US election: Why bagging Donald Trump may come back to bite Labor
An analysis of comments made by 10 senior Labor figures, including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, has revealed stinging criticism of Mr Trump and his family.
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The Albanese Government has threatened “the relationship with our most important ally” with its attacks on Donald Trump who could next week reclaim the US Presidency, it is claimed.
An analysis of comments made by 10 senior Labor figures, including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Housing Minister Clare O’Neil and Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus, have revealed stinging criticism of Mr Trump and his family.
Foreign policy experts say it could compromise agreements, including Australia’s $368 billion nuclear submarine deal with the United States to counter the rise of China, which Mr Trump’s yet to commit to.
“Australia is facing its most challenging security environment since World War Two, yet the Prime Minister has stood by as his colleagues threaten the relationship with our most important ally.” Daniel Wild, Deputy Executive Director of the Institute of Public Affairs, said.
“Should President Trump win the upcoming election the PM is going to find himself in a very tough position.”
Mr Wild added that Labor MPs had scored a “massive, massive national security own goal for the nation.”
Mr Albanese has said the AUKUS defence deal was the “biggest single investment in Australia’s defence capability in our history” when announcing the deal in San Diego with President Biden in March last year.
The deal includes a veto to be signed off by the president of the day.
The United States remains Australia’s strongest ally in regards to national defence, particularly as China tries to get more influence in Pacific Island nations near our borders.
But a Trump victory could create awkward diplomatic moments for the Labor leadership because of party members’ public comments about him – some of which date back as far as 2016.
Mr Albanese described President Biden’s victory over Mr Trump as a “triumph of hope over fear”, while NDIS Minister Bill Shorten labelled him “barking mad”.
Clare O’Neil, who was removed from the Home Affairs portfolio to take a role as Housing Minister, targeted Mr Trump’s son in a now deleted tweet.
“Geez, Donald Trump Jr is a bit of a sore loser,” she wrote in July last year.
“He’s just a big baby, who isn’t very popular.”
Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles described some of Mr Trump’s policies as “appalling”, while Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus said some of the President’s comments were “abhorrent”.
Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek said in 2016 that Mr Trump’s candidacy raised “national security concerns”, while Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones shared a newspaper headline that called Mr Trump a “liar and a cheat”.
A source with knowledge of diplomatic affairs said Mr Trump would “look at the Albanese Government and not like what he saw.”
“Donald Trump is famously thin skinned but he’s also famously able to embrace his enemies as his friends,” the source said.
“The difficulty is, we don’t know what he will do.”
The Prime Minister’s Office did not respond to questions about what would happen to the AUKUS agreement if Mr Trump were elected.
However, Mr Albanese said in a radio interview in December last year that “the relationship between Australia and the United States is not a relationship between just leaders or individuals.
“It’s a relationship built on our common values and our view of the world.”
stephen.drill@news.com.au
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