Tomorrow, when I fly in, I’m coming home to a political situation that most Australians think is a dog’s breakfast. What’s happening is ugly as. It’s infuriating. Messy. I agree. It is and it needs to be sorted out.
But unlike what happened in 2010, when Australia went to bed with one prime minister and woke up to another, now we have time.
This leadership ballot is happening in caucus, the group of 103 Labor MPs and senators we elected, but that doesn’t mean it is not our vote.
We are their employers. My Dad works for me. I often remind him of that. He is my local member and I helped put him there. I walked into a church hall and in the privacy of a polling booth I put a one next to his name.
You’re all employers too. You might not be related to your employees, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have access to them. When they aren’t doing their jobs, you can tell them. When they are misbehaving, you can reprimand them.
I live in Beijing, a city with a population the size of our whole nation—twenty-two million people.
Like us, they get up in the morning. They have a shower and wonder if their favourite top is dry yet. They get dressed and go to work. They have lunch with their colleagues and bitch about HR. At the end of the day they swap heels for runners and go home. They order dinner from the grease-stained menus on the fridge, call their mum and switch on the telly.
At the same time each night on almost every free-to-air TV station all over China is the same national news broadcast. I don’t mean it’s similar, I mean the exact same show. In sync. You can flick between stations and the same guy is on your screen telling you what is going on, or at least what he’s allowed to tell you is going on.
You can’t just go, ‘this is boring, that guy’s tie is feral—I wonder what’s happening over on The Project.’
You can’t write to your local MP about it because you don’t have one and a complaint to the network is a complaint to the government.
When you watch international stations like the BBC and CNN, stories about China often disappear. The screen goes blank.
There’s no Twitter or Facebook. Don’t get me wrong, there are social media platforms and they’re epic. But in China it’s all still new and risky. People do say what they think but they worry about the consequences. Controversial posts are mysteriously removed from China’s equivalent of Twitter, Weibo. They just vanish.
We, the people of Australia, are different. We have power.
We are not a passive audience in a crowded cinema with popcorn on our laps waiting for the previews to end.
We are participants. We have a voice and I think we should bloody well use it. Get up and say something. Say it loudly. Be heard.
You might think Julia Gillard is the ant’s pants. Fab. Say it.
You might think my Dad is ace. Cool. Write it.
You might think everyone sucks. Scream it.
Tweet something. Rant on Facebook. Put a video on YouTube. Put a sign on your front fence. Have a chat with your neighbour. Tell your friends. Email your local MP. Ring them up. Stop them at the news agent and make them listen. Call your local radio station. Have a rally Vote in an online poll. Write a song about it. Get on Mamamia and say, ‘OMG she’s just saying that because she’s KRudd’s daughter.’
Look, I know the parliament can seem alien at times—believe me, it’s even weirder when you’re there—but it is not out of reach. It’s ours. We own it.
Let’s own this spill, people. Let’s make it ours. Make your MPs work for you. Tell them what you want. Because unlike my mates in China, we have no excuse for simply sitting back and letting it happen.
Jessica Rudd, is a Canberra-born, Brisbane-raised ex-lawyer, ex-campaign worker and ex-PR consultant who lives with her husband in Beijing. She has written the occasional column, a host of legal letters, countless press releases and two novels Ruby Blues and Campaign Ruby.
So, if you were in caucus, which way would you vote?
Editor’s Note: We’ve been surprised that some readers have not understood that this is an opinion piece so we thought it might be helpful to clarify a few points. Jessica Rudd is the daughter of Kevin Rudd who is expected to challenge Julia Gillard for leadership of the ALP on Monday. That much is clear. Neither Jessica nor Mamamia is purporting this piece to be impartial political analysis. Jessica is not Laurie Oakes and has never pretended to be. But she is someone with a unique and undeniably newsworthy insight into the biggest news story in Australia this week.
Mamamia publishes opinion pieces every day and sometimes they are political. We publish views from the left, the right and everywhere in between. Tony Abbott, Jenny Macklin, Kate Ellis, Julia Gillard, Sarah Hanson Young and Malcolm Turnbull are among politicians who have had opinion pieces published on Mamamia in the past 12 months.
Mamamia is not the ABC but we do try hard to publish a variety of views to reflect the diversity of our audience but also TO START CONVERSATIONS among you, our readers. Because we don’t ever underestimate your intelligence. We know that you can see who wrote a post and make your own assumptions about their beliefs and motivations.
We are proud to publish Jessica’s posts here on Mamamia, just as we always have been. Yes, the invitation has been extended to any other politician or family member of a candidate who has something to say about this extraordinary and quite bizarre time in federal politics.
That invitation is ongoing.
And we are also pleased to announce the appointment of our first dedicated political correspondent for Mamamia, journalist Lauren Dubois who today files her first of many upcoming pieces from Canberra which you can read here.
- Mia Freedman
Kevin Rudd wins office during the November 2007 Federal election.
Comments
1,678 Comments so far
con sciacca has said that using ones family for support is reprehensible.
Peta Credlin should take note when Tony Abbott uses his daughters as well.
the perception in the polity is that he is SLEAZY and excuse the derogatory remarks but that’s the truth amongst males.
The vitriol with the liberal party is just as nasty and repugnant.
Malcolm Turnball make your move and lets have another soap opera bring that one on!!
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I think that for my next job interview, I’ll take my adorable 6 year old with me. Sure to get me a few more brownie points.
Shame !
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Love it. I’m so embarrassed for Kevin Rudd. Can’t he fight battle without his women?
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“His women”? Would it be different if his male family members were campaigning for him?
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No Sas, not at all. As I said above I would be equally angry if Julia’s partner or parents came out speaking on her behalf.
That would be equally pathetic and embarrassing.
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the shallow simplistic anglo australian middle class is the demographic of this publication…?
Yep thats why it attracts the comments that it does……..ho hum and so sad and hilarious!
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Well said Jess. Let this be a people’s voice/vote. For the first time in my 30 years of voting I decided to vote LIberal at the next election (Oh my God – what a frightful choice!!). I still will if Julia is there come election time.
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Here’s what I heard from Jessica Rudd:
Like my father, I am desperate to be considered relevant. To do this I will make empty, patronizing platitudes about the robustness of Australian democracy in comparison to China from my lofty perch as an ex-lawyer, ex-campaign worker, ex-PR consultant.
What I learned from my welfare-services-queen millionaire mother is that it is important to consider all relations (even ones between voter-government) in terms of employer and employee. This makes me feel better about my willful ignorance of the sectional interests that dominate Australian politics who pollute my little fiction that all Australians have an equal voice. By depicting all of us as employers, I emphasize my Dad’s landslide electoral victory while conveniently ignoring his record in government and his awful mishandling and underestimation of the sectional interests who dominate the media landscape and our heavy polluting resource sector, not to mention the clubs, the alcohol and the tobacco industry.
