James Campbell: Barnaby Joyce hits back at Malcolm Turnbull, but there can only be one winner in their feud

AFTER 10 brimless days Barnaby Joyce is back in the Akubra, but if he’s spoiling for a fight with Malcolm Turnbull, there will only be one winner, writes James Campbell.

THE hat was back. After 10 brimless days in which he has instead worn sackcloth and ashes, Barnaby Joyce was on Friday back in the Akubra, the hat that says to his people “I am one of you” but to the rest of Australia screams “yokel”.

The message he came to deliver was simple and tribal: by attacking me on Thursday, Malcolm Turnbull was attacking the entire National Party and by extension rural and regional Australia.

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Joyce’s arrogance and self-delusion is now at the point that one would not have been surprised if he had announced, to borrow a phrase from King Louis XIV of France, that “the National Party is me”.

Barnaby Joyce during his explosive press conference. Picture: Getty Images

On Thursday Malcolm Turnbull made it clear as mud that he wants him gone.

Joyce’s response has been to give to give the Prime Minister of Australia the two-finger salute and to add for good measure that he thinks he’s “inept”.

Clearly one of them is going to have to go. But which one is it going to be?

Joyce is of course correct when he says “there is nothing that we dislike more than implied intervention into the party processes of the National Party” and “we are an independent political unit”.

Barnaby Joyce during his explosive press conference. Picture: Getty Images

Barnaby Joyce on his way to his explosive media conference. Picture: Gary Ramage

Clearly his colleagues are within their rights to stick with him.

But can we please have a bit of perspective here?

As important as they are to the Government’s majority, have a look at the numbers.

At the last election — on its own — the National Party got 4.61 per cent of the vote outside Queensland.

The hybrid Lib-Nat party in Queensland — which is mostly Liberal — got another 8.52 per cent. The Liberal Party on its own got more than twice as many votes.

Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce addresses the media. Picture: Gary Ramage

Barnaby Joyce on his way to his explosive media conference. Picture: Getty Images

The National Party has 16 seats. The Liberal Party has 45 seats plus 15 members of the LNP.

In other words, if Malcolm Turnbull and Barnaby Joyce can’t work together any more, there is really no doubt about who it is who should pack up his swag.

But that would assume that we are dealing with people who are acting rationally.

It seems pretty clear this is not the case.

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