Coalition MPs, it seems, do have some standards when it comes to political norms and politicians engaging in deception — but only when they’re the victims.
Normally the passage into opposition elicits a remarkable transformation in former government ministers. Having been passionate in their loathing of transparency and accountability as ministers, and committed to providing as little information as possible, they become ardent advocates of parliamentary scrutiny and supporters of institutions designed to limit the exercise of executive power. All, naturally, in aid of political attacks on the government that replaced them.
Unusually, Coalition MPs are now appalled that it was their own government keeping them in the dark and engaging in the trashing of norms, in the form of Scott Morrison’s Jim’s Mowing approach to ministerial roles.
Most of the former ministers of the Morrison government must be wondering whether they too were on the list of ministers who secretly had the prime minister as their ministerial buddy — a list already long enough with Greg Hunt (another glorious footnote to that splendid political career), Mathias Cormann (whose opinion of Morrison couldn’t have sunk any further anyway), Keith Pitt and Angus Taylor, although in Taylor’s case you can’t blame Morrison for thinking he had to play the equivalent role to the carny guy who helps the little kids drive the dodgems. Today we learnt that Josh Frydenberg and Karen Andrews also had Morrison as their silent — very silent — partner, and perhaps Anne Ruston at Social Services too.
Most aggrieved, naturally, are the Nationals, who learn that one of their own was the victim of Morrison’s dial-a-ministry: the aptly named Pitt who was too fossil fuel even for Morrison’s coal-flavoured taste, and seemingly committed to ensuring that a swathe of Liberal MPs on the NSW Central Coast and Sydney beach suburbs lost their seats as a result of the PEP11 gas drilling proposal — a rare offshore gas project unbeloved of the Coalition.
All of these complainants had no issue with Morrison trashing other political norms, or his routine lying to voters. Only when it came their turn to be the object of those deeply embedded traits of his political character have they decided he went too far.
None of them cavilled when Morrison trashed other longstanding norms and conventions. No one objected to the appointment of a veteran Liberal staffer to head Treasury and then Prime Minister and Cabinet, or to Morrison’s demotion of the public service to a policy implementation unit. They had no problems with the stacking of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. Billion-dollar grant programs used for election pork-barrelling were of no moment. Smearing the partner of an alleged sexual assault victim neither here nor there; lying to Parliament irrelevant, misleading international leaders and leaking their messages for political gain a trifle. And no one ever batted an eyelid at the torrent of lies that poured from Morrison’s mouth.
Did the penny drop then that this was a man with contempt for the basic conventions and informal rules that help regulate any democracy? Seemingly not — that moment had to await Coalition MPs joining the rest of us as the suckers of ScoMo.
It’s a legitimate question, because the Coalition has been in the norm-trashing business for a very long time. Abandoning John Howard’s support for a comprehensive emissions trading scheme after 2007 (along with a commitment to free market solutions). Setting up spurious royal commissions into their opponents. Sacking public servants for doing their jobs. Blocking information about migration operations. Establishing an illegal welfare debt scheme. Using the AFP to raid journalists and the Labor Party to hunt down embarrassing leaks.
The mask had been half off since Tony Abbott became leader and the goal of securing power no matter what the cost to conventions, norms and the customs of Australian politics became paramount. The side that once preached conservatism and hectored others about standards and civility, that patiently explained that well-tried and tested institutions and rules should not be changed lightly, would readily chuck all that in the bin for a chance at power.
Scott Morrison merely pulled that mask off completely and showed the face of power over any principle.
Bernard, another great article. It truly astounds me how any thinking person with a pulse could still vote for the LNP after all these revelations. I guess the “thinking” part of my voters description lets most LNP followers off the hook.
But not the gaffe….
Hopefully Scotty’s arrogance, deceit, lack of decency and hypocrisy will keep the LNP out of office for a very long time. Will the Liberals punt him from the Party. Will the Evangelicals say we do not want this monster in our midst.
Hmm .. the Evangos with such high standards?
The evangelicals lack morals just like Morrison. They are two peas in a pod. Shameless hypocrites.
There is an apocryphal story about Adlai Stevenson, US Democratic Party candidate for president in the 1950s, After he gave a campaign speech a supporter assured him, “Every thinking person in America will be voting for you!”
Stevenson allegedly replied, “Madam, I’m afraid that won’t do—I need a majority.”
Yes, Stevenson was sparky with the one-liners.
Commenting back then on news editors, perhaps with some prescience about a future News Corpse, he said:
“Editors sort the wheat from the chaff – then print the chaff.”
Belly laughs to Sinking Ship Rat and Drover’s cat!
