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Articles on Federal politics

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The federal government has suspended debate on a number of bills in the final parliamentary sitting week before the election. AAP/Lukas Coch

Is the government gagging the referendum debate?

The federal government has announced that it will gag debate on 53 bills in the Senate next week. One of them, the proposed constitutional amendment on the recognition of local government, is to be limited…
If Kevin Rudd replaces Julia Gillard as Labor leader next week, constitutional conventions dictate that he may not necessarily become prime minister again. AAP/Julian Smith

An end to the Rudd-Gillard battle?

If some reports are to be believed, Kevin Rudd will replace Julia Gillard as leader of the ALP and become prime minister again by the end of next week. This raises questions about the political and constitutional…
The impending disaster for Julia Gillard’s government at the federal election could also spell trouble for the hopes of the Greens in the Senate. AAP/Alan Porritt

Labor’s unpopularity could be a disaster for the Greens in the Senate too

The publicly available opinion polls are in agreement about the fate of the Labor government. A landslide defeat in the House of Representatives is looming, the magnitude of which might place Julia Gillard…
How central should Julia Gillard’s identity as a woman be in political discourse? AAP/Lukas Coch

Gillard, identity and the limits of political discourse

Politics and identity have collided with unusual force in Australian politics over the past year, reaching a crescendo in the last week. Beginning with Julia Gillard’s “misogyny speech” to parliament…
Backlash over the seemingly omnipresence of bookmakers advertising during sport - such as Tom Waterhouse - prompted a government ban on ads in certain situations. AAP/Paul Miller

Live sports odds ban: does the government’s plan go far enough?

What are the odds? In the face of public pressure, prime minister Julia Gillard has given bookmakers an ultimatum regarding sporting events. If the bookies do not agree to a ban on gambling promotion during…
Will the push for constitutional recognition of local government actually improve Australia’s system of government? AAP/Alan Porritt

The perils of constitutional recognition of local government

Is this the referendum we don’t need to hold? And how many Australians truly understand the potential impact of their actions when they vote in referendum of the constitutional recognition of local government…
Opposition leader Tony Abbott plans to move a motion of no confidence in the government - but he faces constitutional and conventional hurdles in his attempts to hold an early election. AAP/Lukas Coch

Would a no confidence vote in Julia Gillard create even more confusion in Canberra?

Opposition leader Tony Abbott has confirmed he plans to move a motion of no confidence against Julia Gillard’s government in the next two parliamentary sitting weeks. But in the event a no confidence motion…
Defence minister Stephen Smith, prime minister Julia Gillard and Commander of Defence Forces David Hurley at the launch of the Defence White Paper. AAP/Lukas Coch

Defence White Paper: super-sizing Australia’s strategic geography for the Asian Century

Australia’s new Defence White Paper reflects a revolution in the way in which Australia thinks about its strategic geography. The “Indo-Pacific” has now decisively displaced the “Asia-Pacific” as defence…
Soon after revealing his plans to build a replica Titanic, Clive Palmer has set his sights on becoming Australian Prime Minister. EPA/Jason Szenes

Titanic ambitions: Palmer’s federal push shouldn’t be lightly dismissed

Queensland has a habit of raising the eyebrows of our southern cousins when it comes to politics “our way”. Visits to friends and family down south always have required explanations about Joh Bjelke-Petersen…
Helle Thorning-Schmidt, the real world current Prime Minister of Denmark, has said that TV drama Borgen has been good for Danish politics. EPA/Rungroj Yongrit

Politics is about compromise: a guide to the SBS drama Borgen

Anyone in Australia who has struggled with the political repercussions of a federal minority government should spare a thought for the Danes: they operate in a parliamentary system where minority government…
Will free-marketeers like the IPA be disappointed by an Abbott government? AAP/Lukas Coch

A big fat yes? Or will Tony Abbott leave the IPA crying at the altar?

In August 2012 the Institute of Public Affairs (IPA), which bills itself as “Australia’s leading free market think tank,” urged opposition leader Tony Abbott to “be like Gough” in the IPA Review, proposing…
Labor has traditionally had a strong support among female voters, but this could be set to change in 2013. AAP/Lukas Coch

Male and female voters: will there be a ‘gender gap’ in 2013?

A “gender dimension” now envelopes national politics unlike anything we have observed in the past. Julia Gillard’s popular but arguably unfair [accusation](http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-10-10/international-reaction-to-gillard-speech/4305294](http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-10-10/international-reaction-to-gillard-speech/4305294…
Mark Dreyfus has put forward a new bill to protect whistlerblowers, but it falls short in several areas. AAP/Alan Porritt

Keeping us honest: protecting whistleblowers

Australia has been fortunate enough to see mostly honest governments. We’ve experienced neither the corruption of 1950s Italy nor the tyranny of 1970s Brazil. We are not, however, without our issues: give…
The sensible thing for Tony Abbott to do would be make himself as small a target as possible as the election draws near - but sooner or later he will need to put forward some detailed policies. AAP/Lukas Coch

Never mind the leadership, what about the Opposition?

When Tony Abbott became leader of the Liberal Party by just one vote in December 2009 he saved the Liberal Party and non-Labor cause nationally from annihilation. Kevin Rudd as prime minister was riding…
After Conroy’s media reforms failed to find any standing, where does media regulation go from here? AAP/Alan Porritt

Media reforms a historic opportunity missed

To get an idea of how big an opportunity the federal government missed with its shambolic attempt at media reform, consider this: the last federal minister to achieve any substantive reform of media self-regulation…
Are leadership battles in Australian politics a sign of party difference or unity? Or is it something altogether different? AAP/Lukas Coch

Weightless politics and the Australian tendency to leadercide

In a scene in the famous 90s sitcom Seinfeld, George describes to Jerry an idea for a show about nothing. After the events of the last days and weeks in federal and state politics, we can ask whether Australian…
Julia Gillard emerges triumphant after challenging Kevin Rudd for the leadership in 2010. She has survived two subsequent threats to her leadership since. Is this the new normal for Australian politics? AAP/Alan Porritt

Julia Gillard may have won the vote, but the ALP remains desperately dysfunctional

Julia Gillard lives to fight another day, having being reelected unopposed at this afternoon’s caucus meeting. While Rudd declared he would not nominate for the leadership this time, the destablisation…
The election is Tony Abbott’s to lose. But will weakness with many female voters cost him and will his record come to haunt him on issues like abortion? AAP/Lukas Coch

Re-inventing Tony: why Abbott’s attempt to woo women doesn’t bear scrutiny

Tony Abbott is trying to improve his image with many women. But as I found out when I met him recently, no makeover can erase his track record of public statements and actions, especially on issues of…
The ongoing leadership tensions inside the Labor government are only damaging the party’s long term health. AAP/Julian Smith

In order to win the war, Labor must be prepared to lose the battle

There’s something a little thrilling about a bit of leadership biffo. However, when such talk shows little sign of abatement, as it has in respect to Gillard’s leadership of the ALP, then the thrill factor…
Has Ted Baillieu joined Kevin Rudd in the list of Australian political leaders defenestrated by their own side? AAP/Alan Porritt

Loathing democracy: knifing the Australian electorate’s wishes

The current wars being waged in Australian electoral politics tend to be over what rights are left to Australian voters regarding their leaders. The ambush of Kevin Rudd by supporters of the current Prime…

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