Tony Abbott’s former chief of staff, Peta Credlin, using the airwaves to tell people she has pulled environment and energy minister Josh Frydenberg into line has been met with near-universal ridicule among the political class, as it should be.
It’s also a classic case of a political player masquerading as a commentator, a credibility-sapping reality to be sure.
Credlin and I have had our differences over the years, including her complaining up the line about my writing and commentary. Although I’m hardly Robinson Crusoe on that score.
Journalists have enjoyed mocking the CoS in exile on social media, political staffers have discussed the ego it must take to claim one has the power (or the right) to put a cabinet minister in his place — much less publicly air having done so, especially when Credlin is no longer part of the government. A senior Liberal MP jokingly called me, asking: “do I need to be chided for anything I’ve done, or do you lose the right to do that to ministers when you no longer work for Sky News?”.
While the general view is that Credlin was simply attention seeking and name dropping who she speaks to, a number of MPs also noted that the timing was perfect: shortly after the 30th Newspoll fail hit the government and Malcolm Turnbull hard, Credlin highlighted that it was more than just the polls that was behind Abbott’s political removal. Another case of poor political judgment.
If Credlin is prepared to ring a cabinet minister and tell him how it is when she’s no longer a chief of staff to a PM, imagine what it was like when she was? Much like all the on- and off-the-record quotes and stories given to the various books and commentaries recounting the Abbott era, I guess.
Of course something that is getting glossed over as we all have a belly laugh about what happened last night is Frydenberg taking Credlin’s calls and presumably, at least, giving her the impression that she can push him around. What’s that all about?
Is it weak, clever or playing both sides of the fence? Or was the minister entirely misrepresented in Credlin’s recall of their little chat?
Who knows.
Frydenberg was one of the Team Abbott loyalists who stuck with the former PM to the bitter end, showing the kind of loyalty Abbott and Credlin should admire. Instead in his new portfolio they and their band of reactionaries attack him almost daily, and on policy scripts he is implementing which were designed when Abbott and Credlin ran the show. Such as the Paris agreement.
It’s entirely understandable that Frydenberg would fire back at Abbott’s snipping and for Credlin to even attempt to chide him for doing so is pathetic and out of line. The distractions continue, the destabilisation continues and the small band of in exile former members of Team Abbott roll on, acting like they still run the show — from the backbench or when discussing politics with a micro audience of political junkies on pay TV.
Peter van Onselen is a professor of politics at the University of Western Australia.
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