Yes, quite a few of his sayings remain highly relevant. In the 1952 campaign when the Republicans were complaining bitterly about things the Democrats said about them, he helpfully offered,
“If they will stop telling lies about the Democrats, we will stop telling the truth about them.”
The belated reaction of these Coalition MPs carries a faint echo of Martin Niemöller’s famous admission about the government coming first for various others while he was silent, until they came for him, by which time it was too late.
But seriously, can anyone be even faintly surprised to find that Coalition MPs are only concerned about themselves and their mates, and could not give a monkey’s elbow about anyone else or any principles of governance?
Fair go……………..
After all, Morrison is the only Prime Minister in history to be appointed by a picture of an eagle.
What else could you expect?
Omgosh, scomo was the puppet for the old boy coalition. John Howard confirmed it on ABC tonight. What an insight into the powers that be. Arrogant self serving side swiping misogynist seahorse club gravy train males.
I thought you were making an acrostic but it seems not.
How about describing them as Arrogant Repugnant Self Entitled Hateful Obstinate Leaning Egotist Swindlers?
[With apologies]
Charlatans Undermining Norms, Traditions and Safeguards?
I think what we are seeing is the Westminster system’s loop holes explored. It was never designed for today’s need for fit for purpose Government.
What appear to be traditions, rules and law, made for the good of society, firmly rooted in proper proceedure is ideological mostly.
Ideology followed up by appearance and behaviour, that creates the illusion of order.
The written word of Government in times past is not flawless. Not a perfect Web, but a Web created by intoxicated spiders. (Ever seen one?)
The design
suits the players. Withholding is part of the play, so is transparency. Reconciling the two opposing positions in a reasonable way usually wins the day.
What do you do if you find a hole and at the bottom is treasure?
A) You don’t tell anyone
B) You pick who you tell and/or only on a needs basis
C) You tell anyone
D) You tell everyone
Yep, correct.
Thanks for adding, sounds right
One thing that I am curious about is David Hurley’s role in all of this. It would seem to be his second major misstep during his tenure as Governor-General (after his lobbying for the charity, Australian Future Leaders Foundation; which has its own murky history).
Perhaps he would do well to consider his position.
It would be useful to know the process whereby a PM contacts the G-G requesting to be sworn into a portfolio. Is the latter bound to accept the PM’s word that ‘the government’ is making the request?
Next article by BK addresses all the issues of the G-G’s role.
And doing the ad for the builder.
Perhaps Morrison did “consider his position” … and swear himself in as shadow GG, too.
The suspicions about Hurley rise again. He was after all a Morrison appointee.
It’s time we appointed retired judges to Yarralumla – they at least understand the Constitution, although of course they can still go rogue, like Kerr.
No, it’s time we didn’t have a governor- general.
We really shouldn’t have expected anything less from a devoutly religious leader. When you believe you have a god on your side, any activity, no matter how nefarious, can be rationalised.
You got it! I’m not surprised. He’s not well. Mental health problems! He needs a diagnosis. And a little rest for a while.
A long rest for a loooooong time.
Cue Paul Kelly’s “God told me to”.
How comforting(?) it is to know that we weren’t the only ones that our megalomaniac ex lied to every time his lips moved, he also lied to his cabinet ministers.Thankfully we turfed the grub from the big chair.
I do however have some serious angst toward the journalists that sat on this information all for the sake of a book. Deliberately keeping Australians in the dark is in my book, unforgivable. They also need to be held to account.
We need to know who these journalists are!
Simon Benson and Geoff Chambers are the authors of the book.
Morrison was sworn into the Finance and Health portfolios in March 2020. Benson was on Insiders in April 2020 but didn’t mention it. Was he partnered up with Bridget McKenzie then?
Funnily enough, the same journalist who leaked another book: ‘A Bigger Picture . . . the Australian’s national affairs editor, Simon Benson, who is identified by Turnbull as a key player in a secret alliance between Murdoch and the right wing of Australia’s Coalition government.’ – https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/apr/16/malcolm-turnbull-news-corp-is-like-a-political-party-with-the-murdochs-encouraging-intolerance
Interesting story in Crikey back on the 4th April about a News Corp campaign to open doors for Scott Morrison by damaging Michael Towke –
https://uat.crikey.com.au/2022/04/04/murdoch-ended-towkes-run-opened-door-morrison/
David Hardaker reported Towke as saying “These stories sent my mother to hospital . . . They demonised me”, and then goes on to reveal that some of the ‘stories were written by ‘the Telegraph’s then-state political editor Simon Benson, now The Australian’s political editor covering Canberra.’
Great point, but those Murdoch propagandists didn’t withhold information just for the sake of a book. They were betting on Morrison winning the election.