My own musings of documented events. The facts presented, a...

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    My own musings of documented events. The facts presented, a sample set only as too voluminous to present all.

    Scott Morrison was elected leader of the Liberal Party on August 24, 2018, replacing Malcolm Turnbull. In the first ballot, Morrison reportedly won 38 votes, to Peter Dutton’s 36 and Julie Bishop’s 11. With Bishop eliminated, Morrison defeated Dutton 45-40. Morrison was sworn in as the 30th prime minister at 6.14pm by the Governor-General, Sir Peter Cosgrove.

    Malcolm Turnbull became the 29th Prime Minister of Australia when he took office on September 15, 2015, following his leadership challenge against Tony Abbott on September 14, 2015. Returned to office with a one seat majority in the July 2016 elections.

    Tony Abbott
    , Elected to office after the September 2013 elections defeating Kevin Rudd. Term in Office, 18.09.2013 – 15.09.2015 1 year, 11 months, 28 days.

    http://australianpolitics.com/executive/pm/terms-of-prime-ministers-since-1901

    Evidence supporting the dysfunction within the Liberal Party.

    Six PMs in 10 years: How this leadership spill was different

    Scott Morrison has been elected Australia's 30th Prime Minister. One former Liberal Party leader says the latest leadership spill has some features that distinguishes it from episodes in the past.


    Former Liberal Party leader John Hewson said personal vendettas rather than policy differences has driven this latest leadership spill.

    "This is not a policy-driven event this time," he told SBS News. I mean, it's not as if there are substantial differences on energy policy. It was used as a bit of a cover.


    "But the fact is that Tony Abbott has been desperate to get even for the fact Turnbull replaced him as leader. And he's been working to undermine for many, many months, and this has brought it to a head getting Dutton to challenge."

    ....

    "Politics itself has just become a very personal game, very short-term, opportunistic, populist," he said.

    "People concentrate more on themselves and what they can get out of the system, then making a contribution to good government.

    Queensland Labor Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said there is another unusual facet of this spill.

    "To adjourn parliament is a slap in the face to the Australian public. I haven't seen the likes of that happen before, and let's hope that the turmoil ends in Canberra, and our federal parliamentarians can get back to their jobs."


    'Madness'

    Liberal Senator Linda Reynolds has told the Senate she has been distressed and disturbed by events.

    "I think the tragedy of what has been happening, I think the madness of what has taken hold of a number of my colleagues


    https://www.sbs.com.au/news/six-pms-in-10-years-how-this-leadership-spill-was-different

    'I'm fed up with it': Nationals senator John 'Wacka' Williams hits out at Liberal dysfunction
    Outspoken Nationals senator John "Wacka" Williams has hit out at the tensions plaguing the Liberal Party, warning that "division is death".

    disallowed/politics/federal/im-fed-up-with-it-nationals-senator-john-wacka-williams-hits-out-at-liberal-dysfunction-20170704-gx40yo.html

    Hansard transcript of statement by Julia Banks, former Liberal member for Chisholm.
    My sensible, centrist values, belief in economic responsibility and focus on always putting the people first and acting in the nation’s interest have not changed. The Liberal Party has changed, largely due to the actions of the reactionary and regressive right wing, who talk about and to themselves rather than listening to the people.

    http://australianpolitics.com/2018/11/27/julia-banks-lib-chisholm-turns-independent.html

    Liberal government dominated by 'chaos, dysfunction and ego'
    In an extraordinary move amidst the leadership crisis, the government has shut down the House of Representatives until next month.MPs left the Chamber to shouts of “shame” from the Opposition.Labor leader, Bill Shorten, said it’s the "ultimate admission of surrender” of a “bankrupt government”.“The government may adjourn the parliament, but they can’t outrun the weight of failure.“It’s not the parliament that’s failed. It’s the Turnbull government.

    The Australian government just shut down Parliament

    The Australian government just shut down Parliament The Australian government just voted in favour of an unprecedented shutdown of Parliament as it reels from the leadership crisis between Malcolm Turnbull and Peter Dutton. The motion was won 70 votes to 68, with Nationals MPs supporting the decision. The House of Representatives now goes on break for a fortnight and won't return until September 10. Labor's manager of Opposition business,

    Source: https://pressfrom.info/au/news/australia/-78875-liberal-government-dominated-by-chaos-dysfunction-and-ego.html


    The Australian government just shut down Parliament The Australian government just voted in favour of an unprecedented shutdown of Parliament as it reels from the leadership crisis between Malcolm Turnbull and Peter Dutton. The motion was won 70 votes to 68, with Nationals MPs supporting the decision. The House of Representatives now goes on break for a fortnight and won't return until September 10. Labor's manager of Opposition business,

    Source: https://pressfrom.info/au/news/australia/-78875-liberal-government-dominated-by-chaos-dysfunction-and-ego.html

    The repercussions to Australia caused by the dysfunction of the Liberal Government.

