# "Naaaaaaaaay, Abbott...!" / Brilliant Aussie PM Voted Out Today **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [September 14, 2015, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197 "2015-09-14T12:44:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/1 "2015-09-14T12:44:30Z")
Breaking news from BBC: > **[Australian PM Tony Abbott ousted by Malcolm Turnbull](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-34245005)** > > Australia is to have a new prime minister after Tony Abbott is defeated by Malcolm Turnbull in a hastily arranged Liberal leadership vote. > [@](#): > > “In the hastily-arranged party leadership ballot, Mr Abbott, who had been plagued by poor opinion polls, received 44 votes to Mr Turnbull’s 54.” For those of you not familiar with Mr. Abbott’s accomplishments, please allow me to share a few [highlights](http://thesauce.co/achievements-of-the-abbott-government/): > [@](#): > > Forced an asylum seeker to pay for medicide to treat an injury they got when a government employee physically assaulted them. > > Laughed and joked about the pacific islands whose very existence is threatened by climate change sea rises. > > Told an Australian company to sack their Australian employees and hire foreigners, in order to remain competitive under the government’s new shipping deregulation rules. > > Proposed a tax on all bank deposits. > > Spent $24,000 on koala hire for a G20 photo opportunity > > Spent thousands of government dollars on taxi rides to the Opera in just 8 days. The government claims that the expenditure is reasonable because the minister didn’t pay for the tickets either. > > Spent thousands of government dollars on limousine rides, and fudged the declaration paperwork to say they were taxi rides. > > Spent $90,000 to send The Speaker to europe for a fortnight so that she could apply for a job. > > Spent $27,000 on travel expenses for politicians to attend free sports events. > > Banned the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) from investing in wind power and small scale solar power. > > Banned telcos from seeing warrants for metadata access requests issued to chase down journalists sources, thereby undermining the purpose of the warrant system. > > Used classified ASIO documents as props during a photo shoot. > > Incorrectly claimed that the Lindt Cafe gunman was linked with ISIS. > > Introduced 2 year jail sentences for doctors who disclose government wrongdoing and the high rates of health problems in immigration jails, even if the disclosures are in the public interest. > > Proposed an exemption so that Australia’s richest companies no longer have to publish basic information about how much tax they are paying. > > Proposed `ag-gag’ laws, under which activists who expose illegal animal cruelty can be imprisoned if they take more than 48 hours to go to the police. > > Withdrew from Australia’s commitment to limit global temperature rises to two degrees. > > Scrapped a public inquiry into law enforcement agencies access to journalists’ telecommunications data, for the purposes of identifying journalists’ sources. > > Prevented the release of a ‘name and shame’ list of multinational tax dodging corporations. > > Accidentally leaked the personal details of 31 world leaders, and chose not to notify them. They still claim your metadata will be safe though. > > Breached the international convention against torture. > > Proposed scrapping the census. > > Started an online petition to stop job losses at the ABC, just 36 hours after cutting ABC funding by 5%. > > Gave permission to Chinese companies to sue the Australian government if it implements laws which reduce the corporation’s profits. Australian companies can’t even do the same to the Chinese government. The actual text of the legislation is being kept secret. > > Contracted out the managing of the Do Not Call Register to a marketing company. > > Spent $24 billion on new, spontaneously combusting fighter jets, already years behind schedule, which aren’t going to be built in Australia. The jets can’t run off warm fuel from a truck which has been sitting in the sun (since the fuel tank is used as a heat sink). The software for firing the guns won’t be ready until 3 years after deployment. Each plane holds less than 3 seconds of ammunition for the guns. Somewhere in Australia, I’m sure that they’re setting off fireworks in celebration. _Well… its that or they’re refueling that new jet fighter…_ ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/2 "2015-09-14T12:52:10Z")
I suspect some of your sound bites there are a bit sensationalist. That said, I don’t like Abbot and didn’t vote for him, however the people who DID vote for him deserve to have him for a full term. It was bad when Labor was pulling this shit and it is bad when this other bunch do it. How about some fucking stability for fucks sake! ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/3 "2015-09-14T13:06:14Z")
I’m not so sure they’re sensationalist. By the way, this… > [@](#): > > Introduced 2 year jail sentences for doctors who disclose government wrongdoing and the high rates of health problems in immigration jails, even if the disclosures are in the public interest. …includes reporting **child abuse**. Yes, it’s now \*\*illegal \*\*to report child abuse in immigration detention camps. Noice. ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/4 "2015-09-14T13:27:13Z")
