As we pointed out when he took home his third crown in Crikey‘s Annual Arsehat of the Year awards, Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton is on another level; the Serena Williams of blights upon Australian public life.
It’s telling that the government’s announcements about getting children off the island prison on Nauru — economical with the truth as they are — barely feature Dutton, and have been outsourced initially to Australia’s high commissioner in London (and Dutton bête noire) George Brandis and Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Dutton deals only in attack, denigration and fear. Positive announcements have to be kept away from him.
The coming election in May is possibly destined to oust him from his exceedingly marginal seat. This week shows that, like Pelé in the 1970 world cup, Dutton knows there’s limited time left to display his artistry on the biggest stage, and he’s going to make the absolute most of it.
Doctors without registrations
Dutton’s Arshehat machine has been in overdrive this week trying to crush Kerryn Phelps’ Migration Amendment (Urgent Medical Treatment) Bill — which requires the temporary transfer to Australia of refugees and their families on Manus Island or Nauru if they are assessed by two or more treating doctors as requiring medical treatment. The bill could potentially cause the government a hugely embarrassing defeat in the House of Representatives next week. Dutton yesterday claimed that, under the bills, Greens founder Bob Brown and current leader Richard Di Natale could be those doctors.
“Doctors including Dr Bob Brown and Dr Richard Di Natale, potentially, can provide the advice,” he said.
Except… they couldn’t.
“How much can this bloke stuff up in a day?” Di Natale responded. Neither Bob nor I are currently registered so we couldn’t sign off a transfer. To think this bloke was making daily decisions about the fate of innocent people. He’ll say anything to distract from the fact that his government’s policies are a disgrace.”
Six days in a leaky department
On Thursday, The Australian, through Tony Abbott’s drinking buddy Simon Benson, reported that a briefing from the Department of Home Affairs, apparently based on advice from ASIO and Border Force, states that the offshore processing of asylum seekers (the “third pillar of Australia’s border protection system”) would be dismantled by Phelps’ bill.
The classified briefing is understood to have provided detailed advice on the need for mothballed detention centres in Australia to be re-opened to accommodate transfers of people who were unable to be subjected to a timely threat assessment or those deemed not safe to be allowed to live in the community.
There were inevitable accusations that the government was politicising ASIO. Worse yet, the leak has led to a sensational and embarrassing referral to the Australian Federal Police from Home Affairs secretary Mike Pezzullo, who will ask the probe to consider whether the government has broken the law.
Lies, damned lies
Dutton wasn’t done using the advice as a gun trained at his own feet. He told 2GB that opposition leader Bill Shorten had been briefed with the same information that had been leaked to the Oz. “The agencies have told him that this bill would be a disaster, that it would restart boats,” he said.
Except… they hadn’t.
Dutton later had to concede Shorten had not been briefed on the bill, saying he “assumed” the Labor leader had accepted an offer to be briefed.
That’s our “Homer” Dutton – seems whenever he’s “assumed” he’s made an ass of himself on his meds.
“Dodgy Dutton” has zero credibility. You cannot believe anything that he says.
He was found guilty by a senate inquiry of lying to parliament over the Au pair matter and he lied to the Australian people as well. He’s also made outrageous claims about ethnic minority groups several times.
When he loses his seat Australia will be better off for it as will any refugees who are still rotting in our offshore prison camps.
I can only hope Cathy McGowan sees through this latest bit or propaganda designed keep our refuges in purgatory.
I’ll fix that cock-up,
I can only hope Cathy McGowan sees through this latest bit of propaganda designed keep our refugees in purgatory.
We are fast reaching the point at which one has to ask “to what extent does the Governor General have the capacity to dissolve a parliament in which the government is discerned to be trashing the reputation of the nation of which he/she is Head of State”? If the capacity doesn’t exist it should but would the incumbent have the guts?
I seem to recall this is the same Peter Dutton who received advice from his Department not to facilitate visas for a couple au pairs. Ergo he operates outside accepted ministerial practice.
Dutton has set the bar exceptionally high in the arsehat stakes, after the May election he should be given emeritus status for his efforts.
You have to admire the way he takes his responsibilities so seriously – the training and single-minded dedication – putting in the hard yards to make this award his own, so early in the season?
Morrison is also trying his best for the arsehat award, recently saying in reference to the medical transfers,
“But that raises the question: How many, if any, paedophiles, rapists and murderers are there among the people concerned?”
No evidence has been provided by the government to back up that statement which is nothing more than disgusting fear-mongering.
That’s pure Trumpism. But even if you ignore the falsity of the remark and pretend that the prisoners in Manus and Nauru are all convicted criminals, Australian prisons provide prompt medical and, if necessary, hospital treatment for ill prisoners. Even for rapists and paedophiles. Even for bankers and shifty politicians.