Voters realise all that glitters is not Malcolm

IT’S past six months since Malcolm Turnbull’s successful coup unseated Tony Abbott from the prime ministership but the usurper has yet to­­ ­convince the public of his ­authenticity.

IT’S past six months since Malcolm Turnbull’s successful coup unseated Tony Abbott from the prime ministership but the usurper has yet to­­ ­convince the public of his ­authenticity. One cabinet member says that’s because Turnbull likes to keep all his options open until the last minute — a trait which earned him a reputation as a canny player in the high stakes world of investment banking. Ordinary voters not enamoured of merchant bankers might call such an attribute slippery. The last time Turnbull was leader of the Liberal Party his colleagues dumped him because of his lack of consultation on climate policy. They embraced Abbott’s less nuanced, more direct approach to the global warming humbug, his tough stand on ­illegal boat arrivals, the nonsensical carbon tax, mining tax and other issues. Abbott came to grief because he rejected sound and well-meant advice from senior figures both within and without the Coalition. His remarkable loyalty to his chief of staff Peta Credlin blinded him to the damage his office was suffering and he never enjoyed the embrace of the ABC, ­Fairfax or the hate-filled ­luvvies on Twitter. It is now obvious that Turnbull is finding the job of PM harder than he expected or he is less capable than his initial bravado led his backers to­ ­believe. It is a reality that the Coalition’s successful policies were generated and implemented during the Abbott prime ministership. The change that Turnbull promised, while keeping to the core policies, has been less than ­underwhelming. The strong ministers in his cabinet are, almost to a man, the conservatives who supported Abbott and whom, in turn, Abbott backed to the hilt. Immigration and Border Protection Minister Peter Dutton is an excellent example of the no-nonsense, capable, individual encouraged by Abbott but kept at arm’s length by Turnbull. Treasurer Scott Morrison, in his incarnation as immigration minister, was a standout in the portfolio and with the full backing of Abbott managed to stop the boats even though Labor and the Greens said it would not be done and even former PM John Howard expressed his doubts about whether his policy could be revived. Abbott has legitimately noted that his government’s policies underpin the Coalition’s record as it goes into this election. He has not called “bullshit” on any of Turnbull’s policies, though Turnbull was quick out of the blocks to ­pander to his Green-tinged supporters by claiming Abbott’s global warming strategy was just that when he lost the leadership to Abbott. Turnbull’s ministerial supporters aren’t resonating with the voters. Defence Minister Marise Payne hasn’t registered and the defence forces are still wallowing in the politically correct mire generated by the appointment of the former chief of army David Morrison as Australian of the Year. Education Minister Simon Birmingham could not even deliver a straight answer when asked whether he believed the All of Us gender awareness program being run through schools should promote the notion that phrases such as “boys” and “girls” be no longer used. If the Education Minister can’t assure parents that such an ideological agenda has no place in Australian schools, the core culture is in deep trouble. Turnbull is now seizing national security as an issue but, given his form, it may just be a diversion from the looming Budget. Prospects for his first Budget aren’t good, if the major selling point is a corporate tax cut, as worthy as that will be. Turnbull is not the retail politician his supporters supposed him to be. Relying on the nimble and agile slogan has made him something of a laughing stock. It may be exciting to be Malcolm and Lucy Turnbull and opt to ride on public transport while sending selfies but punters will want something more to grasp than the promise of more jobs if corporate Australia responds to tax cuts. The strong message from Morrison is that growth must come before the nation can ­afford to give personal income tax cuts, that the pie must be grown larger before it can be sliced further. Unfortunately, Turnbull has pulled the rug from under his Treasurer so often that he has an uphill battle to restore trust in his government’s economic ability. The irony is that the Brussels bombings may yet lead to national security being at the heart of the election campaign, giving Turnbull the khaki election he claimed ­Abbott wanted to fight. After mocking Abbott for being macho, he did take a tough line against Europe’s failure to deal with the realities of today’s ­Islamist terrorist threat. But the mentality behind Europe’s disastrous immigration policies is much the same as multi-lateralist multicultural centre-Left politicians like Turnbull have long embraced. Belgium, the hub of Euro-terrorism, is such a dysfunctional state it took 541 days to establish a government after the June 2010 elections, and its police are forbidden by law to conduct raids between 9pm and 5am — though this is being ­reviewed. As has often been remarked, Turnbull has been gifted Labor leader Bill Shorten as an opponent but he has chosen to run a risky long election campaign. His challenge is twofold: to gain street credibility and support a no-frills Budget that will demonstrably encourage growth and deliver security to Middle Australia. John Howard was prepared to ask the question: Who do you trust to manage the economy? Australians won’t trust Bill Shorten. They may trust Malcolm Turnbull if he stops nimbly leaping about in hysterical excitement at his own cleverness.