Whatever you might think of Julia Gillard you surely would have to admit that she is quite an unflappable campaign trouper.
She seems to float from one day to the next outwardly unperturbed by the campaign disasters surrounding her. If she is prone to the temperamental tantrums of her immediate predecessor as Prime Minister she sure is a mistress of disguise. There’s an occasional display of tough talking but never a sign of anger and for the casual follower of politics — and that is the vast majority of Australian voters, especially at this stage of the campaign — she gives off an aura of being in control.
In image terms, yesterday was probably her most successful so far. When appearing on an education stage Ms Gillard she is relaxed and confident and it’s hard for a politician to find a better backdrop for the television news than groups of children. Who knows, the talk of rewarding teachers for excellence might even have been heard by a few as well which would be a bonus.
“Safety first” continues to be the Tony Abbott way with nothing he did or said yesterday likely to change anybody’s mind about him or his party.
Clearly a winning day for Labor.
The Crikey Election Indicator has Labor back above the 60% probability of victory mark.
Richard the increasing habit of Abbott doing a runner from his press conferences the second he finds the questions too tough, doesn’t know the answers or has simply got cold feet, is becoming to be the norm for him. He certainly doesn’t show the cool calm composure of Gillard and its time the media pulled the Opposition leader up on this termination of questions when the going gets tough. He will be lucky to win another day on current form.