By Ad astra
Does anyone doubt that Josh Frydenberg covets the role of Prime Ministership of Australia?
If he succeeds, would he be the first Jewish PM in this country?
Search though I have, I cannot discover whether there has ever been an Australian PM of the Jewish faith. Perhaps one of you may know. If anyone is interested in this question, you may find this article in Eureka Street a helpful resource.
Wondering if Billy Hughes might have been Jewish, I researched his life, but discovering that he was married to Mary Hughes in Christ Church, South Yarra in 1911, that query was put to rest.
It looks then that Josh might be a first, if he succeeds.
Reflect on his demeanour during press conferences. He exudes confidence and pleasure, especially when presenting figures on the economy, which by his account is doing superbly well. Because the data support his contention, and of course his superior management of it, he literally swells with pride as he makes his announcements!
Frydenberg’s half-smile portrays not only his pleasure, but a degree of self-confidence that PM Morrison should beware of. Morrison’s demeanour is looking increasingly uncertain, sometimes fragile, as he grapples with problem after problem, announcement after announcement, and a plethora of undisciplined utterances that have landed him in hot water, the most recent and memorable being his condemnatory outburst against Christine Holgate. No amount of bluster, no number of announcements, no amount of stilted bravado, can disguise Morrison’s discomfiture. And the Holgate affair is not fading: Holgate-gate keeps opening doors and letting in a suffocating stench of Hypocrisy. Being PM is not the fun Morrison might have imagined when he chatted amiably in anticipation with his ‘ethics adviser’, Jen.
Of course Frydenberg is content to watch Morrison hang himself, all the better to witness that from a respectable distance. He has no need for strokes of appreciation from his boss when his portfolio provides them in abundance.
So we are now witnessing an intriguing dynamic: a floundering PM, who scarcely knows what next will assail him, and uncertain how to deal with it when it does, alongside an increasingly confident Treasurer who rejoices in unveiling encouraging economic data that he believes bespeaks his superb economic management.
What will Morrison do to counter the Frydenberg threat? Indeed, does he see it at all? Or will he wallow in the dangerous belief that as Prime Minister he must be safe from internal challenge? If so, more fool he; after all, Prime ministers are never toppled, are they?
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This article was originally published on The Political Sword
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