Senator Pauline Hanson raised more than one eyebrow when she stood up to support the censure motions on Wednesday morning against Katter Australia Party’s Fraser Anning.
Hanson’s condemnation of Anning’s first speech — which proposed cutting off Muslim immigration as well as a “final solution” — was one of many delivered by politicians of all political stripes including Penny Wong, Peter Whish-Wilson, Malcolm Turnbull, Peter Dutton and Derryn Hinch.
Hanson said she was “appalled” by the speech, catching many by surprise given the anti-immigration stance in her own maiden speech, but what is more interesting is that this is one of few occasions Hanson has raised issues related to staffing of Senate offices in the chamber.
Hanson claimed the “final solution” speech was written by staffer Richard Howard and not Senator Anning.
Fraser Anning, I can assure you, did not write that speech. He delivered it, but he is responsible for it. The speech was written by a Richard Howard, straight from Goebbels’ handbook from Nazi Germany. Richard Howard worked for the military propaganda specialist. He was one of the staffers when Richard Howard actually did work in Senator Malcolm Roberts’ office and was sacked out of that office.
While it may be the first time that she mentioned this element of inner workings of the party in the Senate, it is not the first time Hanson has named and shamed senators that have walked away from the party.
Hanson was elected in July 2016 with four senators. Two of the original four have since departed on less than favourable terms with Hanson, and we’ve seen signs of this bubbling up into the public domain.
Former Senator Rod Culleton was removed from the Senate when it was determined he was ineligible to sit in the chamber due to a bankruptcy. He has recently lost an attempt to have the matter related to his Senate removal reopened by the High Court.
Has anyone forgotten the footage of Hanson using the media to call Culleton to a meeting in her office? Or the lashing of Culleton as not a “team player”? Didn’t think so.
Hanson had to deal with a further challenge when Brian Burston, a long-time Hanson supporter, decided to leave the party after a series of issues that had soured the professional and personal relationship between himself and Hanson.
These included the fact that neither he nor Peter Georgiou were endorsed for senate candidacy for the next election like former Senator Malcolm Roberts and Steve Dickson were on February 13 this year.
The rift between Hanson and Burston widened when Hanson made comments in relation to Burston’s office staff, her removal of Burston as the whip of the party in the Senate and the changing position of the party on support for corporate tax cuts.
Hanson’s reaction to the racist overtones of Anning’s speech may surprise some people, but in some ways it should be expected. Anning is no longer a part of the club.
Like Leyonhjelm, Anning has stirred people up by saying disgraceful things within the untouchable “coward’s castle” of Parliament. With little chance of getting elected at the next election he seeks to make a name for himself among a resentful, minority-blaming constituency. It works for Hanson who is now condemning him for treading in her territory. Every part of the media has cooperated fully giving him publicity you couldn’t buy for a million dollars.
John Howard has a son Richard – is he the author of Anning’s speech?
Wouldn’t it be nice to see Katter go down the gurgler with this arse. Australian politics, free of Katter since the sixties is a very pleasant thought.
Until his mate brought out the real Katter, Bob seemed like a likeable, whimsical hayseed and probably picked up the votes of many good, decent people who don’t care for the mainstream parties. Perhaps some of those people will change their votes at the next election if the LNP, ALP and perhaps the Greens can find good local candidates.
Fraser Anning may or may not have written that speech but he did deliver it and it will be attributed to him. He may or may not have been deliberately proactive for free political exposure. Irrespective of either matter it is a political error to ignore the speech, millions of wavering nationalists won’t. The condemnation is not loud enough. The chamber should have emptied in protest and each Senator present should have spat on the carpet as they walked past this neo-Nazi.
Hanson again publicly airing the endless dirty laundry in One Nation.
Reminds me of that old line, ‘when thieves fall out….’