the Opposition is in disarray, fighting amongst themselves, keeping the political focus on internal divisions — exactly where they were for much of the year.
That’s the politics.
In policy terms, Rudd ends the year with major challenges. His seeming willingness to corrupt an emissions trading scheme in favour of looking after rentseekers and commencing with a virtually notional target represents the smallest of steps forward from where the Howard Government would have taken Australia. The financial crisis has removed at a stroke the surpluses Labor was relying on to fund its infrastructure, education, health and Commonwealth-State reform agenda. The Government seems more committed to propping up unviable manufacturing industries than encouraging innovation. And above all, 2009 will almost certainly see a dramatic rise in unemployment.
Above all, the sense remains that this Government baulks at taking hard decisions, decisions that will cost it support. Next year, there will be nowhere to hide for a risk-averse government. At some point Rudd will have to show a capacity not just to work hard but to take the risk of alienating significant constituencies if he is serious about significant reform. You can’t stay popular forever if you don’t do anything.
With Kevin Rudd not saying a single word about corrupting anything and with a new US president about to swing full tilt into climate change technology I think we can safely state that the only reneging has been flagged by brain deads like the whining Heather Everywhere and Paul “I love nuclear” Howes along with equally braindead journalists.
With Obamas hugely impressive environmental team we would not dare to be left behind again now.
All you wankers have predicted that Rudd would fail in this and fail in that and lie about this or that and none of you have been right to date.
Award yourselves the WANKLEY for the year I think.
Doing nothing makes you unforgettable. Which is why Malcolm Turnbull flat-lined on the 7.30 Report tonight. It was painful to sit through Kerry O asking valid policy and political questions of the voice from Vaucluse who couldn’t answer without a myriad of confusing qualifications. It was excruciating television as Mal T got himself and viewers in knots on why and how the Coalition opposed Krudd. He couldn’t recall an instance or particular issue on which Rudd had hopelessly faltered because Rudd had done nothing other than ‘move forward’ the policies of Howard. He’ll shadow box his discomfort and that interview for years. I felt sorry for him.