From living amongst an insulated expatriate community in Beijing within which people ‘swap heels for runners’ (to run the 15 metres to the cab-rank to get out of the smog?) I remain willfully ignorant of the lives of most Chinese people. It is easier for me to think of them as passive automatons who consume media passively while making trinkets for Western consumption passively, because otherwise I would have to acknowledge my complicity in the exploitation of large groups of, in particular, internal migrant labourers in China. For me, all of the Chinese people stand as a convenient racist straw man of passivity against which I can construct my hollow idea of Australian democracy in which “We have Power.” To depict the Chinese people as otherwise would mean confronting their resistance to the work-sleep-die-regime, of which the threatened mass-suicide at FoxxConn was the most recent example, upon which the Australian resource community, and the Australian economy generally, relies. Managing Australia’s engagement with this, and what this means for our export industries, was not something that my Dad had the ability to do successfully, partly because he surrounded himself with a cadre of ex-lawyer, ex-management consultant types (Lachlan Harris, Andrew Chalton) – Jessica Rudd’s type of floating people, who underestimated the sectional interests that dominate Australian politics. This does not mean that Gillard does a particularly good job at navigating this either, but it is a damn lot better than the weird stasis amidst chaos that characterized the Rudd Regime.
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I am the only person to find this post bitter, smug and prejudicial? In fact, it is well written and there are some valid points regarding China and the realities of Australian politics but it really comes across as being some kind of personal assassination by someone who is making a whole lot of assumptions about the kind of person Jess is and the kind of life she lives and it is a shame because the completely valid points are lost beyond the vitriolic framing of the argument.
Yes, some expats live a life as you have described. Others don’t. Yes, some people have wealthy parents and a platform which may make it easier to succeed in the area that they choose – I think that she has been honest enough about this in interviews I’ve seen where she publicises her books. And I don’t think that she has been arrogant enough, in writing this article, to believe that the readership will see it for anything else than what it is – a compelling argument for change which conveniently reiterates what is the basis for the Rudd campaign.
You may argue that, in writing this and in becoming visibly involved in her father’s campaign, that she’s fair game. If that is the case, at least restrict your arguments to what she has to say, rather than attacking her “lofty” perch as an ex-lawyer etc. and her implied upbringing and life as an expat. I say “implied” because, actually, how on earth would you know?
As someone from a working class background who was not at all afforded a life of privilege and who has found success in my own right, this just reeks of some kind of envious class warfare.
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The implication of Jessica Rudd’s opinion piece is “Write on Twitter and facebook and call your local politician because otherwise we’ll become passive Chinese workers living under an authoritarian regime.” Your anger should be directed at the arrogance, racism and condescension of Jessica Rudd rather than the fact I point out that she is being so.
I also drew attention to the fact that she somehow thinks that in the Australian political system, everyone’s voice is equal. This, I would argue, was the problem with her father. He was not willing or able to negotiate through reform that successfully navigated the sectional interests that dominate Australian politics. This does not mean that I think he had conviction and was not willing to compromise on his beliefs. Rather, his government was characterized by ideas being put forward and then meekly abandoned before the hard work could begin on them.
I am not interested in class warfare. What concerns me is the racist depiction of Chinese people as passive, and using this as a way to patronize us into raising our voices. This kind of racist nationalist rubbish is exactly the kind of thing we do not need as the foundation for making a decision about our leaders. There is not far between this and Howard’s ‘we decide who comes to our country and the conditions under which they come’, or Hanson-style xenophobia, or equally, Rudd’s “rat-f—-rs, they rat-f—-d us.”
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So this is where we disagree. For me, her article did not imply racism or arrogance. If it did, i would be equally up in arms, for a number of reasons, not least because I’d be disappointed that we have the daughter of an ALP leadership candidate espousing such views, especially when she also chooses to live in the country and therefore takes advantage of the infrastructure, the services and the opportunity that that country affords her. Having been a serial expat myself, it really gets under my skin when expats choose to live in a country that they then choose to denigrate amongst a sympathetic expat circle of friends. My point is that is just don’t know that that is what she is like.
I also can’t claim a well-developed knowledge of China. But I did live in Cuba and so perhaps it is fair to draw some comparisons. I was not a privileged expat there, but rather living a normal Cuban life with my Cuban fiance (at the time)…or so I told myself. I was always aware that, whatever happened, it was my choice to remain in the country – which was not a choice afforded to the rest of the population. In that sense, no matter how much I would try to integrate, I would never be able to understand 100% the challenges that the local populace did. And I was aware that I have a platform for speech available to me that others didn’t, especially in terms with communicating with the outside world.
With regards to negotiating reform, I have said before on this site and I’ll say it again, that Rudd and Gillard had different prevailing political landscapes – Rudd had a hostile Senate, due to peculiarities of the Senate taking office long after the election, and Gillard has a hung parliament in the lower house – in order to take government, the negotiations that Gillard required were undertaken at the time of election and, for the most part, have held. She has a much more receptive Senate.
Rudd’s inability was less in the House of Reps and more in terms of knowing that, once passed through the House of Reps, things wouldn’t pass in the Senate. But I do agree with you completely that there was a level of naivety (some might even say hubris) in assuming that, because he secured so much of the popular vote, that he would not have to deal with the sectional interests, particularly as they had not hampered him through the campaign.
Like I said, your original post made good points but they were lost to me under the personal attack.
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If Kevin Rudd were truly my employee I’d sack him for one of the most petulant displays I’ve ever seen in politics. The future of the nation and stable, effective governance is nothing but a backdrop to his precious ambitions. The melodrama cannot be over soon enough.
And it is also a bit hysterical to compare us to China. I lived in Beijing for a year, and yes, I got sick of the propaganda and overt censorship. But sitting around and heaving a sigh of relief that it’s not THAT bad doesn’t mean our system isn’t being manipulated by so-called ‘employees’ who put their own personal grudges above everything else.
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I am a middle class greens voter and i know what all their policies are, especially dental health.
It’s insulting to say that greens are shallow.
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That’s great Gemma. My point is that not everyone is like you.
At the last election, there was a huge amount of discussion as to how a record number of people couldn’t bring themselves to vote for either party. The Greens were the giant beneficiary of this – Bob Brown would say that himself.
My point is that a party shouldn’t benefit just cos they’re not the other two parties. They should only benefit if they’re putting the best policy platforms foward.
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Shallow is a compliment compared to what I call Green supporters. Take it, it’s as good as you’ll get.
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How rude!
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Why, because they can look beyond the politicisation that Mummy and Daddy gave them?
Seriously, Mel, I’ve never met a young Liberal or National whose parents weren’t died in the wool supporters of the same political party.
Are you the same?
I’ve spread my votes between Labor, Democrats, Greens and the Libs (in the Upper House).
That is because I read and listen to all the parties’ (excluding the loony fringe dwellers) policy and go from there.
Shallow is being welded to an allegiance that you inherited but never ONCE questioned.
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Shot down, Trog! I was Labor through and through, its been in the DNA for generations.
