Will Abbott be suspended?
In February this year, three Liberal Party members including two former MPs were suspended for six months from the party for appearing on a 7.30 investigation into Liberal preselections.
Former federal MP Ross Cameron, former NSW Upper House MP Charlie Lynn and branch member Juris Laucis, all of whom are aligned with the once-dominant right faction of the party, criticised the current pre-selection process which they said was producing candidates favoured by factional bosses rather than the best possible candidates and that the party was a breeding ground for “hacks”.
“Well, it’s a growth of factionalism within the Liberal Party and the factions are very, very strong within the Liberal Party, and if you step outside the factions you are finished forever,” Mr Lynn said.
Mr Cameron called the Liberal Party’s processes “corrupt”.
After the program aired, the participants were sent a letter advising them of their suspension from the party under the constitution because comments to 7.30 were likely to cause “damage to the reputation of the division, cause embarrassment to the division or party or parliamentary leader and or reduce the divisions prospect of success in any election.”
The decision was made by the Acting State Director, Simon McInnes, in consultation with the party president, and there was no right of appeal.
On Monday night, Tony Abbott joined in, warning that lobbyists holding positions as power brokers in the Liberal party creates the potential for corruption.
“There is absolutely no doubt there is a dominant faction, there is a dominant individual inside that faction, and that individual is a lobbyist,” Abbott told the Four Corners program.
“Some of these factional warlords have a commercial interest in dealing with politicians whose preselections they can influence,” Abbott said.
He said this created a “potentially corrupt position”.
“There are people not on the state executive who caucus regularly on the phone and face-to-face with people who are on the executive to try and get pre-cooked outcomes.”
Will Mr Abbott be suspended from the party and if not, why not?
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Return to home pageAbbott must go. Though the whole Conservative Party needs to be cleaned out.
Kay Lee a very interesting read. As to whether Mr. Abbott should be suspended or not depends on your side of politics.
I am no supporter of Mr. Abbott because of his past performance but, I think he is telling the uncomfortable truth about lobbyist and the like, and, the influence they have for vested interests.
If one rule applies for all he should be suspended.
My question is what were his motives for reviving this issue? As for me I commend his actions. Once more we are reminded of our so called Democracy….or not. The corruption and the dirt in politics is sickening. Is it any wonder we are loosing faith in our Institutions .
I personally like Abbott around. The damage to the liberal brand continues as long as he is around. The guy is a dimwit and Mal is an empty, void of principles carcass. How quick he ‘acted’ on juvenile child torture in the NT and how ‘decisively’. Although only the second attempt made it through so far.
This does not apply to record breaking bank profits. No RC into that MOB. Make no mistake, there will be no decisiveness when things, just as important as the mistreatment of juvenile ‘offenders’ , like climate change come around. Don’t expect strength of character and decisiveness then.
Talking about mistreatment and how the MSM pointed out that a Hungarian Refugee, winning a Gold Medal in Rio, didn’t get a mention in the Hungarian Press.
Neither did I hear or read anything about the Refugee team walking into the Olympic stadium other than on the day, when it was unavoidable on live TV.
Could we perhaps also have talented (not only in sports) people on Nauru/Manus or even in Australia???? Where is the MSM on this?
It’s obvious the right are having a tantrum but I find Abbott’s high moral ground laughable considering he was installed into the leadership in return for agreeing to become a climate change denier at the behest of vested interests with commercial involvement. His Treasurer, among others, was exposed for giving access to people who paid large membership subscriptions to his North Sydney Forum. Look at the proven corruption in the laundering of donations with the Free Enterprise Foundation etc and through Parakelia. Spare me your outrage Mr Abbott until your party cleans up its act with regard to deals for donors and jobs for the boys. The right are not blameless here. What on earth have James Paterson and Tim Wilson ever done to deserve their high paying jobs?
Yes Kaye, Abbott’s moral high ground is as fake as all his promises were and ever will be.
Is Abbott really suggesting that the existence of lobbyists and power brokers and the potential for corruption is something that has just happened recently?
While they moan about the alleged union influence behind the ALP, the Liberals have always been the shopfront for powerful interest groups and some of us remember the role of the NSW “Uglies” on the Federal party with Abbott himself a beneficiary of their power.
Neo-conservative politics is about transferring public wealth into private hands via privatisation or the awarding of Government contracts to financial party sponsors as implied by ICAC.
Abbott’s real motive must be to restore the power of his own faction and he seems to be returning to his old strategy of “give me power or I’ll wreck the joint” used when leader of the opposition.
It’s just the beginning of a long campaign by somebody with nothing left to lose.
