Julia Gillard this time. I love it how all the accuations of being out of touch and stuff that Roxon made about Abbot have all backfired on the ALP. It's all 'bullshit' like Abbot said. Roxon must believe that Gillard 'could have been on time if she wanted to'. Gillard's excuse was the torrential downpours turned the steets in to car parks. I guess that's another indictment against State Labor lack of infrastructure.
The Age wants to write about lateness but they have been intimidated by Rudd press gang into not printing that Rudd was late for his big campaign launch and that no satisfactory explanation has been forthcoming.
Pollies being late IS news. Abbot was news. Abbot got slammed in the media. Now it's gillard and another got covered, i can't remember who,
but the big one was Rudd, and there's not a mention in any of the papers and 99% of the news programs.
It's been a week now. The only person to ask the question has been the guy who hosts the Insiders. I never thought i'd thank the ABC for this lack of bias, but on this occassion they have shown why we need a national tax-payer funded news service. Because their revenues can't be held to ransom by the party in power withholding scoops and press releases when the broadcaster doesn't toe their line.
Murdoch does not defend the right-wing point of view. He chases where he thinks the money is. Contrary to the opinions of the left the money, ie the support of the population, is on the right. The latest ads for the Australian and the presence of one soft question and one slightly harder question from news ltd journos at the Rudd's speech just finished demonstrate that he is that he is trying to go for both camps at present - a broader view. The Aus is including more left commentary and a one left-wing and one right-wing headline on each story, depending on whether you read the paper, the net or the poster. The problem with the idea is that he just offending all his readers, not just half. Murdoch offers some balance, and thanks to him for that, but it's not principled. It's not quaranteed. Thanks again to the ABC for asking the questions Murdoch will not.
The principled opposition to the easy ride Rudd has been given in the press came from the ABC. Not everyone watches the Insiders at 9am on Sunday morning, but the opinion leaders do. They all know Rudd was late. They all know there has been no explanation. They all know there's a coverup. They must be speculating about why this would be. Why doesn't he just dismiss it? They must have concluded that health problems would create the need for a coverup.
They all also know he never showed up to answer questions during the campaign. The left-wing opinion leaders were denied a chance to support their leader. He expects his minons to defend him, but refuses to defend himself. The bright sparks, right and left, who watched the Insiders last Sunday are talking to all their mates right now. They are expressing their doubts, their dissapointment their dissillusionment with Rudd. He's shine has rubbed off and he's not even PM yet! George Megalogenis complains he's dumbing down politics by only appearing on Rove last Sunday. You can't get more left than Megalogenis!
Rudd did not answer about half the questions put to him today at his press club speech (the ones on union power, national security and whether he could honestly promise to keep grocery prices low when he attacks Howard for doing the same thing with interest rates at the last election) but he did appear pretty focused and less drugged-out than at the policy launch. At the speech he made too many jokes with, or rather at, reporters who asked tricky questions (those questions above). Rudd's policy: Don't answer, attack. Just more intimidation. Journos will make jokes, have attitude, and ask loaded questions. So what? Howard has copped it sweet for 11 years and Rudd must be able to do the same. But he can't take it. He shuts people out who oppose him.
He did it in QLD with his public service gulag. He has done it to the media as demonstrated by the lack of questions about his lateness, and he's going to do it to you too. Now will be the last chance you ever get to oppose Rudd. Once he's in it's over.
Rudd's overtures about openness in government are a con. it's all spin and no substance. He'll talk about it for the cameras, but the behind the scenes manipulation will go on. More evidence of this, if it were needed, is that in a response to a question today he promised the ABC news reporter to have a press conference after each cabinet meeting. Apart from the from the fact that a press conference is not openness, its a spin-session, and an excess of them just makes people switch off, the main issue here is that the answer to the reporters question made it appear that Rudd wants openness but he must have arranged for the guy to ask that question beforehand. Rudd probably believes he wants openness, just like Blair did, but it's double-think. Either he coverly arranged for a dorothy dix question or Rudd is making his openness policy up as he goes along.
He has arranged for everyone NOT to ask the big question, so I will.
Mr Rudd, why were you late for the most important speech of the campain and can you deny that your lateness was not caused by ill-health and that you were not on (legal) drugs during the speech when you did finally give it.
UPDATE: The Australian has reported Gillard's lateness and hypocrisy at abusing Abbott for the same thing earlier on and lo and behold there is a one line at the bottom of the article that mentions the fact that Rudd was late for his launch 'mysteriously' with no explanation given. Pleeessaaaseeee can we see a Lathesque implosion in the dying days? All it would take would for one question. I've written to the jouno's i've been in contact with but no takers so far. Fingers crossed
