John Howard reflects on the 2004 election, Mark Latham handshake, jokes he’s ‘not Trump’ as he accepts marriage plebiscite result
John Howard reflects on big political moments in his career including his handshake with Mark Latham. He also joked he’s ‘not Trump’ when it came to the marriage equality vote.
National
Don't miss out on the headlines from National. Followed categories will be added to My News.
I’m “not Trump” joked former prime minister John Howard as he explained his acceptance of Australians’ vote to legalise gay marriage after his own government passed laws defining the union as between a man and a woman 20 years ago.
Mr Howard stood by the decision in 2004 to effectively ban same sex marriages, stating it reflected societal views at the time, rejecting the suggestion the legislation was an attempt to “prejudice” the equality debate.
The former PM said he accepted the result of the 2016 plebiscite to expand the definition, making a quip about incoming US president Donald Trump, who has repeatedly refused to accept the 2020 US election result.
“I voted against (the plebiscite), but I lost. The other side won and that’s how it works. My name is not Trump.”
Mr Howard said in 2004, then attorney-general Philip Ruddock had said either the parliament could amend the definition, or it would be defined by a judge, which then would have made it “politically impossible” for the government to alter the act.
“The way to fix it was to get in first, it was to lay down the definition,” he said.
Cabinet advice given to ministers, released for the first time by the National Archives of Australia on Wednesday, said that the law could be amended “as a statement of the government’s position”, however, any change would likely “be controversial”.
Reflecting on 2004, the year Mr Howard won his fourth and final term as leader, the former prime minister said cost of living was a “pervasive” issue, creating a similar context to the current situation leading up to the 2025 election.
A defining image of the 2004 campaign came in the final days of the contest when then-Labor leader Mark Latham was filmed shaking Mr Howard’s hand in an overly physical and dominating greeting that painted him in an aggressive and menacing light.
Asked if he was surprised at the impact the interaction had, Mr Howard said he was not, and had “expected that kind of behaviour” from Mr Latham.
But he attributes more of his electoral success to the decision the Coalition took at the time to preserve forestry jobs in Tasmania, which wedged Labor at the time as it sought preferences from the Greens.
Many of the cabinet submissions detailed in the 2004 documents relate to health, economic and social policies prepared ahead of the election, with the escalation of housing prices a major worry for ministers.
Cabinet agreed to support a raft of recommendations from an earlier inquiry to boost the supply of housing.
Ministers also endorsed measures to improve the provision of after-hours medical care by establishing Australia’s first after-hours GP clinics.
More Coverage
Originally published as John Howard reflects on the 2004 election, Mark Latham handshake, jokes he’s ‘not Trump’ as he accepts marriage plebiscite result
Shock amount of time train drivers work for
The startling amount of time Sydney Trains’ drivers actually spend per shift with their foot to the plate has been revealed.
How lunatic left caused the death of woke
The death of woke wasn’t murder, it was suicide. It was something the lunatic left brought entirely upon itself, writes Joe Hildebrand.