Right Pulse

I think Abbott has ruled himself out of the leadership running this morning on ABC radio, but Kevin Andrews said this morning on the Alan Jones show that he is a candidate for the leadership. He doesn’t have anything to lose given that he is unlikely to get a shadow portfolio any time soon. Vexnews reports though:

…Malcolm Turnbull’s current intention to brazenly tough it out. His strategy is to crash through or crash, not just on the ETS but also in terms of any potential challenge. His plan is just not to call another party room meeting before Christmas and hope the current tensions go away….

Another explained “There were so many compromises offered by Minchin and others. Malcolm stubbornly ignored them all. Why couldn’t he have offered a conscience vote on the issue for backbenchers? That could have worked.”

I read that as saying that MT’s commitment is to his socialist ETS objective above and beyond party values and principles,  and of course the national interest. Looks like MT will stop at nothing at following Rudd in leading the country into economic oblivion. Hence he refuses to allow a leadership vote. I wonder if the party faithful were given a chance to vote on who should be leader if MT would survive?

However when the ETS starts to bite (assuming it is approved), at least a large section of the Coalition will be able to say that they opposed its introduction and MT and all of his left-wing stooges will be out of a job, with the right-side of politics once again taking over the leadership with the intention of  taking down the ETS altogether – no concessions no amendments just complete abolition.

UPDATE

Apparently in under an hour MT could have his leadership challenged by Kevin Andrews, just back from the USA. Given the unexpected rise of Andrews, my feeling is that some fence sitting could go MT’s way in the ballot. However there are alternatives.

Should MT win, every MP and Senator that is opposed to the ETS should quit the Liberal Party and join the Nationals, who are opposed to the ETS. This issue is that important. It strikes right at the heart of the Liberal’s economic credibility, and their philosophical pursuit of free markets and free people. If the Liberals support the ETS then they are merely a poor shadow of the ALP-left and will condemn themselves to opposition as the ETS slowly destroys the economy and people’s standard of living.