> [@Richard\_Pearse](#): > > …the people who DID vote for him deserve to have him for a full term. I can see why you’d want them to be hoist by their own petard, but Abbott was a cancer on the country. He was horrible in every possible way, from trying to start international incidents with our neighbours, to cutting government spending everywhere _except_ putting priests in schools, to deriving pleasure from the fact that a pensioner was forced to work on a sex line to make ends meet. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/5 "2015-09-14T13:35:27Z")
> [@Grumman](#): > > I can see why you’d want them to be hoist by their own petard, but Abbott was a cancer on the country. He was horrible in every possible way, from trying to start international incidents with our neighbours, to cutting government spending everywhere _except_ putting priests in schools, to deriving pleasure from the fact that a pensioner was forced to work on a sex line to make ends meet. It’s not so much that I want them to be hoist by their own petard, but that the country voted a certain way and that vote should be honoured, unless it is really really bad in which case you dissolve parliament and have an election again. I don’t think a party should present themselves as being led by a certain person, win an election, and then change the leader. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/6 "2015-09-14T15:56:58Z")
From the Elections description: “For discussion of elections and electoral politics, including strategy and tactics, political parties, individual races, political news, and politicians and public figures.” I think that is a better fit. Moved. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/7 "2015-09-14T16:07:42Z")
So, how does this Mr. Turnbull differ from Abbott? What can Aussies expect of him? ---
**Author:** ![Esox\_Lucius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/848f3c/32.png) [@Esox\_Lucius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esox_Lucius)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/8 "2015-09-14T16:24:45Z")
I remember him falsely raising hopes that Malaysian flight MH370 was going to be discovered soon when the so-called pings were detected. He was “confident” they were coming from the plane’s black box when he hadn’t been told that at all by search officials. And there’s [this bizarre video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJ9y1c73-IM) of him non-answering a reporter’s question. There’s something creepy about him. ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/9 "2015-09-14T16:45:52Z")
> [@Richard\_Pearse](#): > > It’s not so much that I want them to be hoist by their own petard, but that the country voted a certain way and that vote should be honoured, unless it is really really bad in which case you dissolve parliament and have an election again. I don’t think a party should present themselves as being led by a certain person, win an election, and then change the leader. I disagree with this. From the linked bbc article: “Under the Australian system, as in the UK, the prime minister is not directly elected by voters but is the leader of the party or coalition that can command a majority in parliament.” You vote for the party and the policies. Not for the personality of the frontman. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/10 "2015-09-14T17:25:07Z")
> [@Esox\_Lucius](#): > > I remember him falsely raising hopes that Malaysian flight MH370 was going to be discovered soon when the so-called pings were detected. He was “confident” they were coming from the plane’s black box when he hadn’t been told that at all by search officials. > > And there’s [this bizarre video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJ9y1c73-IM) of him non-answering a reporter’s question. There’s something creepy about him. Hmmm . . . when’s the next election? ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/11 "2015-09-14T17:51:28Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > So, how does this Mr. Turnbull differ from Abbott? What can Aussies expect of him? IIRC Trunbull was essentially demoted in the past because among other things he opposed Abbott on matters like climate change, as Abbot was just a very dumb AGW denier (he even wanted to fund, at taxpayers expense, dopes like [Bjorn Lomborg to continue to produce denier nonsense](http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/2015/05/08/bjorn-lomborg-pulled-from-australian-consensus-centre-project/)) and his actions were becoming really insane regarding this issue. It is really good news that Abbott was sacked. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/12 "2015-09-14T18:34:51Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > So, how does this Mr. Turnbull differ from Abbott? Mr. Turnbull is a lot richer: > [@](#): > > Turnbull made the BRW Rich 200 list for the second year running in 2010, and although he slipped from 182 to 197, his estimated net worth increased to A$186 million, and he continued to be the only sitting politician to make the list. Turnbull was not listed in the 2014 list of the BRW Rich 200. > **[Malcolm Turnbull](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malcolm_Turnbull#Personal_wealth)** > > Prime Minister of Australia > Malcolm Bligh Turnbull AC (born 24 October 1954) is an Australian former politician and businessman who served as the 29th prime minister of Australia from 2015 to 2018. He held office as leader of the Liberal Party of Australia and was the member of parliament (MP) for the New South Wales division of Wentworth from 2004 to 2018. > Turnbull graduated from the University of Sydney as a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws, before attending Brasenose College, Oxfo... There are so very few of the very rich; surely this oppressed minority needs to be represented at the highest level of government? ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/13 "2015-09-14T18:49:23Z")
