Left misreads Tony Abbott as they did John Howard

[lightningdance]

While Labor wallows in a mess of its own making Tony Abbott is getting on with the job of running the country in a competent manner that we haven't seen for the 6 years Labor was in power, who failed at 99% of their policies & then turned around & blamed it all on Rudd & "dysfunction".

There has been no critique of their massive loss & policies failures, they are blindly going along looking at themselves "again" whilst the majority of Labor members look on incredulously &  in disbelief at the blindness & ignorance of the leaders of just why they lost power.

This is all not good news for Labor all over again, they have learnt nothing, arrogantly ignore the fact that they failed the Australian people in just about every way & their crowing about the "big reforms" will have to be somehow paid for whilst the coalition struggle with a weakening economy & massive debt burden.

Below is an article every Labor supporter should read as it's playing out all over again today.

Left misreads Tony Abbott as they did John Howard

DURING the 1996 election campaign, prime minister Paul Keating told a radio interviewer that Asian leaders, including Indonesia's president Suharto, would not "deal" with his opponent, John Howard.

Mr Keating's speechwriter and biographer Don Watson would later recall there was "a significant element of truth in what at face value looked like lunacy". Mr Keating did not flesh out the idea, Dr Watson lamented in Recollections of a Bleeding Heart, his portrait of the Labor PM: "Asian leaders would not listen to Howard as they listened to Keating. They would not be persuaded as they had been persuaded. The momentum of engagement would be lost. There would be costs to the national interest. All that could be convincingly argued." Mr Howard immediately called it "crazy" talk and even Dr Watson would conclude the remark sounded "at once wrong, arrogant and desperate". Mr Howard went on to govern for almost 12 years, during a period of economic abundance, while deepening and strengthening relations with Indonesia, China, Japan, South Korea and India, against the backdrop of regional crises, terrorist attacks, civil unrest and wars.

Three governments later, Labor is making the same mistake about its opponents and its loss: underestimating the leader, repeating follies of the past and failing to learn the lessons from the election result. After a convincing victory on September 7, Tony Abbott is governing with steady purpose and defying the wayward predictions of critics. But as Chris Kenny writes in Inquirer today, Labor and its friendlies in the media are displaying the same anti-Howard whining of the previous era; by focusing resentment on the victor, the same clique, give or take, is now avoiding an examination of its own thinking, policies and behaviours. Blinded by disdain, as they were in the Howard era, the critics are hopelessly out of touch with mainstream sensibilities and the message voters emphatically delivered last month.

Mr Howard was once derided as "little Johnny", but not at the end of his premiership; in fact, Kevin Rudd, his successor, won in 2007 with a political persona that promised a younger, kinder and gentler simulacrum of the veteran Liberal leader. Yet when Mr Abbott, to the surprise of most, emerged as the challenger in December 2009, he was immediately dismissed as unelectable. The Australian Financial Review's Laura Tingle wrote of his ascension as "a disaster of epic proportions." In an essay last year, David Marr concluded: "Australia doesn't want Tony Abbott. We never have." During the election campaign, Mr Abbott was lambasted as out of his depth in economics and as a clumsy neophyte on foreign affairs. Many critics were willing him to fail on his first overseas missions, believing that the energetic man who destroyed an inept Labor government was reckless, lacking the grace and intellect to engage the region's leaders and argue persuasively for Australia's interests.

Yet the net effect of Labor's taunts and progressive critics' jibes has been a lowering of expectations about the new government -- a bar that has not been difficult to leap for a disciplined unit, as the Coalition has, so far, proven to be. Mr Abbott has adopted the example of his esteemed political mentor about presentation and plain language; he is firmly in the mainstream of Australian life, in the way he thinks and behaves. His mandate is to stop the boats, abolish the mining and carbon taxes, end waste, pay down debt and convene an adult administration. Mr Abbott promised to be calm, measured and steady, leading a government that "says what it means and does what it says." On this standard he will be judged.

Labor and its attendant scribes again face the challenge of 1996: accept the verdict of the popular ballot and listen to the electorate's judgment on policy, or fight on into oblivion with rejected ideas. The month-long leadership contest between Bill Shorten and Anthony Albanese, with a winner to be declared on Sunday, has not helped the party on this score.

Rather than grappling with the major issues, the combatants have been friendly to a fault, thereby sparing Labor's diehard supporters in the election aftermath from difficult, but necessary, debates. Arguments postponed, however, will not make Labor's reality check any easier, nor will a lack of clarity about their failed policy prescriptions.

