It was exactly seven days ago that history happened in the Oval Office and a US president revealed himself a collaborator with a Russian dictator.
The Politics has marked this moment with detailed coverage from yours truly here and here, and analysis from Nicole Chvastek on how Donald Trump is suborning a free media. We also asked our readers how Australia should respond to the security threat posed by Trump. This triggered an enormous response, with close to 200 comments which make fascinating reading. In short, there’s a call for Australia to grasp the new reality of the US; cancel AUKUS; restrict if not abolish access to Pine Gap; build alliances with Europe and Asia. (Amid all this Murray Hogarth looked at the political games surrounding the arrival of Chinese naval ships in our coastal waters.)
Agent Orange
In the cascade of abominations coming at us in the Trump age, it is easy — too easy — to lose focus on the truly momentous developments. Here’s what I would like to single out: this week two of Australia’s most senior journalists, Peter Hartcher and Paul Kelly, used identical words to sum up Trump’s behaviour towards Ukraine. In separate pieces they concluded that the US president “acts as an agent for Putin or “acts as Putin’s agent”.
We might all throw around the idea of Trump as Russian President Vladimir Putin’s puppet. It’s certainly standard fare on social media and some upstart digital sites. But I would argue it’s a very big step for two senior reporters working for major traditional media outlets to go into print with such a serious and unprecedented allegation. Whatever you think of Hartcher and Kelly and their outlets, they have been on the scene for decades and have access to long-standing contacts in national security and politics.
Sound the alarms
I don’t know who they talk to but it would not be surprising if Australia’s intelligence community had come to the same conclusion. If that’s the case, that is as alarming as it gets. Have PM Anthony Albanese and LNP leader Peter Dutton been briefed to this effect? Although it is the proverbial elephant in the room, both will want to ignore it before the election.
But if two of Australia’s most experienced journalists are confident enough to declare that Trump acts as an agent for Russia/Putin, journalists should be asking hard questions about how Albanese and Dutton would govern under those extraordinary conditions. The question is a lot bigger than whether or not Kevin Rudd would remain US ambassador. It goes to the very core of Australia’s defence and security arrangements — and how exposed we are.
Man of the moment
The week also brought into the frame another former prime minister, Tony Abbott, who — to his credit — has strongly argued the case to support Ukraine. Cometh the hour, cometh the man. As fate would have it, Abbott now sits on the board of Fox Corporation, soaking up a whopping salary to proffer his advice, borne of his years in public life, to Murdoch pere et fils.
Call it God’s plan but suddenly he has a chance to be the change, as they say. If he truly has the heart of a conviction politician, now is his time to speak up about the rancid Fox/Trump relationship. Shareholder activist Stephen Mayne has been making the case for Abbott to use his director’s voice (and relationship with Lachlan Murdoch) to do good.
As we know, he never did get to properly shirtfront Putin. Now’s his chance. He might even be forgiven for the whole Sir Prince Philip fiasco.
I read this week that the US had used their extraterritorial powers to deny Sweden to export SAAB Gripen fighters to Columbia. The aircraft have US soured engines and under US law, US approval is required to supply the engines to a third country. The same rules affect any and every country that has US equipment within their equipment regardless of the source of the equipment. This has led several countries to pause purchase of some equipment as the administrative load is too great.
Is it time for the Australian Government to commence examining contracts that would be of US origin or have items of US origin within in case the US government decides to play a similar game when they don’t like what we will do with our own equipment.
Mike, it’s already happening. Australia’s export of Abrams tanks to Ukraine has been held up pending US approval.
Jeepers…i thought they had gone already….what a waste
What would happen if we just sent the Abrams to Ukraine anyway? You know, act like America and ignore the rules?
Trump would demand regime change in Australia.
Why bloody not ? indeed why are we so pussy footed when the world aroundi us is crumbling? We need to BLOCK Trump at every turn. Who knows how long he will last ? …………………..
Abbott is good and generating problems. Solving them is not his style.
