Australian political parties should learn from Trump, US election: Bernardi

LONGSTANDING Trump supporter Cory Bernardi feels ‘validated’ by the US President-elect’s win – and says it’s not too late to make Australia ‘great again’.

CONSERVATIVE Liberal Party MP Cory Bernardi says Australia’s major political parties can make the nation “great again” by learning from US President-elect Donald Trump.

Reaffirming his longstanding support for the President-elect in an interview with ABC’s 7.30., Senator Bernardi said Mr Trump’s controversial policy positions — which include banning Muslim immigration and building a wall between the US and Mexico — were “absolutely mainstream”.

When asked if he felt validated after Mr Trump’s election win, Senator Bernardi said: “There’s a part of me that does, yeah.”

“You know, because it was very unfashionable to support him. It’s not about his character, it’s not about all of his policy positions, but I thought, he is the catalyst for change and that many of the issues that he has been targeted about and criticised for I think are absolutely mainstream,” Senator Bernardi told ABC 7.30 reporter Zoe Daniel.

Australia’s major political parties are ignoring the message many ordinary voters are trying to send at their own peril, according to Senator Bernardi, who said there was also an opportunity to make Australia “great again”, echoing the Republican candidate’s election mantra.

Make Australia Great Again pic.twitter.com/hL595FI59S

— Cory Bernardi (@corybernardi) November 6, 2016

“I hope he will grow into the role, I think he will, I think there is a great opportunity for us to strengthen this country, to make it great again and also in Australia, I think there is a lot we can learn from it,” he said.

But 7.30 host Leigh Sales was unconvinced, asking: “It’s not politics playing on fear, xenophobia, things like that?”

“No, they are things that people will characterise it as, because it’s politically opportune for them to do it,” Senator Bernardi said.

“But, you know, not having people that are undocumented or illegal in your country, I think, is entirely mainstream. Cutting taxes is mainstream. Protecting your borders is mainstream. You know, trying to get government out of people’s lives is a very sensible thing. There’s lessons for both our parties.”

Senator Bernardi’s support of the Republican president-elect has been unfailing. Picture: AFP

Senator Bernardi has previously been criticised by the media, the opposition and even his own party over his unfailing support for Mr Trump.

In September, the conservative Liberal senator said he believed Americans might do “pretty well” under a Trump presidency.

He said Trump was tapping into a well of discontent that politicians around the world would be wise to listen to.

“Not one of them has come to me afterwards and said — when they’ve changed their position, you know, six months or a year or two years later (and said), ‘Gee, you were right’.”

Senator Cory Bernardi says the Australia’s major parties could learn from Trump. Picture: ABC 7.30

“The mainstream parties have refused to discuss the issues and people are going, ‘If you won’t talk about it, I will find someone that will’, and it is the same in Australia with Xenophon, with Hanson, with Hinch, with Palmer before that — they’re looking outside of the main parties. ]

“You’ve got to start to debate the real matters of substance for many people. But whether they will heed the warnings, I’m not sure. I have been trying to warn them of this for many, many years.”

The high-profile South Australian Liberal MP is heading home to Australia this week after a three-month secondment at the United Nations in New York