    The leadership turmoil in Canberra looks certain to delay a landmark free trade deal between Australia and Indonesia.The ABC has been told the two nations are on the brink of signing an agreement, after years of negotiations.But in a clear display of how the leadership contest is rippling through Australian foreign policy and Government decision making, the final timetable for agreement and signatures is now deeply uncertain.

    https://pressfrom.info/au/news/australia/-79039-liberal-leadership-chaos-could-jeopardise-landmark-australia-indonesia-free-trade-deal.html

    The AUD was in the firing line on global markets overnight amid the political uncertainty in Canberra. After falling below US 73 cents, the AUD is now below 0.7250 US cents and under pressure in morning Asian trade.Uncertainty around the Liberal leadership spill had already driven the AUD below US73 cents in Asian trade.

    https://pressfrom.info/au/news/australia/-79039-liberal-leadership-chaos-could-jeopardise-landmark-australia-indonesia-free-trade-deal.html

    Foreign governments have also become wary of striking bilateral deals with Australian prime ministers who can be replaced without warning.

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/candidates-vow-next-australian-prime-minister-will-last/2019/05/14/52f1a34e-76bd-11e9-a7bf-c8a43b84ee31_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.c1a5e2a9379d


    The retirements and resignations.


    Shock resignations have dominated the headlines, and when the federal election arrives, voters will farewell some longstanding familiar faces who take with them decades of experience.

    Mr Christopher Pyne -served in a range of high-profile roles, most recently as Defence Minister and Leader of the House — the Government’s chief tactician in the Lower House.

    Ms. Julie Bishop - Australia's first female Foreign Minister. The high-profile former frontbencher had kept her colleagues on their toes, announcing her intention to retire at the 2019 election in the last week of Parliament before the budget. She left the chamber before hearing the tributes from Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten, which many have considered indicative of the scars she carries from her failed attempt at the party leadership.

    Mr Steven Ciobo - Mr Ciobo was one of a slew of ministers to announce their resignation from politics ahead of the election - but unlike his colleagues, the Queenslander quit the frontbench immediately. He resigned as trade minister at the height of last year’s Liberal leadership turmoil to back Peter Dutton’s unsuccessful tilt to replace Malcolm Turnbull as leader.

    Mr Michael Keenan - the justice minister under former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull.

    Ms Kelly O'Dwyer Minister for Jobs and Women

    Ms Jane Prentice - Ms Prentice was ousted by the Queensland LNP during preselection, despite signalling her intention to recontest her Brisbane electorate of Ryan. Much of the controversy around that decision came from the fact she was replaced as the party’s candidate by a younger man, Brisbane City councillor Julian Simmonds, despite being then prime minister Malcolm Turnbull’s preferred candidate.

    Mr Craig Laundy - Speculation Mr Laundy could quit federal politics had been rife since the Liberal leadership turmoil claimed the scalp of his ally Malcolm Turnbull. Mr Laundy declined an offer to serve in Scott Morrison’s ministry.

    Ms Anne Sudmalis - Ms Sudmalis joined Julia Banks in announcing she would not contest the next election, pulling out of a bitter preselection feud in her ultra-marginal New South Wales electorate, citing a campaign of bullying and misinformation designed to undermine her chances of winning the candidacy.

    Ms Julia Banks - Julia Banks' extraordinary decision to resign as a Liberal MP and plunge the Morrison Government further into minority sends a devastating message to voters that the Liberal Party is hostile to women.

    https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-04-01/retiring-mps-45th-parliament/10391668
    The departures.


    FEDERAL ELECTION’S EX-CANDIDATES

    * Gurpal Singh (Liberal, Scullin) — backed an alleged rapist and linked same-sex marriage to paedophilia on social media

    * Jay Dessi (Greens, Lalor) — racist joke about a friend

    * Jessica Whelan (Liberal, Lyons) — anti-Muslim social media comments

    * Peter Killin (Liberal, Wills) — writing about dangers of gay people and insulting fellow Liberal Tim Wilson

    * Jeremy Hearn (Liberal, Isaacs) — Facebook slur against Muslims

    * Murray Angus (Liberal, Corio) — friendly comments about Labor candidate

    * Kate Oski (Liberal, Lalor) — citizenship doubts

    * Vaishali Ghosh (Liberal, Wills) — citizenship doubts

    * Helen Jackson (Liberal, Cooper) — public servant

    * Courtney Nguyen (Liberal, Fowler) — citizenship doubts

    * Sam Kayal (Liberal, Werriwa) — citizenship doubts

    * Tony Pecora (United Australia Party, Melbourne) — conspiracy theory about September 11 terrorist attacks

    * James Harker-Mortlock (Nationals, Whitlam) — citizenship doubts

    * Steve Dickson (One Nation, Queensland Senate) — strip club scandal

    * Wayne Kurnoth (Labor, NT Senate) — offensive social media posts

    * Melissa Parke — (Labor, Curtin) — comments on Palestine

    * Mary Ross (Labor, NSW Senate) — citizenship doubts

    * Luke Creasey (Labor, Melbourne) — vulgar social media comments about women, posted seven years ago

    QUESTION MARK

    * Rod Culleton (Great Australian Party, WA Senate) — referred to Federal Police over an alleged false statement denying his bankruptcy

    * Ross Macdonald (One Nation, Leichhardt) — racist and sexist social media posts

    * Mina Zaki (Liberal, Canberra) — citizenship doubts

    https://www.news.com.au/national/federal-election/the-most-embarrassing-list-to-come-out-of-this-federal-election/news-story/dd423aa01de35aba3ce42f4412dfcdea

    Finally, the potential of continuing insatiability.

