While most of the attention of the Australian election campaign is focussed on the main stage and the two headline acts, there’s plenty of action going on in the sideshows. In fact, the sideshow alley of this election is in many ways the one to watch, given that a hung parliament is a distinct possibility. Sure, one or other of the major parties will ultimately form government, but there’s a growing likelihood that they’ll need the backing of the minor parties.
So, what are the Sideshow Bobs of Australian politics up to?
While their leader dodges difficult questions with the sort of retorts that belong in a Twitter argument, his fellow pixies are busily doing their best to prove that accusations that they’re a party of elitist loonies completely detached from reality are… well, true.
The Greens say China doesn’t pose a threat to Australia and the party has no problem with Solomon Islands’ decision to forge a security partnership with Beijing.
Greens’ peace and disarmament spokesman Jordon Steele-John said Australia’s concern over the Solomons-China agreement was “paternalistic and actually racist”, and that the future of Taiwan was not a direct concern for Australia or the US.
As Labor attempts to neutralise national security as an election issue by matching the Coalition’s defence commitments, the Greens have called for military spending to be slashed and the AUKUS agreement cancelled […]
Under the Greens’ “peace, disarmament and demilitarisation” policy, defence spending would be reduced from about 2 per cent of GDP to 1.5 per cent.
The Australian
The Australian Greens clearly love Jacinda Ardern so much that they’re copying her defence policies. Peter Jennings of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute is rightly describing the Greens’ defense policies as “crazy stuff”, and a “dangerous” “fantasyland approach”.
“Anyone who doesn’t see China as a threat has clearly not been reading the newspapers.”
On the opposite side of politics, One Nation has its own problems.
One Nation has disendorsed its candidate for the seat of Brisbane, claiming she showed an “unwillingness” to follow direction.
The move came just days after it was revealed a website that Rebecca Lloyd was registered with was under investigation by the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC).
The Australian
The website in question was supposedly to compile a list of “Freedom” candidates, but the particular issue was a “donate” button.
This disendorsement process of Rebecca Lloyd began from a social media post written by Jonathan Sri, [Greens] Councilor for The Gabba […]
When initially confronted by a One nation spokesperson about the ‘donate’ button Ms Lloyd was told One Nation wanted to err on the side of caution, not that it was illegal nor that she would be disendorsed. She understood this and had complied […]
The AEC confirmed that she could raise up to $14,000 for independent candidates without declaration and if more than $14,000 was raised Join the Conversation had 3 months to declare the amount.
Lloyd disputes that Join the Conversation had reached that threshold.
But if the Greens’ Mr Sri wants to investigate murky fundraising, there’s a lot more he could turn his talents to.
Get Up, another fund-raising organization, pulls in over $10,000,000 a year and runs a support program for the ABC. While claiming it does not receive donations from any political party is obviously political in its support of the programs listed on its website.
Tik Tok are being investigated for electoral fraud being a front for political parties or unions who have paid influencers to promote anti Morrison sentiments.
Australian Free Independent Press Network
[Strangely, though, Jonathan Sri only seems interested in targeting a rival for his sister…
Meanwhile, the circus surrounding the so-called “independents” running in a clutch of ultra-wealthy blue-green seats is generating plenty of entertainment for the peanut gallery.
Outrage within Melbourne’s Jewish community over independent candidate Zoe Daniel attending upcoming Israel Independence Day celebrations has resulted in a Shule stopping her and Liberal opponent Tim Wilson from taking part in the festivities […]
Many members of the Jewish community remain furious Ms Daniel has refused to remove her signature from an open letter she signed in 2021 that states, “Israeli vigilante mobs attack Palestinians and the Netanyahu government has unleashed a new, brutal war against the besieged population of Gaza” […]
Ms Daniel was also forced to apologise recently after a series of controversial comments were made from her campaign manager Sue Barrett who used social media in 2020 to post: “Hitler altered reality with drugs and (Scott) Morrison uses religion”.
The Australian
Daniel is a former ABC journalist running on a climate alarmist ticket — big surprise! — so, naturally she is peddling the bog-standard anti-Semitism that’s increasingly subsuming the left. Tim Wilson is a dripping wet Liberal “moderate”, but he has at least defended Israel in Australia’s parliament. It seems that his disinvitation is an attempt to appear even-handed and defuse what one resident called “an unintended political aspect” of the event.
With another month of campaigning to go, no doubt the sword-swallowers and bearded ladies begging for votes in the shadow of the political Big Top will continue to deliver value for money entertainment.
