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What future does PM Morrison guarantee?

We are to face a federal election by May, maybe earlier. Our accidental PM hopes the electorate will then legitimise him as its very own prime minister.

The only reason he’s PM now is that he was foisted on us by a gaggle of Liberals hell-bent on replacing Malcolm Turnbull with Peter Dutton via a poorly organised coup by Dutton’s innumerate mates. The coup became so badly unstuck that it left us stranded with Scomo, as his colleagues choose to tag him.

Never known for taking a backward step in any situation, Morrison seized the prize as if it was his entitlement, and was soon out and about in baseball cap expounding on any issue that came his way in his characteristically voluble Dalek-like style, replete with that knowing smirk we have seen so often, starkly reminiscent of Peter Costello’s infamous grin. Doubt seems never to cross his mind; he behaves as if he is gifted with the omniscience of a sage – just listen to him expound on any subject at all.

Yet he is still to spell out what a Morrison Government will do, what it will guarantee.

What he does spell out though is the disaster that will befall us all should Bill Shorten win and legislate his “fair go action plan”: ”improving schools and hospitals, standing up for workers, easing pressure on family budgets, ensuring a strong economy and investing in cleaner and cheaper energy.” Morrison’s carefully considered comeback was: “Bill Shorten’s five-point plan is – more tax, more tax, more tax, more tax, more tax.” Clearly, he intends to emit the ‘more tax’ line every time Shorten offers a solution to the nation’s problems. It’ll be as easy as that!

Our newly minted PM wants us to believe that whatever Shorten proposes will cost taxpayers heavily. He paints a picture of money being forcibly extracted from our pockets in hand-fulls. In contrast, whatever he proposes will be free. Money will appear by some mysterious force from cracks and crevices in our burgeoning economy, stimulated by the inspired policies of his government. There will be no shortage of cash – our strong economy will see to that. Only Shorten and his high taxing outfit will screw us into poverty.

What’s astonishing is that Morrison and his sidekicks seem to actually believe that the electorate will swallow this nonsense and rush to vote for the no-taxing Morrison Government. They expect voters will blindly accept that the great economy the Coalition is fuelling every day will lavishly fund all of his initiatives.

So what are his initiatives? What is he guaranteeing?

He hasn’t said.

He insists though that as the economy is going gangbusters, there’s no need to worry. Just let it grind along throwing goodies into the bank like sugar cane into the cane trains ready for the mill. There’s plenty of cash to sweeten anything he wants to do. Indeed so much that just days ahead of the crucial Wentworth by-election, he’s brought forward by five years his tax cuts for small and medium businesses at a cost to the budget of $3 billion!

But what is it he wants to do?

It would have been comforting for Liberals to hear him quote Robert Menzies whom he said brought various groups together to form the Liberal Party, to unite them about what they believed in…“Because you can’t just be about what you’re opposed to. You’ve got to be about what you’re for: as a country, as a political party, as an individual, as a family. It’s about what you’re for, not just what you’re against.” What an astonishing utterance from a man who tells us every day what he’s opposed to – and it’s always got Shorten’s name written all over it.

What then does he believe in? Here’s the mystery. Let’s look.

The recent report of the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which amassed the opinion of thousands of the world’s climate scientists, starkly highlights the perilous state of our climate. Predictions of disaster abound. Look here and here. But what does Morrison believe? What will he do? The heat is now on him. Will he dare ignore their opinions?

Will he still fondle his lump of coal as if its continued use is of no import? Will he try to resuscitate his moribund NEG? How will he keep his promise to reduce household energy bills by ‘around $550’ and still meet his emissions targets?

Will he ever get round to developing a climate policy that has any chance of reversing our rising emissions and combating escalating global temperatures? You know the answer. He keeps trying to convince us that Australia will meet its emissions targets ‘in a canter’. So why change course when he knows we’ll sprint over the finishing line like Winx, way in front of the field!

