Paul Keating: Equal Opportunities Insulter
August 6th 2008 22:48
If there’s one thing you have to admire about former Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating, it is that he is an equal opportunities insulter.
Every now and then the increasingly deluded Keating crawls out of his cave and decides to pass comment on the current crop of politicians. And, like the slightly senile uncle of politics like he is, politics today can NEVER be as good as it was in his day. Keating’s latest spray has come at the launch yesterday of his new book detailing his many achievements as a politician.
I wonder if Keating knows how predictable he is. Put Paul Keating out in front of a bunch of journalists, like at a book launch, and despite the fact that he hasn’t been in government for twelve years the journalists will all show up because they know he can’t resist the opportunity to perform for the media. In his sights yesterday? Well, Peter Costello copped the brunt of it. For a man who has not yet said he even wants the Liberal leadership, it seems like a foregone conclusion to most and Keating is no different. Keating revealed that the nickname he used to use for Costello was “thallium- a slow-acting dope” and went on to say Costello was perfect to be the next leader of the Liberal Party because he was a “low-flying person”. It’s not surprising to see Keating take the opportunity to stick the boot into the Liberal Party. If anything, Keating was always more of an ideologue than a politician and you could tell he was truly furious to have been bested by Little Johnny Howard. He still is, although now it seems more bitterness than anger.
But as I said in the lead, Keating has always been an equal opportunities insulter, so Kevin Rudd wasn’t safe either. Keating said that the Rudd Government worked without a clear message and ran government at “the behest of little press secretaries”. It’s a big indictment for an elder statesman of the ALP to come to the same conclusion as many of the Opposition, especially when it’s Paul Keating, who you know it must kill to agree with the likes of Brendan Nelson and Malcolm Turnbull. He also counselled Rudd against maintaining a frenetic pace in government and to take the time to devise an overarching narrative and goals to achieve over his tenure as Prime Minister.
Funnily enough, in line with the theme of Keating’s book of his unfinished business in government, all of the things Keating advised Rudd to focus on were things that were near and dear to Keating’s heart: boosting productivity, engagement with Asia and the move to become a republic.
"You can't get around in Asia saying, 'oh by the way we borrowed the monarch of another country - the queen of Great Britain is our head of state','' says Keating, who became known and reviled in the UK for placing his hand on the Queen’s shoulder during a public event. They christened him ‘the Lizard of Oz’ for what they took as a sleazy and disrespectful move. It’s no wonder Keating wants to drop the monarch. He’s got nothing but grief from his association with her.
Most people would say that Paul Keating is irrelevant. He hasn’t been in government for over a decade, and only serves to chime in here and there with some kind of witty attack. But you get the impression that Paul Keating can’t help but wish he had never left politics. Even this long after he was dethroned by Howard, you can still see his passion for public policy and you can tell that for him, it wasn’t about the power. It was about what he thought was right, whether we agree with his assessment or not.
I’d much prefer an ideologue like Keating than a media construct like Rudd.
Every now and then the increasingly deluded Keating crawls out of his cave and decides to pass comment on the current crop of politicians. And, like the slightly senile uncle of politics like he is, politics today can NEVER be as good as it was in his day. Keating’s latest spray has come at the launch yesterday of his new book detailing his many achievements as a politician.
I wonder if Keating knows how predictable he is. Put Paul Keating out in front of a bunch of journalists, like at a book launch, and despite the fact that he hasn’t been in government for twelve years the journalists will all show up because they know he can’t resist the opportunity to perform for the media. In his sights yesterday? Well, Peter Costello copped the brunt of it. For a man who has not yet said he even wants the Liberal leadership, it seems like a foregone conclusion to most and Keating is no different. Keating revealed that the nickname he used to use for Costello was “thallium- a slow-acting dope” and went on to say Costello was perfect to be the next leader of the Liberal Party because he was a “low-flying person”. It’s not surprising to see Keating take the opportunity to stick the boot into the Liberal Party. If anything, Keating was always more of an ideologue than a politician and you could tell he was truly furious to have been bested by Little Johnny Howard. He still is, although now it seems more bitterness than anger.
But as I said in the lead, Keating has always been an equal opportunities insulter, so Kevin Rudd wasn’t safe either. Keating said that the Rudd Government worked without a clear message and ran government at “the behest of little press secretaries”. It’s a big indictment for an elder statesman of the ALP to come to the same conclusion as many of the Opposition, especially when it’s Paul Keating, who you know it must kill to agree with the likes of Brendan Nelson and Malcolm Turnbull. He also counselled Rudd against maintaining a frenetic pace in government and to take the time to devise an overarching narrative and goals to achieve over his tenure as Prime Minister.
Funnily enough, in line with the theme of Keating’s book of his unfinished business in government, all of the things Keating advised Rudd to focus on were things that were near and dear to Keating’s heart: boosting productivity, engagement with Asia and the move to become a republic.
"You can't get around in Asia saying, 'oh by the way we borrowed the monarch of another country - the queen of Great Britain is our head of state','' says Keating, who became known and reviled in the UK for placing his hand on the Queen’s shoulder during a public event. They christened him ‘the Lizard of Oz’ for what they took as a sleazy and disrespectful move. It’s no wonder Keating wants to drop the monarch. He’s got nothing but grief from his association with her.
Most people would say that Paul Keating is irrelevant. He hasn’t been in government for over a decade, and only serves to chime in here and there with some kind of witty attack. But you get the impression that Paul Keating can’t help but wish he had never left politics. Even this long after he was dethroned by Howard, you can still see his passion for public policy and you can tell that for him, it wasn’t about the power. It was about what he thought was right, whether we agree with his assessment or not.
I’d much prefer an ideologue like Keating than a media construct like Rudd.
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Comment by RubySoho
Music Zone
Thought Zone
Heck, I still haven't gotten over it.
"Thallium, a slow-acting dope."
I'm sorry but if you can't see the brilliance in that remark, there is no hope for you.
Best. Prime. Minister. Ever.
Comment by Paul Bleakley
Agent Politics
I absolutely don't agree with many of the things he said and did. But man... That guy is the consumate politician and you have to appreciate true passion.
Especially considering the real lack of it in the current crop.