In the immediate aftermath of the mass stabbing in Bondi Junction and the Wakeley church terror incident, Anthony Albanese’s first words on the matter were posted on X.

Albo didn’t send quotes to journalists, or call into Sydney’s 2GB, or hold a press conference (though it would come later). His team published tweets that he had been “briefed by the AFP” – that empty national jargon that the nation’s leader was on it.