If you need any more evidence of the antediluvian views of the Coalition’s climate dinosaurs, read the response to the IPCC report of Melissa Price, his environment minister. Although the report contended that global greenhouse gas emissions must reach zero by about 2050 in order to stop global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius, and that the use of coal must be phased out by 2050, Price (who hasn’t read the report) insisted that the climate scientists were “drawing a long bow” in calling for an end to coal power, and that it would be irresponsible to do so. Morrison agreed. Expect him to do nothing.

If climate change is too hard for him, how will he manage social issues? Now that Philip Ruddock’s review into religious protections has been leaked after five months in hiding, we will see how he tackles its recommendations. Early signs are that he will go along with religious schools being able to reject children based on their sexuality or gender identification, in other words, to exclude gay kids. His convoluted response to date is that this is the law anyway – a guarantee that he will vacillate.

On another front, we still have to hear how he intends to tackle the disunity in Coalition ranks, the paucity of females on his benches, the continuing threat posed by the conservative rump that haunts his party, the ghostly presence of Abbott, Dutton, Cormann, and all the other miscreants. How can he purge his party of these disruptors? Will he even try?

Perhaps the most disconcerting aspect of Morrison’s prime ministership though is the unnerving way he floats from one issue to another, always supremely confident that he has everything under control, ever ready to smother any question, any problem, any matter (even advertising on the Opera House sails), with his obtuse gibberish, always embellished with that all-knowing, just-leave-it-to-me, smirk.

Meanwhile, as we cup our ears straining to hear his vision for our nation, his guarantees for our future, and his plans for the time ahead, all we get is perilous emptiness and sonorous babble: “A fair go for those who have a go”.

Therein lies the dilemma.

This article by Ad Astra was originally published on The Political Sword.

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28 comments

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  1. Ken Butler

    This form guide could provide useful subject matter for a great advertisement of “PM” Morrison’s intentions to be designed for display on Australia’s greatest billboard.

    (The authorisation note might come from the Phantom of the Opera.)

  2. Julie Grint

    Morrison and crew are running around like a bunch of headless chooks trying to get their faces on TV and their voices on the radio to try and convince the punters that they are actually a government. I don’t think anyone is fooled any longer. The old lets bribe em with tax cuts is wearing really thin as is the “Kill Bill” strategy that has failed dismally.They have nothing to offer the people of Australia and the public has tuned out and are positively disgusted by their antics and the political games being played in Canberra. We have had a drip drip drip of By-elections at great public expense because candidates and political parties have failed to do their due diligence re eligibility to stand for Parliament. Strangely only one LNP politician has been referred to the High court to have his status determined under S44 even though are many others in similar circumstances. Is that because if the LNP loses 2 members due to a High court decision then we must have a general election and that is the last things these incompetents want,for two reasons 1. That would be the end of their nice cushy $200,000 jobs as back benchers or $400,000 in the case of Ministers 2. Some may even end up unemployed and having to find a real job.

  3. Graeme T

    As much as it pains me to type this, I admire the confidence of numerous contributors in the implied notion that the result of the next election is a foregone conclusion. I would dearly like this to be true, but I am a bit of a pessimist when it comes to the Voters of Oz.
    There is much water to flow under the bridge and unless, somehow, with magic wand in hand, the Labor team can get their message across to the general populace with all the media obstacles, I fear that the bulk of our voting population will still put these people (the present excuse for a government) back into power. Whilst the polls put Labor ahead, one would expect there to be a continued general increase in the Labor vote due to the carrying on of the Liberal/National Parties This government is so non-governmental for the general populace that it tends on being mind-blowing, but there is no recognition of this in the voting patterns. I really, really, really hope that the Labor team have a strategy that will work from here until the election, whenever our current PM (assuming he is still there) decides that it will happen.