Klaus: If Abbott was on a Lifeboat lost at sea with 4 others. He would be only the one left alive. He’s a street fighter and does whatever it takes.He’s ruthless. Abbott would still be plotting a come back even if he was demoted to be a Parliament Cleaner.
Notwithstanding the oft repeated claim these people are the better economic managers. there is another adage that is applicable.
Always follow the money.
There is an article this morning on what is left of our ABC about the financial state of the Libs.
“One leading party operative said federal election campaign financing was hampered also by Liberal Party members refusing to pay membership dues, make donations or help out on election day amid disquiet about the ousting of Tony Abbott and anger at rampant factionalism in the party.”
“Corporate donations also dried up this year, multiple Liberal Party sources said. Much of this was the result of the publicity surrounding the Free Enterprise Foundation, a federally registered body that had allegedly funnelled funds to the state campaign from prohibited donors under NSW laws.”
The rest of the article is worth a look as it details the liberal way of spending on largesse without regard to your bank balance. Not surprisingly, Hockey gets a mention!
“The by-election for Joe Hockey’s traditionally safe seat of North Sydney last November, won by NSW party president Trent Zimmerman, cost as much as $800,000, or four times the usual amount for a by-election party sources said.”
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-09/nsw-liberal-party-money-woes/7710676
The ‘if not, why not?’ query is likely all going to be about the money.
Thank you, Ms Lee. Take care
Not to mention having a one seat majority. Anyone can say or do whatever they please and Malcolm has to pander to them. He can’t afford to piss anyone off.
Lol, Ms Lee. Me thinks he’s trying an alternate theory. He appears to be pissing them all off. Presumably, he will end up with enough enemies, who will have enemies, who will become his friends. I’m off for some popcorn now. How many PM’s till Christmas?
Take care
Perhaps Mr Abbott should heed his biblical beliefs?
Let he who is without sin cast the first stone?
I’ve always liked Mathew 7:5
You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye
Of course if Turnbull gave Abbott and the other extreme-right nutters the boot and worked with Labor, and the Greens, and the rest of the parties to actually help Australia and move our country forward he would have a pretty good time of it… except that the nasty Libs would probably whip their knives out to do more back-stabbing. I almost feel sorry for Turnbull… almost.
Gosh… you can almost taste the hate and distrust in the air.
Good one, Klaus,
” Could we perhaps also have talented (not only in sports) people on Nauru/Manus or even in Australia????”
I have asked the same question, but have not got any answers.
Perhaps our idea of not rescuing drowning asylum seekers, is to teach them to swim, and be fast; future gold medal winners for Oz.
“Growth of factionalism…” You have to be kidding. There’s always been strong factionalism in the Liberal party, both at Federal and State levels. The history of the Wets and Dries for one, but you don’t have to look very far to find a rich history of it within the Liberals. Difference between Liberal and Labor factionalism is that Labor like to air their dirty laundry out in the open for all to see whilst the Liberals kept theirs festering in the dark corridors and backrooms.
Then there’s Abbott’s sheer hypocrisy in regards to his conspicuous support for big pharma and his efforts to channel billions of tax payers money into it over the long term. There’s no greater example of pandering to lobbyists than that, even to the point of openly promoting them as a PM.
When I heard Abbott rabbiting on about corruption within the ranks of the NSW Liberal Party I thought : mate, this your party, do something about it don’t just whinge.
It reminded me of the G20 when Abbott, going into a retreat with other world leaders, embarrassed them and himself by complaining about getting his rotten budget through the Senate.
Thank you Kaye for your on point observations.
Were the Federal election result reversed and (our) Labor held the (slim) reins of Government, I can hear the loud rantings of the lNP causing the furniture to rattle !! … Seriously! … When I reflect on this ( so close ) outcome I am justly proud of Labor refraining from unseemly behaviour, and continuing to push just and fair policies !
When it’s all said and done our current situation is , in a word, Limbo! ….. while the Governing parties internally fight bitterly about Power & Money ….. Good Governance was NEVER on their agenda !
May our Labor party remain focused on empowering policies serving the Australian public …… thus affording voters the opportunity to see the ‘ light ‘!
……… as an aside, how I long for the day when $$ Big Money $$ is off the scene, and politics is about ” Achievement ” rather than ” Attainment ” .
Well said Douglas.
Good question, Kaye.
If Abbott were suspended, that means one less LNP Degenerate in Parliament to vote on bills.
Also, if the AFP were worth anything, they’d be in there shining the torch on the cesspool of Liberal land and pulling out the corrupt lobbyists, who are working against Australia’s interests.
That would be fun to watch and the impetus for the shortest government in Australian history. I’m ready for another federal election.