Then I laid eyes on KRudd and saw him for what he is even though the media shoved him down the gullible public’s throat and they believed them.
I’ve voted Labor more times than Liberal but I will NEVER again vote for anyone other than the Liberals. You see, I educated myself. I read and read and read and even when I didn’t agree I kept going and I can now tell you without a shadow of a doubt that Labor are scum and the Greens hide their lunacy behind the environment – why do you think the Australian Communist Party instructs their members to vote for them?
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It’s also abhorrent to have member of the Greens waving placards and marching outside the businesses of our Jewish community.
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I was unaware of this until recently. What happened? Which member of the Greens?
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Hi Louisec, the main culprit is Lee Madeupname Rhiannon and the rabble from Marrickville Council and the inner city elites who’s behaviour and antisemitism has NO place in today’s Australia.
As far as I can see, the environment is nothing more than a smoke screen for a raft of policies that are not compatible with our country or way of life.
The ‘left’ they’ve thrown their hats in with the Muslims and can be heard loudly vilifying Jews at every opportunity but the media seem to be right behind them.
It’s time for all of us to hit google and educate ourselves.
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That’s surprising. Lee Rhiannon was an incredible support to me and the team I worked with on the domestic violence issue of women being arrested for defending themselves whilst being assaulted.
I approached all the major female politicians (NSW) – ALP and LIberal – and boy was that a learning lesson on how they don’t care less even when they have the portfolio for women! Shameful.
But Lee had us in the office the very next day and was so incredibly supportive.
She did so much work on this issue, which was/is an incredibly important one – it’s a major miscarriage of justice. She put many many hours into it and a huge amount of effort.
We would never have achieved the level of recognition that we did without her. It wouldn’t have been possible.
She was also extremely supportive of me personally. And a genuinely lovely person. I can not speak highly enough of her in my experience.
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Your guys’ flagrant ‘social media’ campaigning makes me upchuck a little in my mouth.
Honestly, the two of you; who do you think that you’re fooling?
You’re part of the reason why the voting public are disillusioned and insulted.
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Trog – what are you on about?????
From your previous posts it seems that you “upchuck” quite a lot in your own mouth.
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I, like many others, understand what an opinion piece is.
I’m just somewhat tired of the Rudd Family buying into this issue. What I find interesting is both Therese Rein and Jessica Rudd were out there urging voters ( I think Therese used the term ‘ordinary’ Australians ) to contact their MPs to tell them who they want running the country BEFORE Kevin Rudd had even announced that he will challenge Julia Gillard on Monday. Tell me that’s not orchestrated.
I’m also disappointed in the tone that both Jessica and Therese have adopted in their public statements. They have both come across as condescending and insincere. But on the upside, they prompted me to do something I have not done in the 25 years I have been eligible to vote (and for the record that’s 25 years of voting ALP ). I emailed Kelvin Thomson, my local MP this morning to let him know that if Kevin Rudd is to become leader of the ALP on monday, I will not be voting for the ALP until he’s out of politics.
What irks me most about this is, I have never been an advocate for voting for a person. I’ve always made my decision based on policies and actions. Kevin Rudd’s attitude and behaviour however is enough to influence me to
make my decisions based on the person in the chair.
I don’t wish Kevin Rudd any ill will and he had his moments as PM (I will never forget his apology to Indigenous Australians) . I just don’t want him running the country.
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As disappointed as I am by Mamamia running this nonsense, it is so heartening to read intelligent comments such as yours. Also loved HCur’s remarks a few above yours.
I only hope once they stop being so defensive and shrugging off readers very valid concerns today that the site operator’s will appreciate that they have so many readers who are clearly much smarter and infinitely more entertaining than some of their writers (ie: Jessica).
No more offensive contributors like this please
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Oh spare me _ when I saw Jessica Rudd tweeted “effing proud of you dad” I thought `what a tosser’. But if she wants to speak the “pretend tough” language that her father attempts to use what IS there to be “effing” proud of? Backstabbing and undermining a Prime Minister for 18 months? Sulking and spinelessly sniping anyone who was part of getting rid of him because of his toxic leadership? Bringing the Labor Government to the brink of defeat before his long-suffering colleagues were forced to replace him? Not getting any worthwhile polices through with full support of the Party unlike Gillard has with a minority government? Being a fake as he tries to speak like a knockabout Ocker when his true personality is a jealous, insecure, vengeful mudslinger? I could go on. Kevin Rudd is everything that DOESN’T represent grassroot Australians.
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I’m actually pretty certain that if Tim Mathieson or Julia’s best friend wanted to write a piece from a personal perspective, then MM would publish it. I think bagging Jess – a regular writer on this website – for what she says is horrid. She’s not pretending to be anyone other than who she is. I think Jess and Therese are the biggest assets Kevin Rudd has; and I also tend to think he can’t be all that bad if that’s his family!
I am sick of hearing about how well Julia manages the hung parliament! We would not have a hung parliament if Rudd hadn’t been replaced, and subsequently, if Gillard had not run one of the worst campaigns in history. She created this mess and she needs to take accountability for that.
I don’t believe for one second that if Rudd is returned, everything will be okay. The parliament is a mess. But for many of us, who deplore the thought of an Abbott Prime Ministership, something must be done. If only Turnbull had joined the labour party instead….he must be seriously pondering that right now.
I hope people have learned from this situation. It’s all very well voting for the Greens etc because you hate both sides, but there are consequences to the Greens getting the balance of power as they have done this time. Whenever I ask a Greens voter what the Greens policies are; other than the envrionment, they have no idea – and that’s because they’re not real Greens voters; they’re people that have bought into this notion that the Greens will keep the others honest, which is rubbish – although brilliant PR. I’m not trying to bag the Greens or any other party, but when each of us vote, we have a responsibility to know who and what we’re voting for and to make a decision as to which side we prefer – even if we dislike all of them.
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Jess is being bagged because she is playing a part in a cynical coordinated campaign to convince people that this is a democratically-driven movement. It isn’t. “This spill is ours” can be taken as true if it’s using the exclusive “we” – to denote the Rudd family – rather than the inclusive “we” – the writer and the readers, and, broadly, all Australians.
She is not expressing her view that her dad is great. Based on the fact that her dad is ahead of Julia Gillard in the polls as the preferred leader, she is running the line that this is somehow “for the people, by the people”. It is not. It was brought about by her dad in a cloak and dagger campaign (http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-02-17/cassidy-leadership-tussle/3834486). All this cheery talk of democracy being great is just a ruse that is convenient right now. It is disingenuous.
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I think this ‘for the people’ thing is very interesting. I think this situation is demonstrating that many Australians DO want to elect the person who leads us AS WELL as the party who leads us.
That’s not our system. But surely this whole mess is telling us that perhaps the system needs reform?
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As a Greens voter, I can tell you, I know pretty much all the policies and I don’t agree with them all. For me, they are the party which represents my views on most of the issues but not all. As such, I’ve started getting involved in contributing to policy, particularly in areas that I am passionate about and where I disagree on current policy or where I feel it can be improved.