Dear god, the Aussie PM’s seat has more intrigues than the Ottoman harem ever did. Thats 3 PM who have been chucked out by one of their juniors, not the electorate. In 5 years. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/14 "2015-09-14T20:29:02Z")
> [@Cinnamon\_Imp](#): > > I disagree with this. > > From the linked bbc article: > “Under the Australian system, as in the UK, the prime minister is not directly elected by voters but is the leader of the party or coalition that can command a majority in parliament.” > > You vote for the party and the policies. Not for the personality of the frontman. Technically yes, but I think for most swing voters the personality of the leader is a major consideration. People are supposed to vote for who they want to represent their local electorate. ---
**Author:** ![GreedySmurf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a698b9/32.png) [@GreedySmurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreedySmurf)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/15 "2015-09-14T22:55:41Z")
I hate Abbott as much as the next bloke, I really can’t stand the man. I’m happy to see him go. (although I’m not sure if Turnbull is going to be an improvement). But in all fairness you can’t really lay the F-35 at Abbott’s feet. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/16 "2015-09-14T23:25:15Z")
> [@](#): > > Gave permission to Chinese companies to sue the Australian government if it implements laws which reduce the corporation’s profits. Australian companies can’t even do the same to the Chinese government. The **actual text of the legislation is being kept secret**. (bolding mine) How is that even possible? 😕 Is this an actual Act of Parliament, or just a proposed bill? ---
**Author:** ![HowSoonIsThen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@HowSoonIsThen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HowSoonIsThen)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/17 "2015-09-14T23:26:22Z")
Turnbull will, to some extent, just be a less embarrassing Abbott. Which should scare peope who hated Abbott because it means he might be better at selling all the awful policies of the Abbott government. I’m sure Labor’s just as upset as Abbott. Having said that, seeing Abbott toppled after less than two years was great. Shame we won’t get to vote his government out, though (I always assumed this is why some people were pissed when Rudd returned; they’d been robbed of the chance to vote out the Gillard government). > [@Richard\_Pearse](#): > > I suspect some of your sound bites there are a bit sensationalist. That said, I don’t like Abbot and didn’t vote for him, however the people who DID vote for him deserve to have him for a full term. It was bad when Labor was pulling this shit and it is bad when this other bunch do it. How about some fucking stability for fucks sake! This stability argument has always bothered me. If a leader is unpopular (objective) and doing a terrible job (subjective), they should be replaced. To me, the fact that the Liberal party kept Abbott for six years reflects poorly on them. Labor was at least able to say “this leader’s not working, we should get a new one”. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/18 "2015-09-14T23:40:49Z")
> [@Count\_Blucher](#): > > For those of you not familiar with Mr. Abbott’s accomplishments, please allow me to share a few [highlights](http://thesauce.co/achievements-of-the-abbott-government/): Wow! An Australian Stephen Harper! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2015, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/19 "2015-09-15T04:12:25Z")
> [@Richard\_Pearse](#): > > I suspect some of your sound bites there are a bit sensationalist. That said, I don’t like Abbot and didn’t vote for him, however the people who DID vote for him deserve to have him for a full term. It was bad when Labor was pulling this shit and it is bad when this other bunch do it. How about some fucking stability for fucks sake! Nah, this is how parliamentary politics is supposed to work. Take it from a country where we are usually \*forced \*to keep a lout and an incompetent on for years after he proves embarrassing. This feature of your politics is something to be proud of. ---
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2015, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197/20 "2015-09-15T05:00:16Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > Thats 3 PM who have been chucked out by one of their juniors, not the electorate. In 5 years. This is true, but they were deposed via a ballot, we didn’t shoot the bastards. > [@](#): > > Aziz ul Haq > Shahbaz Bhatti > Benazir Bhutto > Murtaza Bhutto > Shahnawaz Bhutto > Bashir Ahmad Bilour > Abdul Raziq Bugti > Akbar Bugti > Bungal Bugti > Bungan Bugti > Farid Khan > Imran Farooq > Habib Jalib Baloch > Rustam Jamali > Khan Abdul Jabbar Khan > Liaquat Ali Khan > Shuja Khanzada > Mir Nooruddin Mengal > Imran Khan Mohmand > Najeeb Ahmed > Pir Syed Muhammad Binyamin Rizvi > Hayat Sherpao > Azeem Ahmed Tariq > Salmaan Taseer > Allama Hassan Turabi > Zil-e-Huma Usman > Hussain Ali Yousafi > Zahra Shahid Hussain > Miangul Asfandyar Amir Zeb [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naaaaaaaaay-abbott-brilliant-aussie-pm-voted-out-today/731197.md?page=2)