    Michael McCormack hits back at Barnaby Joyce amid Nationals leadership stoush

    Posted 11 Mar 2019, 1:40pmMon 11 Mar 2019, 1:40pm

    Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack says he knows what it takes to make a "successful marriage" with the Liberal Party when asked about Barnaby Joyce's aspirations to return to the Nationals leadership.


    https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-11/michael-mccormack-hits-back-at-barnaby-joyce/10889352

    Barnaby Joyce has fallen into line, now saying it was a “misstep” to describe himself as the “elected deputy prime minister”, while backing away from any potential challenge for the National party leadership.Less than 24 hours after his former deputy Bridget McKenzie declared Joyce was out of step with the Nationals’ party room and was “frustrating” Australia by “not [focusing] on their needs and issues”, Joyce has backed down and thrown his support behind the party leader, Michael McCormack

    https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/mar/13/barnaby-joyce-backs-down-admitting-nationals-leadership-talk-a-mis-step

    Existential crisis engulfing the National Party as Barnaby Joyce leadership return looms
    The federal National Party is gripped in an existential crisis and few know how it will end.For a party that's renowned for politicians freelancing their own policy agendas, one of the rare things that unites them is a belief that Michael McCormack's leadership is terminal. It's now a matter of whether a change at the top of the National Party, which would be the sixth for the Coalition since coming to power, will happen before or after the May election.

    https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-12/barnaby-joyce-michael-mccormack-national-party-leadership-woes/10889408

    "Tony Abbott has bluntly made clear he would agree to return to the Liberal leadership in comments suggesting Scott Morrison might not have the job after the election."
    https://www.news.com.au/national/federal-election/abbott-willing-to-be-liberal-leader-again/news-story/9f82845e410177a5b63c006184408187

    Tony Abbott is willing to resume the leadership of the Liberal party if his parliamentary colleagues draft him but said he would not run in contested ballot for the top job.
    https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/apr/16/tony-abbott-says-he-would-be-willing-to-resume-leadership-if-drafted-in

    Monash political scientist and emeritus professor James Walter says that if Morrison won the election, his ability to govern would inevitably be affected by the profound divisions in his party.
    ...The hardliners in the party “are not going to attack Morrison now, because it’s too close to the election, but in the long run, as soon as they try to do more 'small l' liberal-type things in government – and some they're already committed to because of this budget – I think he will run into trouble”,

    https://lens.monash.edu/@politics-society/2019/04/15/1374419/2019-federal-election-what-if-the-accidental-pm-wins

    In conclusion, the continuity of the Liberal Party's revolving door leadership and by default, a dysfunctional government, is made possible by the leadership mechanism put in place by Mr Morrison after becoming leader. Whereas Labor's system establishes a more secure leadership tenure, the Liberal's does not, contrary to what Mr Morrison states publicly.

    "The process for Labor to remove its next prime minister endorsed by voters in an election would now take a month and involve tens of thousands grass-roots members of the party having their say. Now a 75% majority of Labor lawmakers have to sign a petition to force a leadership ballot instead of a simple majority. The leadership decision is no longer the lawmakers’ alone. In a major democratization of the party’s process, more than 30,000 members of the party nationwide who pay an annual fee but are not elected have a 50% stake in the decision through postal ballots."

    "Morrison initially rejected his own party adopting similar rules. “Regulating for culture is never effective,” he said two days after he became prime minister in August."

    "In December, however, Morrison made a surprise announcement that his fellow Liberal lawmakers had decided that a minimum of two-thirds of them would need to agree before a prime minister’s leadership could be put to a ballot. A single-vote majority had led to the leadership ballot that installed Morrison as the latest prime minister."

    "But the Liberals’ rules only have the endorsement of Liberals who were in Parliament in December. The party’s lawmakers will change after the election and the new Liberal lawmakers won’t be bound by a decision made by lawmakers in the last Parliament, some of whom have retired or lost their seats."

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/candidates-vow-next-australian-prime-minister-will-last/2019/05/14/52f1a34e-76bd-11e9-a7bf-c8a43b84ee31_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.c1a5e2a9379d


    So the questions posed remains unanswered. Will the competing factions within the Liberal party reconcile their ideological differences and put the interests of Australia foremost. Or, will it be a "rinse, repeat", a sequel even, "the rise of the factions" of the past period and Australia's welfare again becomes cannon fodder in the pursuit of factional nirvana?

 
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