Here’s a riddle. What do Shane Watson’s body and the federal Liberal Party have in common? Bits of them keep letting themselves down.
The WA Liberal Party had its annual state conference knees-up over the weekend, a gathering once memorably described by former Gallop-era Minister Fran Logan as a “rabble of failed businessmen, anti-union zealots and the born-to-rule”.
Premier Colin Barnett coasted above it all, the real talking point being Malcolm Turnbull’s reception.
Whatever his current polling woes, in Turnbull the Liberal Party may just have found a potent template for its political direction and indeed, its very future. However, that’s not an easy thing for a conservative party obsessed with the past to come to grips with.
Economically dry, socially progressive and environmentally aware, Turnbull’s politics represent a potentially lethal governing coalition. Poor old Malcolm, though, is trying to make that argument to a party that denies climate change is either anthropogenic or combatable, that retains a fondness for Howard-era middle-class welfare and, one suspects, still hasn’t really got used to Abos, wogs, boongs or poofters.
It’s not helped when your polling numbers resemble Wilson Tuckey’s IQ tests. But more later on the political genius of the Member for O’Connor.
WA is probably the least Turnbull-friendly branch of the whole party. In power at the state level, relatively positive on the fund-raising front and holding 11 of 15 Federal seats, they don’t see the need for Sydney spivs telling them how to run the show, thank you very much. WA as a whole has never been overexcited about this whole Federation business, anyway … not to mention the natural conservatism of a state without civilised trading hours or daylight saving. Welcome to Perth; please turn your watches back three hours and your calendars about 35 years.
How well Turnbull’s brand of ego and progressiveness goes down in Perth suburbs and Pilbara mines will be interesting — if he’s still around in 2010, that is. And it’s unsurprisingly, again it’s climate change that’s doing him damage in WA Liberal circles.
How many of WA’s Federal Liberal MPs actually back their leader’s views on climate change, we don’t know for sure. But any reasonable guess wouldn’t require you to start using the fingers on your second hand.
The people who staff the booths, write the cheques and put their names on the ballot next to the word Liberal in WA are, in the main, hard-core conservatives and more than likely related to mining and resources in some way. They’d really rather the whole global warming thing would just go away and they seem to be hoping that’s what’ll happen if they ignore it long enough. Which brings us back to Uncle Wilson, of course.
While it’s popular to simply dismiss Tuckey as a buffoon — albeit one that John Howard saw fit to make a Minister of the Crown, let it not be forgotten — there’s a bit more to his blustering than simple cussedness. Despite his seat of O’Connor looking safe at first glance, a sort of “Put Tuckey Last” preference arrangement meant that in 2007, another 3% added to the 19% the National Party polled would have seen Wilson unceremoniously dumped from Club Fed. A redistribution since hasn’t done him any favours either — the new boundaries are even more Nationals-friendly than the old ones.
Tuckey knows that the National Party will be targeting O’Connor, and he also knows that WA’s conservative voters are very receptive to the maverick stance Barnaby Joyce is carving out for his party on the ETS. It’s not stretching credulity to suggest that if Tuckey wanted to run again in 2010, his current utterings on climate change and an ETS are the minimum necessary for him to even have a chance against a National opponent.
Tuckey wouldn’t be alone in his predicament. Rural and regional Liberals Australia-wide can sense a Nationals comeback on the ETS issue … and Turnbull can expect Tuckey and Co to continue their infantile rants indefinitely while this situation continues.
There is one consolation for Turnbull though, up in the northern Perth suburb of Joondalup. Local government candidate Christine Hamilton-Prime has crossed the Tiber to the Liberal Party this month after years in the LHMU and the Hard Left of the ALP. The niece of Labor’s 2007 candidate for Cowan, Hamilton-Prime was profiled in the West this week, complete with a charming picture of her protesting against VSU (despite not being able to recall what it stood for in a debate). Clearly a deeply committed conservative idealogue, at least this week.
If Turnbull’s leadership can attract weather-vane socialists with poor memories for acronyms to the Broad Church of St Menzies, he can’t be all bad, can he?
Hmmm. I think you would be advised to leave daylight saving and extended trading hours out of your otherwise enjoyable article. Just because the “eastern staters” have succumbed to the blandishments and influence of corporate Australia does not make these two things “progressive”. I think they are retrogressive.
Having wandered over to the east during the era of the Court dynasty (Court the elder), I have sometimes referred to myself as a political refugee from WA. I love it that the next TWO premiers who succeeded Charlie Court, Liberal and Labor, have served time in gaol!
But I still call Western Australia home. And two of the things I am proud of are the resistance of WA people to the silliness of fiddling with the clocks and their refusal to give Coles and Woolies free reign to destroy hundreds of small businesses through extended trading hours. Both of these measures suit the suits, but not most people, as shown by multiple referendums.
WW – “Christine Hamilton-Prime has crossed the Tiber to the Liberal Party ..” is nice as a mixed metaphor but I doubt that she’s Horatio defending (something) to the death.
Presumably you mean “crossing the Rubicon..” meaning an irrevocable decision/ to delcare war on one’s erstwhile Home.
Possibly a more apposite allusion might be “..crossing the Styx..” meaning into the realm of Death.
In my view Malcolm Turnbull has a history of fruitless leadership and debatable character, maybe not the clean potato. He’s now become what Dr. Spooner would have called a shining wit.
His technique in the Republic push was to use bullying, disrespect and self absorbent name calling such as labeling anyone who disagreed with him “Stupid”. Any true blue Aussie knows that all that achieves is people stop listening. Without MT we may have a Republic now!
We need a diplomat for the next round let’s keep MT well away from the show!
His techniques in getting preselect ion was disrespect, bullying, spin and all in all unprincipled behavior.
His “I’m the King and bow to my puffed up ego” approach may have frightened employees but is not working for him now and ensures he will be rolled to the backbenches when it suits the party, it’s not If but When. I‘m sure he’ll then resign as his bloated ego would be battered he’ll most probably then make a cowardly run for cover.
He’ll never succeed as a political leader unless there’s a need for a Dic tator.
It’s a shame because as long as he remains Leader Kevin 07 will definitely become Kevin 11.
Mulley – Bribie Island –Queensland
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AR,
At the risk of having you think I’m Christoper Pearson in disguise, I’ll say that “crossing the Tiber” is a phrase used by Roman Catholics to describe converts from the Protestant church…
Scott,
I’m not going to debate daylight savings with you, except to say that I have never once heard an argument against it that I could bear to be associated with.
WW – thanks for the clarification of your Tiber allusion.