Coalition’s attack on Kevin Rudd’s lavish spending at DC ‘party palace’ spectacularly falls apart
A blistering attack on Kevin Rudd by the Opposition’s self-described “government waste-watcher” has turned into a spectacular own goal.
A blistering attack on Kevin Rudd by the Opposition’s self-described “government waste-watcher” has turned into a spectacular own goal.
Liberal MP James Stevens yesterday released documents obtained via a freedom of information request that he said exposed the former prime minister’s “largesse” as Australia’s Ambassador to the United States.
Mr Stevens claimed Mr Rudd had spent a staggering $45,000 to commission an eight-minute song to be played at a soiree at the embassy in Washington DC.
“Just weeks out from last year’s critical presidential election, Kevin Rudd’s $45,000 symphonic commission seems a complete distraction from the important priority of building relationships with key members of future US administrators,” Mr Stevens said.
“This Ode to Kevin is just the latest largesse at his party palace in Washington.”
But it has since emerged the song by New York-based composer Michael Grebla was actually ordered by another ambassador, Arthur Sinodinos.
Mr Sinodinos, an ex-Liberal Party politician, was appointed to the role in 2020 by then-Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.
It’s a fact Mr Stevens either wasn’t aware of or failed to disclose when he made a splash with the documents.
In addition to the song being commissioned by Mr Sinodinis, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade also confirmed the cost was covered by sponsors and not taxpayer funds.
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Mr Grebla’s song was played at a celebration late last year to mark the one-year anniversary of the new embassy opening in the US capital.
In his original pitch for the composing gig, Mr Grebla said Unbreakable reflected the values that bound Australia and the US.
“I think the alliance is ‘unbreakable’ because the common ideals it is founded on – freedom, a fair go, democracy to name a few – are in themselves infallible, even if we are, and are at the core of what it is to be an Australian and also an American.
“When tested, we have both stood by those ideals, and each other, every single time, and have prevailed for over a hundred years doing so.”
Its debut at the party was part of a 40-minute concert enjoyed by guests.
Some 200 guests attended the soiree, which cost a pretty penny.
Mr Rudd approved a $16,000 spend on catering, the documents show. A grand piano in the building was moved to another room at a cost of $700 while another $450 for “emergency tuning” was also required.
Yesterday’s bungled attack follows ongoing criticism of Mr Rudd’s spending while in one of the country’s top diplomatic postings.
In the 2023-24 financial year, he spent a total of $172,000 on hospitality, including $24,000 for catering for a single soiree in October 2023.
In June 2023, the embassy hosted a pricey Pride event, including more than $11,000 on food and wait staff, $2000 on an “organic balloon arch” and $2300 on a “custom balloon garland”.
Popular Aussie drag queen DJ Kitty Glitter was also paid $3000 to perform at the soiree and was reimbursed $1000 for flights and $200 for incidentals.
Local drag performer Crystal Edge was paid $600 to host the party.
In all, the bill for the Pride event came in at about $23,000, which sparked anger among conservative commentators, with 2GB Breakfast host Ben Fordham decrying Mr Rudd turning the embassy into a “drag queen nightclub”.
“It turns out he’s blown about $20,000 on one party, and of course he doesn’t pay for it – you do,” Fordham said. “DFAT spent $4500 on balloons for K-Rudd’s gay pride party. And I’m sorry to burst your bubble, K-Rudd, but that’s a lot of money.”
Since taking the ambassador role in 2022, Mr Rudd has also run up more than $150,000 in travel expenses.
That included jaunts to represent Australia at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland and the Munich Security Dialogue in Germany.
The new embassy building officially opened in 2023 after lengthy delays and a mammoth $100 million cost blowout.
The Coalition Government in 2015 ordered the demolition and replacement of the previous building, which had reportedly fallen into a state of disrepair after five decades of service.
Aussie architectural firm Bates Smart designed the 20,000 square metre structure, which it said carried “direct references to the distinctive Australian landscape … bright and clear natural light and open skies, its warm materiality, and its vast scale”.
It has sweeping views of the White House and major DC landmarks.
The original $237 million bill came in some 40 per cent higher because of supply chain disruptions, currency fluctuations and construction delays.
Mr Rudd’s position has been under considerable pressure since the election of President Donald Trump.
Previous unflattering characterisations the Labor stalwart had made about him, including that he was a “traitor to the West”, the “most destructive president in history”, and a “village idiot”, re-emerged.
Mr Trump declared Mr Rudd would not remain in his role and called him “nasty”.
White House deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino was also subtly scathing, posting a GIF of a dwindling hourglass in reply to an X post from the ambassador congratulating Mr Trump on his election victory.
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