What attracted me to the Greens? In fact, it was not their environmental policies. For me, they represent the party with the best policies on social justice issues, which is close to my heart, and, as an economically-left leaner, I was attracted to their policies regarding taxes and spending. So, we’re not all like the people you’ve spoken to.
I do agree with you on one thing though – we do have a responsibility to know what we’re voting for.
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Since MM has no intention of posting anything from the JG camp here is an article that Kate Ellis promoted on her twitter account. It is not written by her It is written Michael Gawenda – This was also RT by Virginia Trioli and Mark Colvin http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/3847892.html
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Thanks for that. Good article.
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Where are the Democrats when you need them?
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they are still there! although they are very small now I must say!
I voted democrats in the last election.
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What I wish would happen now.
Kevid Rudd resigns from the Labor Party all together, thereby forcing a by election in his electorate which topples the Labor Party from Federal Government and lets a REAL Government get on with the job of, you know, RUNNING THE COUNTRY.
Kevin goes on to have a great career in the UN (which I personally believe he deserves as he is a very intelligent and world minded leader), the Liberal Party takes control SANS all the bickering and inconsistency we’ve had to deal with from Labor during their terms in government, and we all go on to live our lives happily ever after.
Sadly, I do know for sure that Liberal is just as ridiculous as Labor, the Greens are a joke and the country is on its way to being royally screwed.
Sigh.
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Sorry – couldn’t resist!
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Thanks Simone, you gave me my first laugh of the day! Love it.
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I am sitting on the fence. I feel both Rudd and Gillard have pros and cons. I say this first because I wanted to make it clear that I am not bias to either leader. I viewed this article expecting it to try and sway me towards Rudd – it is his daughter writing it. But to my surprise it didn’t. I found it refreshing and very true. We do live in a country where we can voice our opinions unlike so many other countries. We do have freedom of speech and we should be using it. What has interested me is the responses. Anyone who read this and expected it to be un-bias (which I do actualy feel it is) is kidding themselves – it’s Rudd’s daughter for godness sake! What would you expect? That being said I didn’t read anything in there that told me to vote for Rudd or was trying to convince me Gillard is a poor leader. All I saw was someone trying to open our eyes to the fact that we do have a say and which ever side we believe in we should voice it. The article hasn’t convinced me to support either side, instead it has convinced me that I do have a right to be heard and once I make a decision I do have a right to view it. Everyone has a right to voice their opinion, with that in mind I say this: for those that are accusing the article of being a political stunt designed to gain support for Rudd I wonder if you are reading what you want to read and not reading what is actually written. If you are a Gillard supporter you will want the article to be a political stunt and to bias and if you are a Rudd supporter you will want it to support Rudd and to convince the reader to back him. I can honestly say I am neither which is why I read what was actually written without looking for any hidden agendas. This is just my opinnion and I have a right to voice it, as does everyone else. But before we start he mud slinging maybe we should consider what we are bias towards and maybe take the view that there is enough mud slinging amongst our leaders, we don’t need to contribute to it. If the school captain punches someone should we copy just because he is our leader? Or could we choose to take a different path? Just because some of our politicians choose to belittle others and are reduced to name calling should we follow? No. How about instead we respect each others right to an opinnion and even if we don’t agree with an article we respect the persons right to an opinnion. Yes reply by all means but is it too much for us to show some respect to others? I congratulate everyone on having the guts to voice their opinion I just wish some of them were more constructive and respectfully.
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Jessica has a very low estimation of the intelligence of MM readers. She rattles off such platitudes about how “we” have the power in this “democracy”, when even a seventh grader can see the practical truth is quite the opposite.
What actually happens is that there is a ruling political class, who, in connection with its privileged cronies decide how we are going to be regulated, redistributed, intervened, expropriated, looted and forced to support immoral wars of aggression in the middle east.
Kevin Rudd is a prime example of the worst in society rising to positions of public office. Rudd’s narcissism and megalomania knows no bounds.
Need I remind everyone about the leaked cables where Rudd was caught out basically advocating for war with China? Must be nice when a common psychopath can get elevated to a position where he is furnished with an army, courts, police and tax collectors with which he can oppress and rob his victims at will. Beats the hell out of mugging them one by one!
To be clear, I am not endorsing Gillard.
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As I said on Facebook, if Kevin isn’t made PM again, maybe Jess should! Excellent article! xx
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Jessica, thanks for your concern and all, but most Australians are quite comfortable with “having a voice and using it.” Haven’t you noticed?
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“Let’s own this spill, people. Let’s make it ours.” You’ve got to be kidding. I am so sick of Kevin Rudd and the whole Rudd family drama. It’s a real shame that Australia has had to suffer because of them.
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I’d absolutely love us to own this spill. I’d love us to spill the entire lot of them out onto the street and start again. I think we should be having an extremely close look at our system of government and whether it is actually the very best it can be.
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Thanks Jessica! You just inspired me and reminded me I DO have a voice and I should use it! I emailed my local MP after reading this article, thanks for the timely reminder!
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Makes you wonder if all these comments are just the ‘views’ of Gillard’s PR people…or vice versa.
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The reason I think this piece does not sit well with many MM readers is that it is written as if it is simply Jess’s own view/angle that she came up with herself and not part of an organised campaign to get her dad back in the Lodge. Her piece slots precisely into the message her dad is sending publicly and is part of a carefully orchestrated campaign run by one of Australia’s chief political strategists. So it’s disingenuous to suggest it is simply Jess’s independent thinking on the matter.
Mia, in one of your responses you wrote that it was a bipartisan piece. I think you probably wrote that quickly without thinking much about it. This piece is part of the campaign – there is nothing bipartisan about it – and you give credit to the intelligence of your readers – I think people understand opinion pieces, but this one is political campaigning masked as opinion.
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Exactly. Up until this stunt, I respected the integrity of the articles on MM. Not now. And to claim that the readers don’t understand that it is only an opinion piece is pure propaganda and disingenuous. Shame on MM.
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Jessica Rudd and Therese Rein need to look up the definition of Bonapartism. As unelected people who have a lot of power by virtue of their personal relationship with an MP, their intervention into the political process by use of the media is profoundly UNdemocratic. The idea that this is part of a restoration of democratic values is unbearable, it is an attack on democracy, an attempt to subvert the processes of elected parliamentarians.
This article is a disgrace.
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I don’t understand why this article is a disgrace.
All the things you have listed in your comment aren’t even noted in the article.
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There is a very good reason why family members of MPs are extremely circumspect in their public statements, they have always confined themselves to very general statements of personal support of the person to whom they are related. To criticize the party in the most hypocritical way as Rein did, to orchestrate a campaign on Rudd’s behalf, is literally unprecedented in Australia, hell it is unprecedented in the American Presidential system where democracy is even more broken than here.