  4. Paul Davis

    Ruddock on The Drum this evening explaining why the Morrison government is so embarrased and gobsmacked by his sadoldwhiteman discrimination report that they dont want to release it in full…. ever.

  5. Keith

    Electors from Wentworth can do Australia a favour by voting for candidates other than Liberal next week.
    The sooner we have a general election the better.
    In relation to climate change the LNP are dangerous.

  6. Kaye Lee

    Aside from the smirk and the haranguing tone of voice, I really hate the way Morrison has taken to putting his arm around everyone. It is demeaning, it is intrusive. Put the baseball cap and the footy jerseys away , drop the nickname, keep your hands to yourself, and wipe the smirk off your face. And for pity’s sake, tell us what YOU have achieved and what your future plans are. STOP talking about Labor and Bill Shorten all the time. ProMo really is a very aggravating man.

  7. David Bruce

    Management is about doing things right.

    Leadership is about doing the right things.

    The recent LNP governments claim to be good managers, yet appear to be rearranging the deck chairs, not navigating the Titanic!

  8. totaram

    Graeme T: I agree with you completely. There is a lot of work to be done until the election because of the MSM bias towards the present (un)government. I think the only recourse we have is to put “boots on the ground” and engage in door-knocking, as indeed various organisations like the unions and GetUp are doing. People power, if sufficiently mobilised, should be able to beat these mercenaries of the 1%, who may have the money but don’t actually have the numbers on the ground.

    As an example, you can see that Dave Sharma gets to write an article in the Fairfax Press, but failed to front up to voters in Wentworth at a meeting where other candidates did show up. Many more such incidents in marginal seats should make a difference.

  9. yahoo mail

    And the Muppet show is still going on & on

  10. my say

    Ireally hope the voters in the coming bi election take notice of Alex Turnbull and John Hewson and dont vote Liberal if they want action on climate change ,they will never get it with a Liberal Government,
    How can Kerryn Phelps give her preferences to the Liberals when she wants action on climate change children off Naru ,she voted for marriage equality ,but is given them the power to discriminate against Gay and Lesbian children,.put the Liberals last and Phelps second last ,and do Australia a favour

  11. Yvonne Robertson

    He is also yet to articulate why Malcolm Turnbull is no longer the PM. I suspect it is because it was Mr Morrison and his cronies who orchestrated the whole pantomime in the first place. The Liberals have never had any policies they wanted to come clean about. Mr Morrison is no more than a carnival spruiker and he’s just not going to be able to tap dance that long, however ably assisted he is by what passes for media in this country.

  12. New England Cocky

    @Yvonne Robertson: Noting the “Christian” emphasis on Morriscum immediately after his “promotion” to Prim Monster; I suggest that retrospective analysis will show that the local CIA agent had a hand in this matter, replacing Turdball because Rupert was told to remove him due to Turdball’s few remaining community leaning attitudes being contrary to USA (United States of Apartheid) foreign policy demands. The CIA has been involved in too many Australian political matters, from the Whilam Dismissal in 1975 by GeeGee John Curr, to the Arbib organised overthrow of Rudd, to the replacement of Gillard by Rudd, to the long running abuse of ALP politicians resulting in the election of Toxic RAbbott, the worst Liarbral PM since MacMahon in 1971-72.

  13. MöbiusEcko

    There was nothing Bradbury like about ProMo becoming PM, it was plotted from the start. Look up on how he won preselection for an electorate to see how low this man will go to get what he wants.

  14. Terence Mills

    The worrying thing is that Morrison is going to go on a pork-barreling binge to try and wedge Labor and he’s using the current flush of revenue to justify it.
    With the way that Trump is trying to destroy the global economy there is no doubt that, down the track, we are going to experience a Trump generated recession and we are going to be left with an economy bereft of revenue to fund essential services.

    The best thing for the Wentworth voters is to put Liberals last so that we can try and force these clowns to an election before Christmas.

