In-depth analysis of the day’s news, plus stories and gossip from Australian politics.
Labor’s problems are all too obvious, but Liberals can’t forget they’ve got issues too
It has been said for the past decade or two that the parliamentary Labor Party is finding it increasingly difficult…
Can relearning our history save the West from decline?
It was the noted English historian Paul Johnson who once wrote: “The study of history is a powerful antidote to…
Five reasons why National Reconciliation Week won’t change a thing
In 2008 prime minister Kevin Rudd issued an official national apology for the mistreatment of Australia’s indigenous people. Since then,…
The minimum wage is madness
In March this year, ACTU boss Sally McManus made headlines with her call for a six per cent increase in…
Angus Taylor: fighting for coal and cheap power, but is it too late?
In contrast to his predecessor, the eminently likeable Josh Frydenberg, Angus Taylor can be abrasive and has managed to antagonise…
The new wild colonials: country voters have turned on everyone
Once upon a time in Australian politics there was such a thing as natural constituencies – the well-heeled inner suburbs…
The Melbourne accused: tragic, but not the Australian everyman
The four men charged with the four alleged murders of women that have rocked Melbourne in recent months share some…
Labor admits it’s lost the trust of people of faith – but what will it do about it?
In the post-election diagnostics several people have recognized that a failure to connect with people of faith and anxieties concerning…
Trump Derangement Syndrome: now shrinks tell the terrible truth
Donald Trump’s election was a shock to many people. And it was a shock that continued to reverberate long after…
ScoMo’s Mal-formed ministry
Our peeved yet perspicacious political insider writes exclusively: CBD never contemplated recovery could occur so rapidly (physically, in the head,…
Now for government by normal, sane and decent folk – not the shriek freaks
The man on the Clapham omnibus has been travelling to and from that south-west part of London since at least…
The minors are now major parties, despite old player and media whinges
Is there really a continuing drift away from the major parties in Australian parties? Like many I have in recent…
Labor won’t find it Albaneasy
Eating soup with your right hand when you are naturally left handed is very difficult; you’re bound to spill some.…
The election is over; the future beckons
The week in politics, the week to come. The theme for this election-period weekly column has been Backwards and Forwards.…
What was wrong with the polls?
Living with uncertainty is the thing most humans find most difficult. And while it’s virtually impossible to be certain even…
Who won what why: now for the battle for the election narrative
The election victory was clearly a triumph for both the style and substance of Prime Minister Scott Morrison. But the…
CBD: and now for the AA meetings
Our peeved yet perspicacious political insider writes exclusively: Excessive self-medication in the wake, if not at the wake, of the…
Fresh miracles in Galilee – the Galilee Basin, that is
The proposed Adani mine has been wading through a green swamp of political obstacles for nine long years. Other coal…
The Coalition’s back: time to get real on jobs and pay
The Australian people have spoken and re-elected a Coalition government. But don’t be surprised if the big unions ignore their…
Let’s end the Age of Bitterness in our politics
With just a little bit of Aussie bloomin’ luck, the destabilising and destructive approach to the dark art of politics…
How we’ve turned mad – half mad, anyway
Two numbers in the low forties popped up in two separate stories this week: Americans today are more closely divided…
Chris Bowen’s out, but will Albo heed his warning on religious freedom?
It is slowly starting to dawn on some Labor voters that Australians with a traditional Christian worldview are feeling somewhat…
Ten more reasons Labor lost the unlosable election
Most people I speak to think that as a nation, we just dodged a bullet. And even those who voted…
The app that could see GetUp downed
In an era where political parties and policy advocates on the right are struggling to find new ways to engage…
Tony Abbott: with thanks to the fallen warrior
Last night former prime minister Tony Abbott succumbed to a perfect political storm: a climate zealot candidate dressed up as…
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