These people have access to the media, they can wield a great deal of power and they are totally unelected. I repeat, this is not a restoration of democracy, it is an attempt to further subvert it. It is horrifying that people are so uneducated as to how our democracy works, its basis in the constitution that they think these interventions are fine.
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Totally agree, butt out Therese,
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Exactly. Well said.
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Yep it is, emotional tripe,
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Jess – did you show your piece to your dad or Bruce Hawker before you sent to MM to publish?
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“Rudd-Gillard debacle is a sign of Australia’s privilege: countries don’t allow themselves such diversions unless things are going v well.”.. alain de bottom
That’s the privilege of living in the best country in the world when we have spats like this Mr Abbott, so its not THAT bad….is it?
lovely to hear from Jess, good luck with being a mom and a strong modern woman with opinions!!! Hope its a healthy and happy baby.
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I’m actively signing up to the Liberal Party after this fiasco. Your father is an embarrassment – he had his chance and blew it. From all reports, he’s hideous to work with and for. As much as I detest Labor and all it represents, leave Julia in place and let the people decide with a federal election. And let’s not forget Labor wasn’t actually voted in, but secured power in parliament by making promises to independents that have not been kept. Australia needs to wake up to itself.
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Oh another ‘blah’ comment that thinks we elect the PM like the US elect the President. The Government is elected by a vote of the House of Representatives. She was ‘voted in’ just as much as the last couple PMs.
As for keeping promises – only Wilkie seems upset and the ALP are still offering a lot more on reform in his area – an evidence based approach to pokie reform that can cut through the clubs & pubs spin.
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I’m not on the same page as KDinPaddo. I like to vote on the basis of policy, not locked-in ideology.
Yes, the govt. is elected by House of Reps and the Prime Minister is selected by their party, but in practice, it is not entirely untrue to say that the Prime Minister is elected by the public.
Look at what’s happening all around us at the moment. A shakily mandated Prime Minister under siege from her poll results. The reason that Rudd has been able to mount an assault is due to public opinion. Sure, this isn’t a direct vote, but public opinion is being used effectively as an engine of war.
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If we’re truly wanting people power I think we need an election. It seems there are at least 3 electorates not being represented as they would wish (Oakeshott’s, Windsors and Slipper’s). We should have an election so that democracy is restored in Australia.
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Can someone please explain why this post has a big “Exclusive to Mamamia” written on the homepage?
I understand that Jess is just trying to tell us to make our voices heard but the big Exclusive banner makes it look like some kind of insider scoop. Maybe that’s why people are annoyed.
Sorry if this has already been explained, i haven’t scrolled through all of the comments.
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Hello Mamamians!
Sorry I haven’t been able to respond until now. I’ve landed in Sydney and am about to fly to Brisbane. Can’t wait to get home and put my feet up—six months of pregnancy makes ankles swell on long-haul flights. FYI: not attractive.
Thrilled to see so many of you with such strong opinions about my post. That’s exactly what I’d hoped for—a demonstration of passion, of getting involved, of having a voice and using it.
I meant what I said: whatever you think, whoever you back, I hope you know you can say it and have an impact. Don’t feel disenfranchised. This is a democracy. Use it.
Yes, this is just my opinion and it comes with a neon (borderline iridescent) bias in the form of the family I love. I’ve always had the view that I should just be me. I’ve never pretended to be an independent commentator, never will, but that won’t stop me from saying what I think.
MM, thanks so much for having me again.
Jess xxx
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Good on you Jess, I love that you are proud of and back your Dad. And that you aren’t afraid of being criticised for doing so.
Don’t waste too much time replying to your critics today – go and have a nap!
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So definitely not objective at all, but full of emotional tripe. We are talking about the leader of our Nation. With the utmost respect, the Party has been kind to your father and not let on until now why he had to go. I have friends who worked as volunteers for Kevin and they said he was one of the most difficult people they ever worked with, The majority of cabinet saw it that way, as Julia has said, he is a good campaigner and good with the public, but that’s it!! I have voted Labour all my life. (35 years) If Rudd gets back in as leader, I will not be voting for the Labour Party again!!
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This is not an issue of democracy or masses getting involved. It is one of grubby intra-party squabbling after months of subterfuge by one of the team members.
I, for one, find that I have a bad taste in the mouth because of this attempt to miscategorise what’s going on as some noble democratic process. It’s a grubby byproduct of our political system, it’s one of the reasons democracy is the worst form of government, except all the other ones, but some movement of the masses it ain’t.
All the best with the baby!
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Jess Rudd this is not our spill. It is your fathers! He is in a mess of his own making and I hope Julia Gillard sweeps the floor with him. It is nice that you can turn to Mamamia who dismisses their readers concerns so you can carry on promoting your father’s campaign (and they themselves can get more readers logging on to their site) – Thank you for showing us how democracy truly works!
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Why is your name Anonymous? Heed I have to say more?
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Why shouldn’t it be “anonymous”. This person has every right to post as anonymous.
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Yes there do seem to be a lot of strong opinions about your post. Unfortunately for you the overwhelming majority of them are not responding to the content of what you wrote – which, let’s face it, was nothing of any substance – but objecting to Mamamia for allowing themselves to run Rudd propaganda without having the nous to realise that is exactly what it is.
Most of the readers here are not fools, Jess. I don’t think any of us judge you for saying what your father’s PR team have told you too. Any daughter would support her father if given the chance. So good luck to you with your campaigning but don’t kid yourself you have kickstarted any sort of debate here other than causing people to rol their eyes at such a transparent tactic.
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Sally – hear hear!
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How incredibly condescending Jessica. Maybe you should take more time, considerably more, to read the responses properly.
The responses are not “passionate” or “having a voice” or any of the other schmaltz you dictate.
We are disgusted, pure and simple by your poor behaviour and that of your mother.
You’ve done more, so much more, damage to your fathers position that you obviously realise. It’s embarrassing, extremely so.
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Sorry, clicked ‘like’ on this thinking it was a parody of the real Jess…. the sarcasm/satire of what she was saying came through much stronger than the (apparent) real meaning… funny that…. DISLIKE DISLIKE DISLIKE MUCH
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Seriously, Kevin Rudd was our WORST PRIME-MINISTER ever. I can’t believe Australian’s would entertain putting this loser back into power. If he were any sort of leader, he’d be announcing his position re Labor leadership not playing these stupid school girl games. I can’t stand him, and because of him, I’m not voting Labor – irrespective of who is the leader – and I’ve always been a staunch Labor voter. The only thing I remember about DUDD is the fact that he bullied a flight attendant and made her cry because his sandwhich was cold. MAN UP RUDD.
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huge insult to school girls… but totally agree
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“Worst” prime minister ever, gee Paul you must have a very short memory….
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Jess I may or may not agree with your politics- it’s not really relevant right now. What IS relevant is what you’ve said in this article, and I 100% agree with you. We are so privileged in Australia to have the Political and Electoral systems that we do, yet so many of us don’t realise it. What’s more, we don’t utilise the system that we have properly.
