Thursday Noticeboard

Today’s noticeboard is brought to you by Kevin Rudd, whose big mouth may yet threaten his tenure as Australia’s ambassador to the US.

He's always thought himself the smartest man in the room, and this time Kevin Rudd was right

Adam Creighton reports from a land of changing fortunes:

Anthony Albanese launched Kevin Rudd’s bid to be Australian ambassador to the US a few weeks after Donald Trump, in November 2022, launched his bid to be re-elected president.

Practically everyone had written off Trump’s chances back then – Florida Governor Ron DeSantis was even rated a better chance of becoming president than Mr Trump.

A former prime minister with deep political and diplomatic contacts plus a renowned expertise in China appeared to be an inspired choice for the new Labor government.

It really did. The new government’s decision also had the benefit of silencing a potential Labor embarrassment, as I wrote in late ’22:

Rudd’s new role largely requires him to shut the hell up. Ambassadors are bound by all manner of protocols and conventions that limit their public commentary …

So that’s the end of ranty, whiny, look-at-me post-parliamentary Kevin Rudd, then. At a stroke, Albanese has satisfied Rudd’s ego by bestowing upon him a fancy title and also subtracted him from Australia’s political conversation.

But ranty, whiny Kevni was still out there, at least in the form of his pre-ambassadorial comments. Adam continues:

Fast forward a year and a bit, and it’s looking a much less sensible, even reckless, choice.

Donald Trump has practically secured the Republican nomination, and according to both political betting markets and national polls has for months been the most likely winner of the November 2024 presidential election.

Mr Rudd’s disparaging remarks about Mr Trump, made on numerous occasions, were well known in Australia. He variously accused Mr Trump of “rancid treachery”, being “nuts” and the “most destructive president in history” ...

Rudd’s been called similar things. Mostly by his former Labor comrades.

One irony of the current scandal is Mr Trump appeared to barely know who the former Australian prime minister was, let alone his criticism.

“I hear he is not the brightest bulb, but I don’t know much about him,” Mr Trump told Nigel Farage ...

If Donald Trump isn’t re-elected in November, Mr Rudd’s tenure is secure. If he is, Canberra will have to give serious thought to recalling him.

Kevin Rudd after he’s fired would be even more fun than Kevin Rudd before he was hired. Imagine the fury, the mania, the paranoia. Imagine the angry letters he'd send to gentle and supportive journalists.

It’s highly unlikely a future President Trump would actively seek to persuade Australia to terminate Mr Rudd’s commission.

But he could easily ignore him …

Wouldn’t be the first time. Sending Rudd to the US was, after all, Australia’s way of putting him in our national forgettery.

By all accounts, Kevin Rudd has performed well as Australia’s ambassador, helping shepherd critical AUKUS legislation through congress last year and ensuring a successful visit by Anthony Albanese to Washington last year.

That intense grinding sound heard throughout the PM’s visit was Rudd’s teeth. Picture him as a humiliated Kif to Albanese’s vain and clueless Zapp Brannigan.