  15. Henry Rodrigues

    The one and main reason why this dickhead has been able so far, to get away with making grandiose claims and smearing the opposition with impunity with no corroboration by any credible observer, is the connivance and criminal compliance of the corrupt media, led by that prick from the west Kerry Stokes and his talking heads on Ch 7 and of course Murdoch’s minions. There are also the media bunnies like Katharine Murphy and the ABC ‘ladies’ led by Leigh sales and Sabra Lane and company. These are the enablers who are as guilty as that smirking dickhead with the very voluble and loud mouth.

  16. helvityni

    I hardly know what Sharma looks like, so rare have his TV appearances been; I love though what John Hewson and Alex Turnbull have been doing…..

  17. RomeoCharlie29

    Where is Labor going to get the money to fund its promises, Scott? The same place you are, from the wonderfully expanding economy that allows you to bring forward the proposed company tax cuts and cut our electricity bills. If the economy is doing as well as you say it is ( really no thanks to you) then why wouldn’t this continue under Labor?

  18. Jaquix

    Morrison will do anything, anything at all, to hose down dramas which will get in the way of his main aim, which is to get back into power, and to do that he needs to appease voters. Thats all. If voted back, he would have carte blanche to pursue the real agenda.

  19. win jeavons

    It is time! Time to call the Coalition the COAL party, as that seems to be the bulk of what they stand for!

  20. Kronomex

    I’ll bet Scummo is using the power of prayer and speaking in togues, sod it, let’s call it what it is, gibbering, overtime at the moment to get dog to let the Libs keep Wentworth.

    https://www.smh.com.au/politics/nsw/why-this-is-the-most-important-week-of-the-year-for-the-liberal-party-20181011-p50967.html

    Gosh, if they lose that seat how long it will take for the daggers to be sharpened for the pastor if that happens. One can almost see him doing searches in his house and under the bed for rogue potatoes.

  21. guest

    This talk about where the money will come from needs to be made clear from the start. Where has the Coalition got the money to reduce debt? It has come from reductions in payments to the poor and other cuts.

    Meanwhile they promise to reduce tax on businesses and are part way through that scheme and no doubt will reduce tax on big business as soon as they can. There are other ways of supporting big business through ex gratia payments without explanation – and we have seen a few of those. And who is paying? The poor are, that’s who.

    Think of the Royal Commissions employed by the Coalition to attack anyone that annoys them. What is the result really?

    And how many investigations come to nothing. For example, into Michaelia Cash’s union office raid, or Kathy Jackson’s alleged misappropriations?

    When I hear of freedom of religion, I think first of all about freedom to criticise LGBTIQ people, but more than that – freedom from taxes.

    Bill’s response to questions about where the money is coming from is that Labor will not be giving umpteen billion dollars to big business. Which seems to me to be a perfectly reasonable response.

    Remember the spikey response from Turnbull and team. And I never heard about which “inaccuracies” Alberici is supposed to have made, when so many economic experts agreed with her criticisms. Is that a Green investigation into political interference I see coming up?

  22. DrakeN

    The fundamental problem with the likes of that failed advertising generalissimo, is that they have no experience of actual work.

  23. Ad Astra

    Folks
    May I thank you all for your informative contributions.

    Should you question the veracity of what’s written here, listen to the fist few minutes of PM Morrison speaking to Sabra Lane on ABC radio last week. You’ll hear the same old babble, complete with the same old clichés. Note how he never answers her question about how his tax cuts will improve wages. Wages haven’t increased for many years. He knows that, and he knows they won’t. The employers will pocket the tax cuts and run. They will invest in their business, maybe employ more people, but none of it will end up in workers’ pockets.

    No government minister has ever proved that tax cuts increase wages, because they don’t. So they just repeat their hollow mantra over and again, hoping eventually that voters will swallow their baseless rhetoric. It’s pathetic; it’s sickening.

    http://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/am/scott-morrison-29-billion-dollar-tax-cut-plan/10363192

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