The percentage of Australian who are voting informally each election is disgraceful. The percentage of young Australians who aren’t even regered to vote is even worse. Ask them why they’re not registered, and the answer is simple- “I’d rather cop the $50 fine than vote for one of those bozos”. Sorry guys, but the reality is that regardless of whether you vote or not, one of these ‘bozos’ is about to become your PM.
Over the last 24 our I’ve heard a lot of disgruntled complaints that ‘we’, the non-pollies, don’t get a say in the spill that’s going to take place on Monday. But Jess, you’re right- we do get a say.
As I said, I may or may not agree with your politics. It’s not relevant right now. What is relevant is that I’m going to take up your advice, and write to my local Labour MPs and Senators today. I might urge them to vote for Rudd, or I might urge them to vote for Gillard. Either way, I’m going to participate in political system of ours, because in this country I have the right to.
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Given the level of nastiness now being shown to Kevin by his colleagues what chance do we have of sensible, productive, workable govt should he win the spill on Monday? If govt was dysfunctional last time he was leader imagine what it will be like post this?? Might be time to call a new election.
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I think the reason this has received such a reaction is that Jessica has tapped into something the Australian population are feeling – a frustration that we’re not being heard. A frustration that we vote for members of parliament on a basis of good faith only to find that they backtrack on policies, rescind support for issues that we consider important, that they get caught up in spin over substance.
To be fair to them, sometimes this is necessary in the case of hostile Senates (like Rudd and the ETS), minority governments (Gillard introducing a carbon tax) and external factors such as the GFC, which bring different financial imperatives into play.
Where, I think, the electorate are less forgiving is in the case of downright playing dirty – Gillard and the backtrack on Wilkie’s gambling legislation. Again, however much we dislike that, there are factors that come into play there – Clubs Australia mounting a campaign in the most marginal Labor seats in the country, in the western working class suburbs on the major cities. Or the mining companies funding campaigns (and Gina’s investment in media corporations to better facilitate this!) with the purpose of scaremongering the Australian public.
Whatever the causes (and I do empathise with the politicians to a degree in their balancing act of introducing reforms that they feel that they have a mandate for, given that they formed part of election promises, only to see the polls reflect growing discontent when they try to) a large proportion of the general public is feeling that their voice can not be heard.
That is why Jessica’s article has some merit. If this was published in a different time, I can’t see what the fuss would be. But, seriously, for those of you objecting to the fact that she has a platform in which to express her views, I’d urge view to look past the obvious connection and interest she has in the process (and to be fair, neither MM nor Jessica ever expected that readers would not pick up the element of self-interest) and take the point. Not just now. Always.
If you have fundamental issues with what the government is doing, make it known. Develop a relationship with your local members, in all three levels of government. Email them. Phone them. Write letters to the media. Blog about it. Submit contributions for publication to MM or other media establishments. Submit questions on Q&A.
I’ve had work published in the Guardian. I’ve had letters published in local and national newspapers. When I see my local MP and Minister down at the corner coffee shop, I invite myself to sit down and have a chat with him and he never says no, even on a Sunday morning when he’s trying to review Ministerial papers. Governing for the people is a two way street – we have a responsibility to communicate with our elected representatives as well.
And if they still don’t listen – do everything you can to vote them out. Speak to friends and family. Join a political party. Look at minor political parties instead of just considering Labor and the Coalition.
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And Wilkie doesn’t play dirty?? Wow!! Would not trust him on anything. but what would you expect from a disgruntled spy anyway. No party is EVER about 1 issue, Wilkie is a 1 issue man, can’t wait until he’s gone
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Sorry for not taking my post to its natural conclusion with the dirty tricks – pointing the finger at Wilkie, Oakeshott, Windsor and any other politician for their misdemeanours. My post was already quite long and I easily could have quadrupled it in length if I’d continued down that road!
But to say that Wilkie is a one-issue man is just not true. A 10 second glance at his website, where he lists his policies (http://www.andrewwilkie.org/content/index.php/aw/issues_policy), reveals otherwise. I wonder just how many constituents in Australia have taken the time to read any political policies. And then, of those few, how many more have actually provided feedback.
This is what I mean – we are getting the politicians we deserve. If we don’t take responsibility to educate ourselves, if we rely on the media to feed us what the politicians want us to hear (spin) or even what they, the media, want us to hear (to sell copy), instead of reading policies, providing feedback (if we are that way inclined), suggesting an evidence-based policy development…well, then I’m afraid we really aren’t in a position to (credibly) complain too much. The internet has introduced a whole new level of accessibility and transparency in terms of policy – we are only ever a few clicks away from reading the policy of any politician or the party they belong to. If we don’t take the time to do that and instead rely on heresay (Wilkie is a one-issue man etc) and conjecture, we are not doing our “democracy” any favours at all – we owe it to ourselves to educate ourselves.
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I’m confused. Why is everyone so angry?
I love Jess’ piece. I love it so much I read it out to my entire family last night. After days and days of watching the politicians dribble on, we were so happy to read a fresh perspective – still from someone who’s still in the know.
Well done Jess.
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Since you gave me permission to say so, they both suck.
I miss Johnny Howard and Peter Costello.
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Agree times 1000. I believe John Howard was one of the, if not the greatest PM we’ve ever had.
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Must have been hiding under a leaf all those years and you missed all those lies and deceit, never ever a GST, no children overboard, there are chemical weapons in Iraq and on and on I could go…….
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Comments like yours are what infuriates me about political pieces on Mamamia.
I could think of many retorts about Labor in response to your negativity about John Howard, but I WILL NOT because I respect your political opinion. Do you HONESTLY think I would change my mind based on your comment? No, I am never going to!
I am entitled to freely say that I love John Howard and that I wouldn’t vote Labor if you paid me $1million. I am free to express that opinion on here just as you are free to express any Labor/Greens/Independents love you might have.
I don’t give a flying fuck if you come on here touting that you think X politician was the greatest PM to have ever run the country and I will not denigrade your opinion by pointing out all the shit things (in my opinion) that PM did.
So don’t go on, at least don’t go on in reply to my comment because I will never change my mind.
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Clearly you *do* give a flying fuck.
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How? I don’t reply to anyone who comments how great they think a particular leader is. That’s their prerogative. I disagree with it but I’m not going to comment on it because it’s not going to change their mind and everyone has and is entitled to their opinions!
What I do get angry about, is when people reply to my opinions telling me how bad the party I support is. No amount of comments will change my mind!
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Well said!! If I could like this a million times I would!
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Don’t comment then if you can’t stand a different point of view. My comment never asked you to vote Labor. Just pointing out some obvious points as to why your PM does not qualify as greatest PM ever in my mind. Read some history, there are some far greater ones in our Nation’s past And as the moderator said, keep it respectful.
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I will never change my mind based on your comment, so why did you bother? Telling me to “read some history” is disrespectful, as you assume that I don’t actually know anything about politics or the history of this country, and *obviously* that is the reason why I say I like John Howard.
