Rudd is the Libs' sum of all fears
This article originally appeared in today's Daily Telegraph.
In recent days there has been a discernible rise in aggressive anti-Rudd rhetoric by those most concerned about a return to the Labor leadership by the former prime minister.
This is despite the fact that Kevin Rudd has made it clear there will be no leadership challenge. The good ship Rudd set sail a year ago when the Labor caucus came down to the dock to wish him bon voyage.
Liberals and their supporters, however, are most anxious about a Rudd return and it's showing in the volume and vehemence of the articles now appearing in the press.
Bill Woods' piece in The Daily Telegraph this week descended into attacks on both his record and his character. It attacked Rudd's handling of the global financial crisis, his apology to the stolen generations and the NBN.
In fact Kevin Rudd took decisive and immediate action to protect Australia from the worst effects of the biggest international economic downturn since the Great Depression. Furthermore, while banks were collapsing like a house of cards all around the world, not one bank closed its doors in Australia.
This didn't happen by chance, it took careful planning and a targeted stimulus program built around the greatest school modernisation program in this country's history. Credit where credit's due, Bill.
The success of this program was in the economic results - unemployment stayed low at about 5 per cent, keeping it at a lower average level than under John Howard. Add to that the lowest deficit and debt ratios in the western world and the retention of the Triple A credit rating and you have some idea of the magnitude of the Rudd government's achievements.
The campaign against Rudd also always includes an unhealthy dose of NBN bashing.
Let's not forget that during the Howard years there were no less than 18 plans put forward to deliver high speed internet coverage across the country. However, only people in big cities stood to benefit. Labor's NBN delivers for rural and regional communities.
Rudd's plan - now being rolled out - had a vision to deliver super fast internet connections right across the country, linking schools, hospitals and businesses wherever they are situated.
His lasting legacy will be the realisation of his belief in a fair go for all.
The lowest blow by the Rudd demonisers is to trivialise his apology to the stolen generation. John Howard stubbornly refused to apologise, despite the pain felt by those who had their children ripped from their arms in raids on Aboriginal communities over many years.
Rudd had no idea how strong the backlash against him would be. As it turned out, it proved to be one of this nation's proudest moments. Since then the government has negotiated a national agreement on closing the gap as Australians overwhelmingly agree that something serious must be done to end indigenous poverty.
I would never seek to prevent the Rudd detractors from putting their views in print. However, it's a real shame that they cannot bring themselves to admit that he did more in just three years to protect and advance the living standards of Australians from all backgrounds than generations of Liberal governments managed to achieve.
Hear, hear, Bruce. About time someone reminded people of Kevin Rudd’s great achievements. And still Australia is feeling the benefits of the Rudd team’s sound economic management in a crisis, marred only by some mistakes that occurred due to the necessary speed required of the rollout of some the stimulus programs. How soon people forget…with the rest of the world still barely above recession (and the US bracing for some serious austerity measures) Australians are still living with a strong and stable economy, thanks to Kevin and his team. This needs some serious publicity, whether Kevin runs the show or not so, why isn’t this happening? Why is the criticism going unanswered?
Great article Bruce, well said.
About time people stuck up for Rudd. He was great to Australia.
Whitewashing his legacy damages Labor. It strengthens the Libs and empowers Howard, We should be clubbing the Liberals over the head with Howard for generations but Julia Gillard seems quite a fan judging by what she says in QT and some of her policy decisions.
The Liberals fear a Rudd rise. Make no mistake folks.
Over the hot Melbourne summer we have appreciated “Rudd’s insulation” to keep us cool. I believe Beasly in the USA had a hand in Rudd’s sacking, and the American’s as we know does not like Socialism. You also notice how close Gillard is to Obama.
My husband has lost interest in politics since Rudd was sacked, i just hope Rudd comes back and becomes our PM, not only for my husbands sake, who was a strong Labor supporter, but also for the sake of the nation, for their own sakes.
just love Rudd.
Like the protagonist played by Ben Affleck in the 2002 American political thriller film titled, The Sum of All Fears; Rudd’s hunting skills and prowess in the top job was unmatched by any Australian Prime Minister since perhaps the cunning, long-range craft of Keating — for how effective is it to kill two birds with one hard stone when other nations’ leaders were bereft of even cotton balls?
Ha-ha!
Not only did Rudd stimulate the economy but he initially did so with the genius of recognising the all-but-forgotten pensioners, a group much-detested by Howard and his neo-liberal agenda.
When I think of Rudd however, I find the image in my memory of the humble and earnest resident, of him helping to evacuate his neighbours when Brisbane was flooding by carrying their suitcases.
Cheers,
Daniel Moszkowicz
Bruce, the problem with Kevin Rudd is not the labour party nor is it Kevin Rudd. We have a system of government that does not let the public actually have a proper say. We have candidates hand picked by factional power brokers, or by “A captains pick” instead of grass roots development or primaries. Add to that we have campaigning at election times that looks a lot like presidential campaigns but actually are not! When Kevin won the election in 07 he was opposed by a party leader that if Liberals would have won would not have been the Prime Minister as he did not win his seat. The population of Australia voted Labour in record numbers based on K Rudd as the leader but the population doesn’t actually have the right to make him prime minister. What we need here is K Rudd leading the labour party and Malcolm Turnbull leading the Liberal party and that happening as a result of the wishes of the people and this can only happen if we become a republic and drastically modify the electoral system.
It’s a pity Labor can’t have a leadership convention with primary votes like pretty much all the Canadian parties have. This would break the factional stranglehold on the leadership forever. And it wouldnt be just Rudd who benefits, it would be all Australians. Enough of the machine politics!
Kevin could so easily deal with this issue, simply ask the polling companies to stop including him in the list of preferred PMs and he can fall into the ‘other’ category.