I’ve covered this before but since the budget, Malcolm’s turned up the heat. He is using the usual devices of leaking discontent from another source, denying it and pledging allegiance to Nelson. Of course, it’s all bullshit and everyone knows. It’s a method, a technique you might find in The Prince or Art of War. Turnbull’s problem is that everyone knows he’s a dog and so do the public. He oozes untrustworthiness. At a time when liberals are looking for strength and vision here he is chipping away at the leadership. I know he’s expected to and that’s the problem too. Australia is sick of this old school politics. Rudd got in by agreeing with everything Howard said thus making himself a target nobody could hit. The hatred of the Howard years was enough for him to win. Rudd had a new approach. Clever. What the libs need is a new vision which they then shove in the face of Labor every day until the election. Vision, purpose, future.
The problem is not in the Liberal party but the Howard old guard. There should certainly be a pogrom and Nelson should display ruthlessness in eliminating anything still stinking of Howard. Like that bloated dill Alexander Downer. Nelson should get his supporters to go on their own Kristallnacht forcing the party into submission, cowering Turnbull and establishing a brave new Liberal agenda. Thing is, Brendan’s too nice. What was needed for the first leader was a complete bastard along the lines of Malcolm Fraser. An earing and leather coat is just lame. The ideal leader would be better off with ten earings and a skull tattooed on his arm. Maybe with Love & Hate on the knuckles for good measure.
When the left says ‘we inherited all our shit from Howard’ Nelson has to say ‘yeah, well that’s got nothing to do with us, we’re all new and you’re a twat’.
Paul Keating was Australia’s greatest liberal Prime Minister. He’s probably bored and keen for another dig. That would be good to see. The best would be Brendan Nelson challenging Turnbull to a fight in the car-park Klingon style. That would go totally off on YouTube. A real leader would carry out savage and focused assaults on key Labor weaknesses, relentlessly and visciously tearing at them until they are trembling in fear of reprisal, brushing off the pathetic excuse of inherited problems and keeping the focus on the government until they crack and the factions start warring with each other. Then it’s piecemeal and an easy win. Schwerepunkt then Divide and conquer.
Filed under: Diatribe | Tagged: australian politics, Brendan Nelson, leadership, Liberal, Malcolm turnbull, politics