I can stand a different point of view, my god, I disagree with most of the people on here about politics, but I would never ever reply to anyone’s comments on here telling them how bad “X” leader is if they expressed an opinion on how great they were. Because I actually respect other people’s opinions to prefer and express their opinions on their preference and no amount of comments from me or anyone else is going to change that.
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Louigi – the facts are that John Howard took the GST issue to the electorate…we voted for it! A huge reform. Unlike the current situation where we have been deceived about the carbon tax – we were told there would never, ever, EVER be a carbon tax…and we have not had the satisfaction of having our say. In fact she was elected on a promise of NO carbon tax and now we have one. And this is only one example of how we have been deceived by Gillard and why so many of have lost faith.
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Show me the piece that says NEVER EVER and why would you want the biggest polluters in this country not to change their ways with a tax? It changes to an emissions trading scheme down the track, you get a tax cut from it in July. Go read some facts as to how you will personally benefit before crying foul. Or just keep reading the rubbish the media feed you about it. Even the other side of politics had some big players supporting the carbon tax.
Go have a look at how well off you are to the rest of the world, and that’s all under a Labor government
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“There will be no carbon tax under the government I lead”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMVc0IbtyAQ
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Doesn’t say NEVER EVER
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okay…you win – she didn’t say NEVER EVER. Happy??? And now, what was that about the GST…..?
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Actually if you remember we did not vote for it.
Bloody Meg Lees and the Democrats pushed it over the line.
She and the Democrats deserved what they got for that. Oblivion.
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Good on you for saying so!
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MM is not the ABC & publishing opinion pieces is fine. Publishing an opinion piece by Rudd’s daughter at this time sits badly with me. Publishing a piece from a person in the ‘Rudd camp’purporting to be simply about celebrating our right to be democratically involved is disingenuous. It’s as relevant as hearing from Julia’s hairdresser…wait
Any news exposure from respected people like Jess on the Rudd side of things is going to help his cause. And his cause doesn’t seem to have our best interests at heart, sorry. His interests at heart, certainly.
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I agree. I would be much happier if there was a companion piece from the Gillard side of the fence here too. I’m more than happy to read different views, but on a site like Mamamia that claims to be non-political, if they are going to publish something so clearly from one side of this argument, they should publish from the other.
I would like to know if anyone contact the Prime Minister and asked if she would like a piece here today,
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And I almost wrote in the middle of the night (breastfeeding will it ever end) that was waiting for the editorial from MM to remind us again that it was an opinion piece (we all know that) and a response from J Rudd saying the same stuff (is she a speechwriter? she’s excellent!!) about participating (go, us!) and that I fully expected her to mention her pregnancy. Tick. What I mean by that is the Rudds evidently play all cards in the deck.
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That is one of the best PR pieces I have seen for a while. Research says Kevin Rudd is popular yet his colleagues can’t bare to work with him. Solution get the ones who like him to hound those MPs so they are forced to like him too.
Democratic pester power. My local MP was a minister in his government and came out yesterday saying it was dysfunctional. Now I voted for her and believe her. The fact that Rudd has never accepted this and created this mess we are in only gives fuel to her claims.
Jessica you are an amorable, dutiful daughter, any father would be proud. But please do us a favour and treat us with the same intelligence we give you. This is bias, pulling on opinion polls. Government should not be run as a popularity contest.
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Thanks Jessica Rudd for putting your case. I’ve done what your Mum suggested and contacted my local member. I’ve told Nicola Roxon that I fully support her voting for Julia Gillard on Monday.
If you want woman power, then you back the women of parliament.
I fully understand you supporting your Dad (I mean, he’s your dad), but he’s not the right person for the job. He’s egotistical, hubristic, and solipsistic. And obviously he’s a teller of untruths, as just a few days ago he said he was very happy in his job as Foreign Minister.
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What does solipistic mean?
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Couldn’t have said it better.
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So glad you did that. Follow Julie’s lead and write to your MPs, people.
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I wasn’t exactly sure why I found the article so irritating, until I read this comment. For me, it’s the free advice telling us what to do. And the tone: “do this, people”. I don’t find it well written, at all.
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Wanting women power doesn’t mean BLINDLY following. Julia has done a horrible job. She’s shown her strings too many times to count. I can’t trust her and that saddens me greatly. I so wanted Julia to be an effective and strong leader but she is everything but.
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Julia has done an awesome job keeping a hung parliament together, and how many pieces of legislation or POLICY have passed through parliament? This is a real test of an effective government. To have been able to have done that with pretty much everyone against her (the public, the miners, the clubs, the wealthy, AND on top of that having conservative independents to work with to get the legislation through is nothing short of amazing. Kevin could NEVER have done that in 18 months. The crossbenchers have already said they would not wotk with. So if Kevvy gets in now, it’s an ABBOTT government coming in a few short months!!! Thanks for nothing KEVIN. You selfish man, you have not the interests of this great nation at stake. You are not a team player and I hope ALL the truth comes out about why yopu were not fit to govern this coiuntry. I will never vote Labour agian if you ever become its leader, You have destroyed my ideals of the party. That’s 35 years worth!!
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We would not have a hung parliament if it were not for Julia!!
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Louigi – are you Julia’s campaign manager? You should be busy counting numbers right now, not wasting our time with your claptrap!
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Sweeping statements like “Kevin could NEVER have done that…” discredit you. You can not know what would or wouldn’t have happened had Kevin Rudd stayed as Prime Minister. It is an opinion and generalisation which is defamatory.
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I’m all for ‘woman power’ but it’s about who can do the job, not what their gender is. That is sexism at its worst, it’s the undoing of the feminist movement. I’m a young, educated woman and personally I would hate to be selected for a job just because I’m a woman and not because of my personal merits and ability.
This whole kuffufle should remind us, “An eye for an eye, makes the whole world blind.” Compassion and tolerance are always important, bullying, disparagement and slurs are never required.
Regardless of what side your on Jess is right, speak out. Not just now, but ALWAYS.
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If you want women to have power, you vote for the best person for the job – woman or man.
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Go Jess!!
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FRICKIN’ AWESOME image. Love it. Thanks Ian.
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Yeh! FRICKIN year 9 bogan’s rejoice!
Mia, reading the comments here I suggest that you and Jess have seriously underestimated the intelligence of your readers.
This should be a real wake up call to you, the media in general and politicians on both sides of the chamber.
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“effing” and “frickin’”… Classless!
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I wish Labor would get their shit together. Tony as PM would be truly awful. It should be a walk in the park to beat him!
I think a vote for Julia is a vote for Tony. I personally support Rudd. Julia has just been so disappointing.
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Julia was diappointing – what about DUDD’S year in office – hardly a stellar performance. He, once again, is thumbing his nose at every Australian, he’s resigned a perfectly good position to swan back here like some fabled hero returning to his adoring serfs. I personally can’t stand the man, if he was any sort of leader he’d have announced his position re leadership instead of playing his stupid games. As much as I am a Labor voter, this current performance has backfired badly, I will never vote Labor again.
