Donald Trump Jr blasts Kristina Keneally over far-right activist

Labor leader says party makes no apologies for trying to block far-right writer.

Donald Trump Ju has blasted Kristina Keneally’s move to ban a far=right activist from Australia.

Anthony Albanese has rebuffed attacks on his party by Donald Trump’s eldest son, saying he makes no apologies for trying to block a far-right writer from entering Australia.

Don Trump Jr has accused Labor and its home affairs spokeswoman Kristina Keneally of trying to stifle conservative views by speaking out against former Breitbart editor-in-chief Raheem Kassam visiting Australia.

Mr Albanese said Australians “understand” it is up to the nation’s politicians to determine what is free speech and what is hate speech in Australia, not the Trump family.

“That’s a matter for them, frankly. They make their own judgements,” he told Sky News.

“The Australian people understand that it’s up to us to determine as respectful debate.

“I frankly don’t want to go down the road that we’re seeing in many countries including the current debate in the United States.”

Mr Albanese backed up Senator Keneally’s concerns about Mr Kassam who has a long history of racist, homophobic and misogynistic tweets including calling on Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon to “tape her legs” shut so she cannot have children.

“This is not someone who is just talking a political way forward where there are differences,” he said.

“This is someone who is an extremist and we make no apologies for Kristina Keneally’s (calls) that we should blocking this person from entering Australia.

“The question here is one for Scott Morrison as well about what kind of debate he wants in this country.”

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann responded to questions on notice about Mr Kassam’s visa this morning to Senate President Scott Ryan.

The Finance Minister said it was up to Liberal MPs whether they wanted to go to the CPAC conference with Mr Kassam and that he would stand up for freedom of speech.

“The government will always stand against divisive, inflammatory commentary which seeks to invite hatred,” Senator Cormann writes.

“However the way to defeat bad ideas, bad arguments and unacceptable views is through debate, especially with those we disagree with. It is not by limiting our conversations only to those who all the time share all of our views.”

Trump Jr, Keneally in stoush over activist

Mr Trump Jr earlier took to Twitter to blast Senator Keneally, tweeting that that calls to keep Mr Kassam out of Australia were part of a global push to “silence conservative views.”

“We have Big Tech constantly trying to silence conservatives and now one of the major political parties in Australia is trying to silence @RaheemKassam because of his conservative views. The insanity needs to stop!” the US President’s son tweeted.

We have Big Tech constantly trying to silence conservatives and now one of the major political parties in Australia is trying to silence @RaheemKassam because of his conservative views. The insanity needs to stop! https://t.co/vtPEZcGl47

— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) July 31, 2019

Senator Keneally told the senate on Tuesday night that Mr Kassam should not be welcome in Australia due to his string of racist, homophobic and misogynistic tweets — including a graphic attack on Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon shortly after she had revealed a miscarriage.

This morning she told Mr Trump Jr via Twitter that the conservative Morrison government was responsible for banning far-right figures in the past.

“Mr Trump, Please know that @ScottMorrisonMP ‘s Government banned Milo Yiannopoulos from entering the country in March, David Icke in February, and Gavin McInnes in November last year,” she tweeted.

“PS Yesterday the Morrison Government’s Leader in the Senate @MathiasCormann described Mr Kassam’s comments about Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon as ‘disgraceful and highly objectionable and completely outrageous comment that, of course, I entirely abhor.’”

Scott Morrison is due to visit Mr Trump Jr’s father for an official state visit in mid-September.

President Trump has spent months campaigning against social media companies like Twitter and Facebook, whom he accuses of silencing his supporters online.

Mr Trump,

Please know that @ScottMorrisonMP's Government banned Milo Yiannopoulos from entering the country in March, David Icke in February, and Gavin McInnes in November last year.

Cheers
KK https://t.co/f4djm3gOeB

— Kristina Keneally (@KKeneally) July 31, 2019

PS Yesterday the Morrison Government’s Leader in the Senate @MathiasCormann described Mr Kassam’s comments about Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon as “disgraceful and highly objectionable and completely outrageous comment that, of course, I entirely abhor” 👇 pic.twitter.com/psHLtkcl9Y

— Kristina Keneally (@KKeneally) July 31, 2019

Mr Kassam said yesterday he intends still to visit Australia this month and accused Senator Keneally of using parliamentary privilege to defame him.

The government does not intend to revoke Mr Kassam’s visa and two Liberal MPs, Amanda Stoker and Craig Kelly, have defended his right to enter the country.

Senator Stoker and Mr Kelly will appear at the Political Conservative Action Conference in Sydney next week alongside Mr Kassam.

Senator Keneally yesterday attacked the government’s lack of action over Mr Kassam, and noted they have recently blocked other far-right figures from entering the country including Milo Yiannopoulos.

“My question to the government is: how is Raheem Kassam any different to Milo Yiannopoulos? How is he any different to the man to whom you had already issued a visa and banned? And why won’t you review the decision by Minister Coleman to allow him into the country?” she said.

International Development Minister Alex Hawke said Senator Keneally was only helping to give Mr Kassam and his controversial views more attention by calling for him to be banned.

“Senator Keneally is living in a Twitter bubble ... I’ll be honest with you, I’d never heard of this bloke, I asked people in my office they had never heard of him, people in my family had never heard of him,” Mr Hawke told Sky News.

“The only way people are hearing about this guy in Australia is because Kristina Keneally is seeking to ban him.

“She’s got to have a long, hard look at herself to be honest because by banning him, by saying the government should ban him, she’s giving him attention.”