Sean Kelly

“Like Donald Trump’s presidential victory, the appearance of far-right nationalist Blair Cottrell on Sky News cannot be excused by reference to recent events. It wasn’t the dumb mistake of a producer, nor was it unique to Sky. The expansion of what …”

“Turnbull vowed to look “very seriously and thoughtfully and humbly” at the results. Bill Shorten explicitly said “we hear you” to those who voted for third parties, and has spent the days since the vote repeating a version of this mea culpa: “We …”

“This was not just negative campaigning as it is usually understood – attacking your opponent rather than focusing on your own strengths. Instead, each side put its case in terms of what couldn’t be done if the other side got its way. On company tax …”

“Early in his prime ministership, approval numbers rocketing, he would have imagined himself breaking the mould, a new type of leader. But like most political leaders, over time Turnbull has, wisely if not admirably, accepted the narrowness of his immediate …”

“I have just returned to Australia from some months spent in London, and it was something of a shock to return to all this. Howard fighting culture wars, Hanson pulling stunts, Latham yelling – oh, and there was Abbott, too, trying to tear down a leader …”

Led by established and co-ordinated conservative voices, the ‘No’ case breaks down into three key arguments, under which sits the backbeat of homophobia.

The government’s determination to avoid onshore legal challenges to asylum-seeker detention has endangered detainees requiring serious medical attention.

“By now we’ve all seen enough of Turnbull not to expect a tough guy. We want the guy who knows stuff, who is across his brief, who can explain things in detail and persuade us he has it all in hand. Instead, this week, we got Turnbull as played by Sly …”

“Morrison warned that Greens activists had ‘infiltrated’ the Labor party, as though the entire election were an episode of Get Smart. ”

“That is all you need to know about election 2016. It is a battle of two battles. The Coalition needs voters to see it as a choice between stability and instability. The ALP needs the same voters to decide their vote based on fairness versus unfairness.”

“It is the worst type of cynicism to use the battle against Daesh as some kind of proxy for the fight between Liberal moderates and conservatives.”

“Abbott must now decide, firmly and without second-guessing himself, what it is he wants to achieve in politics. ”

“Both the public and the Liberal backbench get confusing signals about the government’s policy. That suggests either genuine tension between Abbott and Hockey, or a failure to get media strategies lined up. ”

“A complaint turns us all into comrades-in-outrage. They’re easy to agree with, even if you happen to like the person or party being complained about.”

“Many, myself included, thought that Abbott the tight-lipped automaton would become a convincing human once he had actually been elected. We were wrong.”

Scott Morrison’s abuse of language ties the asylum-seeker debate in Orwellian knots.

The budget reveals the government’s inability to put itself in the shoes of its electorate.