Malcolm should stop being a pussy and bring the AFP in to investigate! 🙂
Slow down JMS, it would just mean he would be an Independent. And it ain’t gonna happen. Stand easy.
Funny that it wasn’t really an issue when Abbott was in charge. Suddenly when he has been given the boot, its a number one priority. He really is an opportunist of the very worst sort. But as has been said, glad to have him around. Like Rudd, his ego casts a very nasty odour.
The number of issues that tumbled out of that one show were quite extraordinary – each one requires fuller analysis. Everyone has bought into the right flexing their muscles, but what I thought was far more insidious was how tight the party sponsors were inside the Liberal party machine – the fact that office bearers could also be lobbyists and that those same office bearers essentially decided on who the Liberal candidates would be just emphasises how corrupted that party is (and essentially how easy it is for any party to become corrupted).
The other very clear issue that came out was from Abetz, who basically told us what we already knew – the Libs aren’t interested in policy, just in winning elections and staying in power. And that they will do anything to keep Labor out of power – regardless of whether Labor intend to do the right thing or not is irrelevant, and this shapes their policies – everything is about wedging Labor. It is obsessional. And it is utterly destructive to finding the solutions we need to take our country forward. We will never be able to have that “grown up conversation” when one side simply rubbishes what the other side says regardless of the content. The kind of attitude that they display would make them unemployable in any other profession, yet somehow the media and our “professional commentators” let them get away with it time after time, and thus so do the voters. For them its all just a big game.
A desire to look after Australian people? I don’t think that even registers with people like Abetz. He really doesn’t care.
Goodness, I thought, when I saw Rabid-the-Hun slagging off about factionalism in the Liarbril Party, things must be really crook! Or is it just a Guthrie salute to his naked ambitions?
…and Steve Laing’s comments on the “power only, not policy” blinkered approach of Abetz resonated, too… one of those suspended had a similar attitude.
I stand corrected, Kaye 🙁
Hear, hear Steve. The Liberal Degenerates are degenerate by name and degenerate by nature. They get their thrills from politics like participants in blood sports get their kicks. Their reptilian brains have never developed beyond the jungle regardless of the price of the suits they wear.
When governments make laws or regulatory changes that favour, gives a benefit one group and causes a detriment to another. That is the tort of Misfeasance.
By budgeting for an annual $20bn subsidy, to the Fossil fuel industry and thereby artificially lowering the price of energy to households on the fossil fuel grid; while at the same time actually increasing the price per unit, of electricity to households who have solar power installed on their roof is not only unfair and inexplicable it is collusion between the Government and the Fossil Fuel industry. What is more it is most definitely Misfeasance.
Up with this we do not have to put.
And;
Shell’s website features a lengthy question and answer exchange with the company’s chief climate change adviser, David Hone, who explains the basics of climate science and then concedes: “Business can’t solve the climate problem on its own. I think it’s the role of companies like Shell—which has been a strong advocate of the core solutions since the late 1990s—to help identify possible solutions for policy- makers” (Fineren 2014). In September 2014, Shell CEO Ben van Beurden reiterated his company’s position in an inter- view with the Washington Post. Even as his company con- tinues to sponsor ALEC’s activities, van Beurden contended: “Let me be very, very clear. For us, climate change is real and it’s a threat that we want to act on. We’re not aligning with skeptics” (Mufson 2014).
The-Climate-Deception-Dossiers.pdf
Naked ambition on show.
Abbott was like a pig squealing and it was obvious to me that Abbott was tipping manure by the truckload on 2 apparently corrupt folk who are standing in his way.
A question I have is “Has any criminal offence occurred and if so why isn’t there a police investigation?”
Abbott’s revelations tell us nothing we did not know already. The wonder of it is that Abbott aired the problem openly – no sniping or white-anting at a distance. Yet he has spruiked team unity in the past (we are not Labor) and was blind-sided by that idea when he was winkled out by Turnbull, such was his confidence. And he still has enough hubris to believe he can manipulate the party even now. Yet there are some in the Coalition who think Abbott is god because he got them back into power in 2013.
But ask yourself what has happened since 2013. Commentators on this site are right to say that the Coalition has no policies but is intent only on keeping Labor out of power. Well, partly right. Abbott’s policies were to put the wrecking ball through anything instigated by Labor and to implement the IPA wishlist. The institutions wrecked by the Coalition will have to be re-built if Oz is to prosper.
So just ask what positive things have been achieved since 2013. Nothing. Two years under the worst PM ever and a bunch of incompetents who achieved nothing but chaos.
