Where to for the Libs?

[ism22]

I think they'll come again as the conservative message is easy to sell and people who are disengaged with politics (i.e. have no vision for how to progress society and lift people outta strife) seem to flip into their far-right BS when times are tough.

That said... I'm excited to see a progressive agenda after 9 years of Abbott being a dopey monarchist, Mal thinking he's God's gift to Australia and ScoMo being the happy clappy Christian whose one biggest feature is that he wasn't letting Joe Hockey or Peter Dutton take the office.

Like when Abbott got in, IMO the Tories are always around the corner and have traditionally been in power more than Labor. Abbott didn't get in by trying to be a bit more progressive... he got in by being a ruthless conservative.

While I'm a progressive and would love it if the Nats would just fark the hell off (I much prefer the Libs), I think the reality is that Dutton's there to be a ruthless conservative, who'll sit around selling negative messages about ALL of Labor's policies, no matter how good they are. He's not there to collaborate or work with Labor. Like Abbott... he's there to tear their castle down and tell everybody they're farked without the Tories.

The above will eventually work (hopefully not with Dutton becoming PM). However before then I think we're gonna see a federal ICAC established, NSW's Coalition getting its arse kicked (Gladys & Barilaro set that one up - it's just a matter of choosing which corruption / pork to expose while Stuart Ayres just sits there with his dumb face staring out into nowhere) and I suspect we'll see a lot of repair getting done, pursuant to anti-corruption measures.

I summed it up before the NSW election when Rob C was spruiking the Tories on here non-stop. There's a lot of useless pork barrelling that NEEDS to stop!!

[Paddo Colt 61]

Yes that's certainly been the pattern of the past. Labor elected, almost instant media cacophony starts up led by Newscorp - scandals, malfeasance, Rudd unloading the content of his ear and tasting it, ALP blamed for the power crisis after 2 weeks in office and although he had little effect on the recent vote, Murdoch populism can't be written off.

MR pondered the election of Dutton to Lib leadership but it wasn't a turning to the last man standing, it happened because the LP is a right wing party. Howard said that he was the most conservative leader the party ever had and he assiduously put that stamp on the party we see today - hence Potato Head. What has happened since has been hilarious. First there was the big makeover - the good misunderstood bloke who then hamfistedly railed against the return of the Biloelas and declared war on Labor's climate initiatives. Ya can't teach old dogs.

[Jacks Fur Coat]

I don't think it's panic stations for the Libs, but they do need to regroup and start being clearer and less compromising about their Liberal values.

There is a real disenfranchised part of Australias community currently with Labor moving leftwards and beholden to the Greens, and the Libs moving further left too, and only offering token resistance to very un-Conservative policies and ideals. If they can position themselves as a genuine centre-right Conservative party there is definite fertile ground to reclaim power at the next election. And it was a record low primary vote for power too, so its a rickety mandate that can flip easily.

Forget about the richer better heeled electorates such as those targeted by the Gree-als (not Teals). Target the blue collar working class seats like western Sydney and its equivalents in other states. Labor has left its old base in the lurch. This base doesn't care about Climate obsession and identity politics that consume the modern day left. They are worried about paying the bills, having cheap reliable energy and staying in employment.

Libs made mistakes in the lead up to the election, or moreover Scomo did as Leader. Didn't fight the culture wars, went the crazy net zero route and didn't fully back a great candidate like Katherine Deves ( who has since been vindicated with large international sporting bodies agreeing with the premise of a fair go for biological female athletes).

His unpopularity was stoked by a 3 year campaign to paint him as a misogynist who discriminated against women. And some mud stuck....grubby tactics but sadly effective. From a party that was rife with its own bullying culture that centred on the late Kimberley Kitching. Conveniently no inquiry launched...hmmm. No doubt though Scomos unpopularity probably cost the Libs the election.

I think Pistol Pete is the hope for the side. I would have taken him to the 2019 gig personally. A warrior with the right depth of political experience. And hopefully the guts to stay the conservative course...he will need it! Albo doesn't really know his stuff, especially on the economy. And God knows how he will manage the power balance with the Greens in the Senate. We've already got a taste of the Burglar of Bandth in offending one and all by rejecting our flag. More wokedom crazy coming to a legislative bill near you!

Down but definitely not out.

My two cents worth anyway.

[eddie]

Our mining industry is a big asset.

[Random Rooster]

I don't think it's panic stations for the Libs, but they do need to regroup and start being clearer and less compromising about their Liberal values.

There is a real disenfranchised part of Australias community currently with Labor moving leftwards and beholden to the Greens, and the Libs moving further left too, and only offering token resistance to very un-Conservative policies and ideals.

So the result of the disenchantment with Labor moving leftwards and beholden to the Greens, and the Libs moving away conservative ideals and policies, resulted in the Greens having their best election ever? Labor lost plenty of votes in the election, the Liberals lost plenty and some.....the Greens and Teals got plenty of votes. If i was a disenchanted Labor or Liberal voter i wouldn't be giving my vote to the Greens....but plenty did!!! There's a message in that

Labor has left its old base in the lurch. This base doesn't care about Climate obsession and identity politics that consume the modern day left. They are worried about paying the bills, having cheap reliable energy and staying in employment.

