It’s been a gut-wrenching fortnight for Liberal Party supporters watching the vilification of Moira Deeming, who, through no fault of her own, became a story of John Pesutto’s making when he tied her in with gate-crashing Nazis at the Let Women’s Speak rally in Melbourne.

Pesutto could have defended women’s rights while also condemning the extremists from the left and right who attempted to hijack the event.