Turnbull looked like the saviour and for some 9 months did nothing but keep the boat afloat. Then we had a period of some 2 months of faux-campaigning with no substantial policies from the Turnbull-led government. Since the election we have had nothing much but a little muddle – and we still have weeks to go before Parliament sits again. How is the government operating in this time? The public service? While the deck-chairs are being shuffled both in government and in the public service!
Take Christoper Pyne for example. Three portfolios in less than 3 years.Seriously, what has did achieve in the two when he actually was in the portfolio – Education and Technology/Innovation? Asked about it, he would say, “I fixed it”.
Turnbull must be in complete muddle. Even if he believes he knows what he is doing, he is dealing with ning-nongs. The future does not look promising. How with these incompetents cope? They won’t.
My theory is that when Turnbull took so long to come out late on the night of the election,full of anger, he had been having a good cry, realising that he had proved himself to be a goose to go with the Double Dissolution.
And lurking on the back bench is the hunch-back of the Northern Shore.
Three Liberal Party members including two former MPs have been suspended for six months from the party for appearing on a 7.30 investigation into Liberal preselections.
All three are aligned or sympathetic to the (once-dominant)? right faction of the party. One of the many many examples of the ABC being left wing- biased eh?
We have the worst government . since 1949 and it’s this LNP,……As the Australia Institute’s research in June found – across a broad range of economic measures, the Abbott/Turnbull government has performed the worst of any Australian government since 1949. Economist Jim Stanford’s report examines economic performance across 12 indicators – including GDP per capita, the unemployment rate, employment growth and the growth of real business investment and intellectual property investment …
You can’t get any clearer that this Government is the most inept, stupid, greedy,mean,naive,untalented,boring,idiotic, Liberal party EVER!.
[The wonder of it is that Abbott aired the problem openly – no sniping or white-anting at a distance]
I would like to think that this was just a case of principle. Yes it is possible for even people like Abbott to have GOOD principles.
The problem is that this is a case of the traditional or old school far right feeling upset for being left out of the preparation for political office system – lobbyists like Sinodinos and fascists like Brandis, and Abetz would appear to be controlling the preselections – they want people beholden to them. I think the “public good principle” is being generated by self interest. It is ambition dressed up as public good altruism.
This is not to say that they are incorrect in their assessment, and I for one am 100% certain that some degree of principle was involved – I am only commenting on the possible underlying “catalyst” motive.
I say this as the person who has made this lobbyist issue his cause, John Ruddick, is a fan of Ayn Rand, Ronald Reagan and Alan Jones.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-09-21/ruddick-resigns-amid-frustration-over-need-for-reform/6791832
http://www.smh.com.au/comment/why-im-putting-trent-zimmerman-last-on-north-sydney-byelection-ballot-20151123-gl5zwd.html
Time for public funding of elections. If we can find millions for an unnecessary plebiscite and school chaplains we can find it for this. Has the added advantage of denying the scurrilous lobbyists their pernicious invasive influence too.
…. indeed Aortic.
With Public Funding comes a reasonable degree of accountability! … Plus … the expense is frankly for a huge ‘ Selling ‘ Camp0aign ! ..
Wouldn’t it be great were actual ” Achievement ” the tone of elections rather than ” Attainment ” … ( read ” power ” ! ) …?? …
We already do publicly fund elections, the first $60 million plus has already been paid out to parties and individuals. This is a full breakdown for your information :
http://www.aec.gov.au/media/media-releases/2016/07-27e.htm
And the money provided should be enough, if parties did not use this money as graft to “get the media on their side” by sponsoring 10 times as many TV ads as we need to get the extremely minimal information provided by TV ads.
love it mr pye. it is great that billy and labor take a no whip attitude to the parliamentary race. To take charge by vigorous riding is unseemly better to let the libs have the tiller than rock the boat.
Simple public declaration of meetings and donations should suffice (with the media responsible for what they publish???)
ps with an election a couple of weeks away the territory gov has just put a lobbyist(former chief minister) for a builder in charge of land development authority what absolute arrogance.
Thank you Terry2.and jimhaz.
I am already aware of the info. from the link provided. What I’m driving at is ( as jimhaz commented ) that the current system encourages and welcomes ‘corruption’ by way of the existing ‘ donations ‘ system.
Is there really any purpose served by ‘advertising ‘ & ‘promises’ …?? ….. Would there be any problem with extending advance funding …. confirmed upon vote tally along existing lines.
It is certainly possible to take $$ Big Money $$ out of the system without we try to go into details here! ….. and can we agree this is at the root of CONTROL ??… which belongs in Public hands!!
Go on mrabbott you can do it divide and conquer you can do it , Next we will have mrabbot promoted to head of the UN and mr turnin,intobull,promoted to to high office like, and all praised by the Labor party ?
and I wonder.