Sunday 10 November 2013

Another three views on Prime Minister Action Man


In the Business Spectator on 5 November 2013:

Tony Abbott was a master of the photo-opportunity in the lead up to the 2010 and 2013 elections. In those periods it was hard-hats, fluoro vests, and the constant misrepresentation of the scale and nature of the ‘carbon tax’ impost on the economy. It was smart politics, but tended to swamp and ignore much more important issues.
In government, Abbott should be out there in overalls picking fruit, in a hair-net packing chopped spinach; shaking hands with uni professors and, for a change, praising their efforts to expand their teaching into Asia; sailing an LNG tanker out to sea; and visiting wealth management offices of Australian banks and financial institutions in Bangkok.
In short, using the photo-op for good, not evil. 

The Age on 6 November 2013:
The making of effective foreign policy always looks easier than it is. As a result, new governments tend to underestimate the task. The Howard and Rudd/Gillard governments each made tentative starts on the international stage. The current government's diplomatic initiation has been worse. Even allowing for inexperience, the Abbott government appears to be setting a new standard for diplomatic ineptitude. The Prime Minister in particular has lurched from one mistake to another, with each episode more ham-fisted than the last....
The Age on 6 November 2013:
You can’t thumb your nose at the voters’ right to know and you can’t arrogantly say ‘we’ll let the voters be misinformed and we won’t help journalists get it right'. That’s just a disgusting attitude. 
The respected Channel Nine reporter and political commentator told Fairfax Media that Prime Minister Tony Abbott and senior ministers were breaking their election promise of greater accountability for voters....
Singling out Immigration Minister Scott Morrison, Mr Oakes said arrogance and disregard for truth would ultimately backfire....

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