[lakeland27]

i disgree with that Editorial Opinion piece, but it is from the australian'

i think we've judged abbott quite well so far, one thing before the election, a few dozen u-turns since. national voters are more likely to have got it wrong, i mean selling off a million hectares as a bribe to infonesia for cooperation. .. selling the farm. joyce and co railed about this sort of thing for years, and suddenly post -election he 'changes his mind' its you lot who've been taken boyo.

[***super_nova***]

We got it wrong?  LOL 

[donnashuggy]

"

Something truly remarkable is happening in Australian politics. The Australian Prime Minister who was as opposition leader a person devoid of character, is now attempting a personality conversion to rival nothing hitherto seen in an Australian leader. During his tenure as opposition leader he used colourful aggressive language. He was bullish in his attitude to others, particularly to the female Prime Minister of the day. His negativity was legendary. He was a repetitive liar by evidence and by his own admission. He held in contempt procedures of the House of Representatives and the conventions it upheld.

Prior to becoming Opposition Leader his reputation was of someone with a gutter mentality determined to obtain power at any cost. One month into his term of office we are expected to believe that he has transformed into a mild mannered, cultured man of some distinction. Walking the global stage as a gentleman with noble intent.

We are expected to put to one side the old Tony Abbott and embrace the new one with unbridled fondness. Well I am all for self-improvement. I like to think I have practiced it all my life. But in this instance I will not be conned with this nonsense.

As I see it, he has spent the first month rather stupidly apologising for his behaviour as Opposition Leader. His much publicised trip to Indonesia was shrouded in vagaries about asylum policy. It amounted to an apology for all the internal chest beating and political bravado aimed at the Australian public for the purpose of gaining power, but at the same time offending our neighbours. The statement that ‘’we never had a tow back the boats policy’’ amounted to a lie of monumental proportion when placed besides a mountain of evidence that they did.

On top of that he has this week apologised for offending Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak. All because of his robust campaigning before the election. He said he was offering ‘’an act of contrition’’.

In an interview in 2011, Mr Abbott said: ”Imagine taking boat people from Australia to Malaysia where they will be exposed almost inevitably to the prospect of caning.’’ The reader will recall that at the time the Gillard Government was trying to broker a deal with Malaysia. Abbott would have none of it. There were many speeches in the House of Representatives. Joe Hockey’s was memorable.

”I will never, ever support a people swap where you can send a 13-year-old child unaccompanied to a country without supervision, never. It will be over my dead body.”

It was a time when Abbott could have been part of a solution. Instead he chose to be part of the problem and has played politics with the lives of people ever since.

Now we have him flipping around Asia grovelling to all and sundry with these undiplomatic declarations. Repairing relationships damaged by his own deeds. Apologising to leaders he openly offended while opposition leader but in doing so, saying that the purpose was purely for reasons of domestic political consumption and advantage and that those seeking asylum were the last thing on his mind. ‘’I think they understand’’ he said of the leaders.

And of course at APEC he kept his host Indonesian President Yudhoyono and the rest of the leaders waiting 20 minutes while being late to the first meeting. On top of that he is snubbed by Russian President Putin after missing his birthday celebration, and by all reports had a very icy official meeting later.

Some might say that he is being refreshingly honest. I would say his apologies are the confessions of a veritable liar. I wonder if he has the capacity to be as straightforward about his lying to the Australian people.

It seems it is one thing to in opposition insult ones neighbours and another to apologise for doing so in government.

So we are left (as if we didn’t know) with the impression that the Prime Minister is fully aware of how he lied for three years but really doesn’t care. Just accept me as I am now. I am a transformed man.

I know we play our politics aggressively but am I truly to believe that he now wants us to accept that it was all just playing a game. That it really is okay to blatantly lie and inflame situations (the budget is in crisis) on the basis that, we just play our politics hard and that in some way legitimises it.

And he continued to make a fool of himself by declaring that Japan is Australia’s “closest friend in Asia”, elevating the former World War II aggressor past both China and Indonesia. Whatever happened to diplomacy?

Then he declares that he will pursue free trade talks with China telling Chinese President Xi Jinping he will deal on a ”whatever we can get” basis. What on earth would the diplomats traveling with him think?

So after a month in office what are we to make of Abbot’s makeover? He promised ”no surprises, no excuses” and that he would take politics of the front pages of the dailies.

Instead we have this scandal over expenses with the Prime Minister at the forefront of the accusations. He pays back some cash and considers the matter closed.

