FISTFUL OF DOLLARS

Graeme Morris, the former chief of staff to Prime Minister, John Howard, stressed on television yesterday how important the belated official launch to the Liberal Party election campaign in Queensland yesterday really was.

It was a real chance for John Howard to strut his stuff in his run up to a fourth term in office.

And strut his stuff he did with a six billion dollar war chest aimed at shutting down any perceived Labor Party advantage on issues like health, education and family values. Iraq and national security hardly got a look in at the Brisbane launch.

The party’s Deputy Leader and Federal Treasurer, Peter Costello, again played the warm-up man with a sting in his Latham jokes. “Can’t run a council, can’t run the country” sort of thing.

Costello dripped irony as he said of the alternative Prime Minister:

“His job interview with the Australian people for the job of Prime Minister goes like this. Previous parliamentary experience: nil. Previous ministerial experience: nil. Previous work experience: an outing as mayor of Liverpool Council. Financial record: deficit. Council: Now in receivership. Costello also mocked the easy target of Latham signing that low interest rate guarantee on a big bit of cardboard for the TV cameras.

It was no coincidence at the Lib launch that the sign under the rostrum said: “Keeping Interest Rates Low”.

The economy, and who can handle it better, will dominate the death throes of the 2004 federal election.

The Liberal Party signs (wrapped in the flag) in Brisbane’s City Hall said things like “Protecting. Securing. Building Australia’s Future”. As if they would be boasting about “building Australia’s Past” – although come to think of it the Libs have had a fair bit to do with that too.

Even as he opened his breathtaking six billion dollar Christmas sack Prime Minister Howard tried to turn it to his advantage by saying that the only reason he had so much money to give out, so much largesse, was because of the way he and Costello had run the economy in the past. Gets it both ways.

The usually staid editorial column in The Australian, the national daily, today has the frisky headline: What Shall We do With the Drunken Sailor?

I think the song says “put him in the scuppers with the hosepipe on him” but I’m not sure that’s what they had in mind.

The editorial did say: “This was classic John Howard – profligate, political and pitched direct at voters’ hip-pockets”.

Almost a throwback to the famous Fraser “ fistful of dollars”. It could be enough though to get him over the line. Brisbane couldn’t it make it four in a row. I suspect, from Brisbane yesterday, John Winston Howard will.

Monday, September 27, 2004

©Copyright Derryn Hinch 2004