Peter Dutton demonstrated in the debate that he has started to find his line and length on the economic narrative. He now wants to steer the election contest back to safe ground for the Coalition.
Finally, there is a contest. After a shaky first week, Peter Dutton needed to lift. And tonight he did.
Labor’s spending trajectory will reach more than $30,000 per person within the next four years, eclipse government expenditure during the Covid-19 pandemic, and reach the highest levels per capita on record.
Labor’s model now has an electoral trigger in common with John Howard’s Tampa election of 2001. Like Howard, fear is what Anthony Albanese is seeking to exploit.
A senior Coalition source says the jettisoning of his working from home policy for public servants was part of ‘cleaning up’ the negativities of Peter Dutton’s campaign amid flagging polls and Labor attacks.
Labor’s primary vote will have to lift if it wants to be confident of being returned to government with a majority.
Labor is now leading the Coalition 52-48 on a two-party preferred basis, with the single-point gain mirroring the 2022 election result, despite voters backing Peter Dutton as the stronger and more decisive leader.
It is Peter Dutton who appears hesitant and reactive. The Prime Minister projects confidence and Labor seemed to head into the campaign with at least an element of a message.
Anthony Albanese must operate within the constraints of diplomacy while standing up for Australian jobs. He has more to lose than Peter Dutton.
The ‘Trump equals Dutton’ notion is a political confection but it is a relatively easy one to consume for those already struggling to distinguish between fact and fiction.
Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/author/simon-benson