And on top of that dismissively suggests that the press should simply drop the subject. The fact is he has a history of abusing the system.

When he was a back bencher he was always complaining to the speaker about the size of his pay cheque. He has abused the system over a long period claiming expenses while flying around the country promoting his own book and participating in events that were nothing more than public relations exercises aimed at self-image.

All this at the same time prosecuting Peter Slipper for similar offences. Added to that is the fact that he will not disclose who it was who asked the AFP to investigate Slipper. The question still remains. Why is he fronting court while Abbott and others are getting of scott free?

And of course we shouldn’t forget Abbott’s unrestrained pursuit of Craig Thompson and his credit card which appears to have had about as many grey areas as a politician’s expense account.

In this current debate I am surprised that no one has raised the question as to why the office related expenses for Abbott’s Office for the period 1 January to 30 June were $916.000 compared with $294.000 for Gillard over the same period.

Why is it that all of a sudden the fourth estate is highlighting this abuse of process when blogs like the AIMN has been discussing it and similar issues for months? Even years.

One possible answer is that (and it is noticeable if you follow the political discourse) when Abbott made his ‘’politics off the front page statement’ ’the subject of expenses abruptly raised its head.

Why we might ask. It is simple if you think about it. New Tony thought he could now make himself immune from criticism. New Tony would make things right with the world. New Tony had the protection and approval of Murdoch and Fairfax. The honeymoon period would be an eternity.

He miscalculated one thing.

In part he owes them for their support. He may not have become Prime Minister without them. Off the front pages indeed, I can hear them saying.

In the concoction, the recipe that is called leadership there are many ingredients. None more important than integrity, positiveness and the ability to trust and delegate. But it is truth that glues it altogether to create character.

He should be judged by his own standards and I wouldn’t wish that on anyone.

Authors note Friday 11 October:

Mr Abbott has decided to continue with the current system under which parliamentarians claim expenses. This means that the rorting will continue and the already abysmal view the public has of its politicians will be further eroded.

The subject seems to have disappeared from the pages of the Murdoch Press.

Did the boss ring?"

[donnashuggy]

http://theaimn.com/2013/10/11/transforming-tony-abbott-2/

[i-need-a-martini]

Lightening - it's great that someone is attempting to write something pro-Abbott for you lot. And I applaud your halfhearted attempt to promote/defend Abbott. So few people are at the moment aren't they?

I am sensing some disquiet and not a little embarrassment on all Liberal supporters parts after the last few weeks of backtracking, lying, stealing and the general deer-in-headlights appearance of the government in power at the moment.

After the hoopla of the economy going down the gurgler, we find that Hockey has very little to complain about. In fact, he has said so little overall that people are starting to wonder if he is up the job. Liberal supporters were all sucked in by the lies about how badly the economy was even though the rest of the WORLD was laughing at the naivety of those that fell for the lies. 

After the hoopla of the 'stop the boats' campaign, we instead see a PM too timid to broach the subject and in fact apologising (twice!) to the Indonesians for the stupidity of his comments during the campaign. Liberal supporters were all sucked in as he clearly has never had any intention of stopping the boats, let alone turning them around.

And after the hoopla of hysteria about stopping the waste, we find that Abbott himself was a leader in this field as well. Closely followed by his own party members - self-interested non-entities doing whatver they could do to screw the public and personally profit from tax payers.

But as I said, good on you for trying to keep the other teams spirits up. Sadly, the others all seem to have deserted you though...

[izabsmiling]

If it is as promised A Transparent Government 

We can't be expected not to discuss what we see 

[izabsmiling]

The nonsense is transparent .

don't blame others for seeing it in this no nonsense transparent Government.

Ministers ordered to get permission before speaking to the media about anything 

and some thought Conroy was a threat to our Democracy and called him Stalin  

There's a whole lot of shaking goin on !

[cherry*135]

How do the people who are not Labor supporters (but not TA fans either) read Tony Abbott?

My opinon: Not impressed with him at all.

[newstart2380]

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@lakeland27 wrote:

i disgree with that Editorial Opinion piece, but it is from the australian'

i think we've judged abbott quite well so far, one thing before the election, a few dozen u-turns since. national voters are more likely to have got it wrong, i mean selling off a million hectares as a bribe to infonesia for cooperation. .. selling the farm. joyce and co railed about this sort of thing for years, and suddenly post -election he 'changes his mind' its you lot who've been taken boyo.

---

more negative blah blah, are you saying that there is absolutely NO truth in the editorial ?