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Crudd was just alerting the UN that he will soon be available for a position with them.
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“we’ve been surprised that some readers have not understood”
WOW, if only the readerhood was as smart as you.
I will admit i haven’t read all of the comments, but clearly the view is that Rudd is popular with the people, not the caucus. Of course you’re going to try and get them on side if you back Rudd. To hide behind the idea this is simply an “opinion piece” given what is at stake on Monday i think is shameful.
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Jess, I just contacted my local member of parliament. This was part of my submission:
“Mr Rudd has proven he was incapable of running a functioning and effective office and was appropriately removed. Mr Rudd’s megalomaniacal attempt to divide the party and regain power is a direct and self-centred attack on my right (and others’ right) to be governed by a capable and effective leader.
“In my opinion, Mr Rudd is single-handedly destroying the ALP and the ramifications of his divisive and disloyal behaviour will be seen and felt for generations to come. Indeed, he has made an absolute joke of government and the Australian Labor Party. Destroying a political party of which you are a member is one thing, but dividing Australians, undermining the government and paralysing its ability to govern for pure self-interest is detestable and repugnant.
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Can I ‘like’ 1000 times??!!!!!!
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Can i copy?!
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Eva, it would be my honour.
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I’m sending this to my MP – thanks Claire.
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For everyone who is so fired up about the notion of the Rudd family campaigning together and rallying together and Therese and Jess speaking out in support of Keven, I seriously can’t see why this would leave such a bitter taste in people’s mouths? Um, isn’t this reassuring? What would you prefer-stone cold silence from them or them telling us they are indifferent? Have no feelings on the issues?
A reminder to everyone: we are ALL a product of our families, we are all influenced by our families and I would hope that most families would want to ‘stick together/ rally together’. If anything it makes me love the Rudd’s more that they do all band together…I watched a lovely video in which Therese (whom I adore) was interviewed about her mum and Jess had tweeted about it saying something along the lines of ‘watch my hero my Mum talk about her hero her mum’ and I loved that sentiment so much. So to everyone who has so much anger at Jess writing and speaking positively about her Dad and campaigning for him, can you put your political preferences aside and ask yourself why you are so worked up that a family would rally together? Afterall, Tony himself and indeed every other politician campaigns with their families.
Jess, great piece and timely reminder of how lucky we have it here. Please don’t let all the anger get to you. You are delivering a great message about democracy.
And yes I would love to pull on a Keven ’12 -shirt
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I love Jess and I love this post. Of course she has bias (hello?), she is Kevin’s daughter and she is writing what she believes.But I’m fine with that. I’d personally love to hear from someone from the Gillard camp. anyone? Anyone? Bueller?
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Um… how about ALL of the MPs who have come out in support of Gillard? Not ONE QLD MP has come out in support yet – that’s saying something isn’t it? How about the interview on ABC radio that just aired with Kev’s former adviser on mental health (a Dr) who resigned who said he couldn’t work with him either and wouldn’t be a patsy for him? You think all of these people are lying??
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What I don’t get is if Kevin had been briefing journalists and leaking things why haven’t any of these journalists said so? Where is the proof?
If all this has been ‘known to be happening’ by Gillard and co why have they never done anything about it? Again I reckon it goes to Gillard’s judgement…quite frankly I think her judgement sucks and I am really disappointed to have to say that. If he is evil incarnate as they are telling us why make him foreign minister? Why didn’t they give us the truth when they deposed him? Far too many lies and secrets and unfortunately the Prime Minister is now seen as untrustworthy and lacking in judgement.
Don’t get me wrong I am no real fan of Kevin but the risk of having Abbott as a prime minister would make me vote for Rudd over Gillard any day.
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Often journalists get briefed on the understanding that they will keep their source confidential. If they were to say how they found out, they wouldn’t get any more briefs, something that would be detrimental to their career.
Julia Gillard has come out and said that she releases any journalist of confidentiality if she ever said anything bad about Kevin Rudd. And no one has had anything to say. If Kevin Rudd is similarly guilt free, he should do the same thing.
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I think some of it has to do with loyalty. So, if they don’t talk about it, they ensure Rudd’s behind-the-scenes campaign won’t be destabalised by Gillard’s team fighting back. Political reporters have loyalties and relationships with politicians. It’s like how at a press conference, the speaking MP will sometimes call a reporter by their first name when they acccept their question. They have a ‘working’ relationship with that reporter. They tell that reporter stuff and sometimes they might give them the scoop first. It’s all about connections and access. My father was a journalist for many years, mostly as a war correspondent though.
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Journalist’s protect sources. If they came out and damaged KR by saying he leaked to them they would never hear from his camp again. What if he does become PM again and they are shut out? Also it could be perceived as journalist’s meddling in the process when they are supposed to be impartial.
Funny that Julia has come out and said journo’s are welcome to drop the protect sources thing and come forward if they have ever heard her be disloyal to KR….but has Kevin done the same? No. Funny that. I believe the smoke this time, KR has been leaking damaging comments ever since he was knocked off his perch.
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Before I read anyone else’s posts I just want to say: Jessica THANK YOU!!! Thank you for reminding me how wonderful it is to live in a democracy, where we CAN complain allowed about the government without ending up in Jail, or worse!!!
Thank you, for reminding me that I do have a say, not just with my vote, but with my voice (which can be quite loud at times).
Lastly, thank you for not touting why your dad is a good choice, but that whoever Labour chooses, should the spill be contested, is in our employment, that ALL politicians sitting in parliament are our employees…
I enjoyed this piece Jessica! Thanks MamaMia for publishing it!
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I agree, I think the reason we are in the political mess we are in these days is people have forgotten that it is our parliament and politicians work for us (I think maybe the politicians have forgotten that too!).
We are not powerless!
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Kevin was proven to be a bad boss as leader and a legal mutiny took place, he declined to participate in a vote at the time, and has since undermined the Government, the Party and the Nation, by embarrassing it by resigning from his position whilst in another country where he was supposed to be doing his job. He should be ejected from the Labor Party. His actions probably caused the hung parliament. Wake up Australia, this is not a Presidential system where you vote for the PM. You vote for a Party and whoever is their leader during their government being in power. If Kevin is elected, I will be voting Greens!
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Um…what’s the problem with this post?
Could be the sleep deprivation, but I don’t understand the anger about it.
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I dont get it either.
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Hasn’t Jess touched down in Bris yet? I thought the flight from Beijing was about 8 hours.
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Hi whippersnapper, it was 11 hours. I was on my way to the airport when this was posted with no interwebs. SO glad to be on the ground.
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Yes we are all thrilled too!
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Alain De Botton has put it far better than i ever could. “Rudd-Gillard debacle is a sign of Australia’s privilege: countries don’t allow themselves such diversions unless things are going v well.”
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Very true Dave. I read an article yesterday saying that other nations think it’s bizarre that our economy is one of the strongest in the world right now but our government is one of the most unstable. Go figure.
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