Toxic leadership leaves Labor looking for a miracle (Australian election)

The Australian ^ | 2nd September 2013 | Dennis Shanahan

[naturalman1975]

LABOR won power in 2007 on a Ruddslide, but looks like losing power in 2013 in a Ruddbath.

The popularity of Kevin Rudd, which won Labor a swathe of seats in Queensland, is turning into voter retribution that has the ALP facing a worse result on Saturday than Paul Keating's loss to John Howard in 1996.

The "unelectable" Tony Abbott is now preferred prime minister, and the great campaigning "comeback kid" Prime Minister is more unpopular than he ever has been. With a primary vote of just 33 per cent in the last week of the election campaign, the legitimate but pointless question is being asked within Labor whether they would have been better off hanging on to Julia Gillard.

The electoral "catastrophe" Rudd forecast under Gillard, particularly in Queensland and NSW, appears to be not too far from the forecasts under Rudd - and they are worse in Victoria and South Australia.

.....

On Saturday, without a miracle, Gillard leaves politics and Rudd's career will be finished, leaving Labor a divided rump and perhaps bereft of its next generation of leaders.

[naturalman1975]

Things are looking very good for the conservative coalition - but we did lose an 'unloseable' election in 1993, so nobody is claiming too much.

[Impy]

I noticed the coalition lead shank in the polls after Labor swapped leaders, before that it was looking like a landslide.

[naturalman1975]

Yes, and now it’s looking like a landslide again :) Though perhaps not quite as big a one as under Gillard.

[BillyBoy]

It's funny the Aussie Labor Party dumped Rudd for Gillard because Rudd was "unpopular", then dumped her and put Rudd back in power for the election season because they thought she's "lose". Ah, the irony.

I'm not sure which of them is more liberal.

Rudd recently "evolved" on gay marriage, though, so a Labor Party slaughter is just deserts (even if it has to do with the dismal economy rather than his backstabbing on social issues).

[melsec]

Sadly I still think it is down to the media - Kevin looks terrible doing the same stuff he did in ‘07 when the media edited him to look good. The cheese factor is so high with Rudd he looks ridiculous. While Abbott may not be my favorite Liberal his lines on Rudd “hyperventilating” have been the highlight of this election so far. Abbott has stayed relatively calm and composed and if he can hold it for the next week he should win.

Mel

[4rcane]

haven’t followed Australian politics for a few years. All I know the public debt skyrocketed under the Labor (leftist) party, while it was in surplus during Liberal (right wing) party

[4rcane]

Gillard is more left than Rudd

[Impy]

I guess they are the Hillary and Barack of their country.

Imagine if the US had a parliamentary system!

[MadMax, the Grinning Reaper]

Gillard is a hardcore marxist and her policies reflected that ideology. She has wrecked the ALP and freedom-loving Aussies and allies thank her for that.

Now, when she leaves office, give her a rest home in Woomerara (Sp) (testing grounds). She’ll have a blast.

[Hardraade]

If the Conservatives seem to be winning, keep a watch out for an Australian Breivik.

Laboor is nothing more than oldtime Stalin in new clothes.

[BillyBoy]

>> Gillard is more left than Rudd <<

>> Gillard is a hardcore marxist and her policies reflected that ideology. She has wrecked the ALP and freedom-loving Aussies and allies thank her for that. <<

But yet another irony, she's STILL opposed to gay marriage while the "less liberal" Rudd caved. It appears to be sincere, since she's otherwise an hard lefty who is cohabiting with some guy. Hard to imagine a Nancy Pelosi type RAT in the RAT leadership opposing gay marriage in the current political climate. Q&A - Julia Gillard Still Opposed to Gay Marriage

And Tony Abbott is a strongly conservative Roman Catholic.

Australia's looking better and better these days, especially given how much Obama has destroyed America

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks naturalman1975.

[Alas Babylon!]

I was there when Malcolm Fraser lost to Bob Hawke. Old Bob wasn’t as bad as the socialists today. Back then Labor stood for the little guy and industry... Everyone working.

But even then, with the squabble over the Franklin damn, you could see the Econuts and greenies starting to infest the party... We had caravans full of them come up to Woomera in late 1982 to protest against the USA. Even my Labor friends considered them lunatics...

Seems like so much has changed. And not for the better.