Party Games: Coalition likes to foster the ‘come to daddy effect’

OPINION: A sombre feature of modern election campaigns is the presence of national security. Here it inevitably involves the Coalition standing tall next to its established “trustworthiness” on handling terror matters.

A SOMBRE feature of modern election campaigns is the presence of national security.

It’s called the “come to daddy effect” which sees people take safe refuge with their political father.

Since the 2001 poll, which was held in the shadows of the al-Qaeda terror attacks on New York and Washington and against the background of an invasion of Afghanistan, there have been direct or indirect talk and actions relating to the threats with which we’ve all lived.

Sometimes, the drama just overshadowed everything as happened in 2001 when Labor couldn’t get its messages out because of news about troops flying into war zones and suspected anthrax threats.

However, most of the time it has been the Coalition standing tall next to its established “trustworthiness” on handling terror matters and Labor wanting to neutralise anything to do with terrorists and national security.

This poll has had a low level undercurrent with two events so far. First, a group of five would-be terror fighters who had lost their passports and were under surveillance pulled a seven metre boat to Far North Queensland as part of an alleged escapade to travel to Indonesia before going off to Syria to join Islamic State.

They’ve been charged and are on their way to Victoria to face trial.

Yesterday, an 18-year-old in Sydney was arrested for planning a terror attack — what we’ve been told is the ninth disrupted by federal and state policy in the past two years.

Australia’s Attorney-General, Queensland Senator George Brandis, has been doing his job by fronting the media and outlining the facts.

Brandis is not making political capital out of this because he doesn’t have to.

By simply having a serving Coalition minister pronouncing on terror issues carries its own political message and that is one of being safe with the Liberals and Nationals in charge.

It’s called the “come to daddy effect” which sees people take safe refuge with their political father, relegating the more left wing Labor Party to being a mother who looks after health and education.

Originally published as Party Games: Coalition likes to foster the ‘come to daddy effect’