Stay out of Clive’s mess, Tony and Bill WHEN Clive Palmer crashes and burns, as he inevitably will, he will walk away from the wreckage blaming the giant conspiracy orchestrated by the government and News Corp Australia, laughing out the side of his mouth at the two small figures scratching through the rubble: Tony Abbott looking for bits of vertebrae and Bill Shorten for an inner compass. Palmer will take no responsibility for his own demise, or for his soiling of parliament and the inexcusable trashing of the reputations of people bound to impartially serve it and protect it from threats to its integrity from people like him. .... On Wednesday night a week ago, Palmer shook hands with Environment Minister Greg Hunt and the Leader of the Government in the Senate, Eric Abetz, in Hunt’s office to clinch the deal securing Palmer United Party votes for the carbon tax repeal and Palmer’s amendment to ensure savings were passed on to consumers. Less than an hour later Palmer began rewriting his own amendment. He was still rewriting it the following morning when he met his puppies and a seasoned drover’s dog, former Greens staff member Ben Oquist, now with the Australia Institute, who has emerged as an unlikely influence on Palmer. When Palmer gave it to the government about 9.15am, it accepted it within minutes. It recognised its flaw — that it was unconstitutional — but trusted the Senate clerks would do their job, spot it, then inform the PUPs. The clerk did, suggesting it could be fixed simply by inserting one word: “penalty”. Palmer was furious, resorted to verbal violence and insisted, as he still does, that he knows more about the Constitution than the clerks, whom he continues to abuse. Of course he does. He is Clive and they are not. Two independents, Nick Xenophon and John Madigan, had the ticker to take him on over it. One of Palmer’s many problems is he doesn’t know what he doesn’t know. At least that was my observation to an Abbott minister who, for his sins, has been compelled to deal with Palmer. His reply was truer: “No. He does know what he doesn’t know and he doesn’t care.” One of the first people Palmer alerted via text to his plans to vote down the repeal was his buddy Billy, whom he subsequently dudded on changes to financial advice rules. Among the last to know of Palmer’s carbon vote switch were his own senators, two of whom at least, Dio Wang and Glenn Lazarus, are taking their duties seriously. They found out about the same time as the government. Palmer emasculates Abbott as surely as he renders Shorten obsolete or complicit in his double dealings, and as certainly as he tarnishes an already tainted parliament. After what happened last Thursday, after the slurs cast by Palmer against his ministers, alleging double-cross or dirty tricks that never happened, after the slurs against hardworking Senate staff, Abbott should have politely but firmly declared that the government had done its best to negotiate with Palmer (which it had), Palmer’s amendment would be tidied up to ensure it was legal and free of unintended consequences, but that he would tolerate no more silly buggers from anybody, including Palmer, and invited him to vote for the package in parliament. Or not. If Palmer did not, then it would have been a simple matter to make him wear the tax and the consequences. The defeated bills could then have been saved for a double-dissolution election — not right away because slaughter beckons — but any time six months before the expiry of the government’s term, which is the latest it can be held, or whenever the government looks remotely as if it might be in a fit state to fight an election. theaustralian.au/opinion/columnists/stay-out-of-clives-mess-tony-and-bill/story-fnahw9xv-1226991450738
Posted on: Wed, 16 Jul 2014 23:59:23 +0000
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