Yet again the big winners were the Greens and Independents. This business with climate change is obviously important to plenty of voters- the figures don't lie.

Libs made mistakes in the lead up to the election, or moreover Scomo did as Leader. Didn't fight the culture wars, went the crazy net zero route and didn't fully back a great candidate like Katherine Deves ( who has since been vindicated with large international sporting bodies agreeing with the premise of a fair go for biological female athletes).

Deves was a "Captains Pick"- how much more backing do you need? Scomo thought her views would resonate with the voters of Warringah. Monumental failure as she only got a paltry 32% of the primary vote. I saw that vindication piece on her on Sky News too....total sour grapes. The Libs got it wrong with her as much as Labor did with Keneally

His unpopularity was stoked by a 3 year campaign to paint him as a misogynist who discriminated against women. And some mud stuck....grubby tactics but sadly effective.

It wasn't Labors fault he went on holidays when the bushfires decimated......nor was it when he stuffed up the vaccine rollout..... add to that his backing of Clive Palmers court action against the WA governments popular border closure......and never ever taking the blame for anything.....he well and truly dug his own grave. Maybe soon Gladys can expand on him being "horrible, a fraud and a complete psycho"


Australia should always have a competent,strong,united opposition government so if Peter Dutton can deliver that then the whole country benefits. We never ever want to become the political shit show that is the USA of today

[zac]

what are 'Liberal values'? even howard talked about including both the liberal and conservative traditions in the party, more so menzies and fraser. if the party wants to become like the republican party in the u.s. well good luck with that but they'll only succeed if they have a charismatic leader.
personally i think the libs should support labor's climate legislation in the senate. they can say what they want in the house where it doesn't matter and show themselves as scientifically and economically responsible in the senate by choosing the labor legislation in front of greens legislation. they could argue they were choosing bad legislation in preference to worse legislation. if that doesn't win votes in the teal seats it will mean that future teal independents will be more open to supporting the libs as a government if they hold the balance of power in the house. hard to get a majority if you're writing off winnable seats as unwinnable, not to mention that more rural seats will be calling for action on climate change.

[Paddo Colt 61]

There's no place for optimism in the touted suburban right wing revival that the the Party has embraced if the figures from the election are taken into account. The far Right, one Nation, UAP and the Lib Dems stood in all 151 seats and spared no expense but their performance was abysmal in all States but Queensland where they only did well in seats strongly committed to the LNP. In outer suburban Melbourne they did better winning up to 15% of the vote but all of those seats were easily won by the ALP and half of the Right's preferences went to Labor indicating that theirs was a protest vote that was always going to be coming back.

Sorry but he much wished for Aussie Tea Party thing is a mirage.

[zac]

the culture wars ... no doubt the other side can be precious, over-zealous, prejudiced and wrong but beyond a general desire to see everyone get a fair go i don't see why wavering traditional labor voters should rally behind a banner that, say, sees trans-activists as threatening the fabric of society. what's that got to do with their everyday lives?

[Paddo Colt 61]

Psephologists report that the Libs hold ALL 10 of the poorest (lowest income) electorates in the country, 7 out of the 10 of the oldest electorates and none of the electorates with the highest proportion of non English speaking voters.

Interesting. That's the heartland, the ill educated elderly (most people left school in Year 10 in the past) and the dumbos (how could you be smart and vote for Capital?)

[Paddo Colt 61]

Before the 2016 election the Libs held 10 of the most liberal (well educated) electorates. The Same Sex Marriage plebiscite began the rot with that and after the 2019 election they held just 5. Now they hold none. There has been a seismic shift in the Conservative base. The wealthy and well educated have largely rejected the petty bourgeois crude spruiking and the idea that the Federal Government is only about the economy. The religious Right infiltrated the Libs pretty much under the radar over the past 30 years but their divisive voices have, no doubt, put many economically conservative but socially progressive people off never to return it would seem. Only in the bush are the opinions of yokels taken seriously but then the further out the electorate, the lower the IQ.

So who is going to replace the intelligentsia in the Lib voting demographic? They hope it will be the Tradies in the outer suburban McMansionvilles and that's probably a sure bet. Anyone who can pay their employees an award wage while charging $15K for a standard bathroom fit out has gotta be a Lib. Likewise their wives who glory in their newfound excess, don't have book in the house, love beauty therapy and watch mindless TV. There will also be the Investment property mob, the Landlords who are currently gearing up to fight the revision of the Landlord/Tenant legislation in W,A, And, of course we shouldn't forget the arrant dills who trudge off to election booths without a reasoned thought in their minds. Ironically, we've had the rule of the Dopes for years now, our fortunes dictated by that handful of the totally uninterested in a handful of marginal seats.

Will this lot be our future? You can bet that Murdoch wants it be so.