Abbott built his entire period in public life on a giant mound of bullshit. There’s no telling what the mad monk will do next. but he won’t be a part of a careful, meticulously planned, effective counter to either Trump or Putin. He doesn’t have the intellect for it. But as they say… if you can’t dazzle them with brilliance, baffle them with bullshit. Maybe Abbott can bullshit his way to a good outcome for democracy. It would be a different approach to flooding the zone with shit.
Well,if crudely,said.
I really like your comment. There is no way on God’s earth that TA would take on Putin/Murdoch/ in the way suggested above. Abbott’s a minion in world politics, a joke who (deliberate use) that should never never be repeated.
Exactly!
Read this, if it gets to you!!
Hits the nail on the head!
All Abbott needs is a fast bike, maybe he can become one of those WW2 messengers that confused everyone with their Diplomatic bags. ONly Tony has no Diplomacy so that won’t work.
He can be the ‘Confuser.’
Perfect encapsulation of the Plucked Monkey’s persona, Mark!
We are indeed desperate if we need Abbott to plead the case.
Any problem that has evolved to the point where Tony Abbott may be the answer has entered the outer limits of the Twilight Zone
A laugh from me. Love it. Thank you
Well said cousin Robbie!
Interesting. I thought it was Prince Sir Philip
Nobody has the balls to stand up to America. Now or ever.
NZ and their “no nuclear powered/armed vessels” stance in their ports was some time ago but noteworthy. Happened then could happen again, could n’t it?
America IS NOT THAT Strong for anyone to have ‘balls enough’ to stand up against them.
Don’ t give it energy. It’s collaborations and secret dealings we need to be afraid of .
Hartcher is more centrist and balanced whereas Kelly is a right leaning Murdoch moron. The fact they have both reached the same conclusion about the Trump-Putin relationship is a real worry for all of us! Has Murdoch suddenly realised his Orange Frankenstein is not what he meant to build? Frightening stuff! Abbott was built by B.A. Santamaria and has done enough damage.
Hartcher is a rabid China hawk, promoting fear and loathing, on whose behalf? Not Australia’s, we will be the hostage nuclear target in a US war against China if US can split the Russia and China alliance. The later is not likely as Xi and Putin understand USA better than the reverse.
“Agent Orange” love that (am going to pinch it). 😀
I quite like “Orang-e-tan”.
I am sure Tony Abbott would be happy to submit a plan to God but first he would have to get it vetted by a number of people and institutions. The College of Cardinals, Head of the Jesuits, the IPA, Peta Credlin, the spirits of Bob Santamaria, George Pell being a few of them. The plan, subject to Gods approval, would then have to be presented to the News board with an air of conviction. All in all a hard race to run for someone who has show little conviction for serious matters in the past
Great commentary over those seven days.
In regard to Pine Gap, can anyone throw any light on its effectiveness or otherwise in tracking the Chinese warships that are circumnavigating Australia.
Is this an example of Australia being left out in the cold in regard to critical defense information when it suits other agendas?
I think it was Marx who said history repeats, first as tragedy then as farce. We are seeing the lot right now and more!
Please mad monk. Put a zipper on it. Next we’ll have the sepos and ruskies bombing us.
My comment is not about the Mad Monk. Rather I suggest we should boycott the LA Olympics next year & ask other countries to join us as a protest about Trump. His ego couldn’t stand a boycott & diminished crowds!
Love the comment from Poselequestion!
The French have the balls… French Senator Claude Malhuret just called Trump an “emperor” and Musk a “jester high on ketamine”. He likens the dismantling of the government to the destruction of the Weimar republic. I tried to share the link to it, and couldn’t, but do check it out. You’ve never been insulted til you’ve been insulted by a French person.
You have to hand it to the French for honesty and balls agree. I loved it too Imagine what a better situation we would be in if only Morrisson had not betrayed our allie in the manner he did.
French not muzzled by Murdoch or donors either when speaking out
Starmer may end AUKUS for us if he spends the GBP on boots on ground in Ukraine instead. Dutton will never end AUKUS as we know.
That is very true – a French insult is an insult you never forget…….I have not had noe but I love them and would be very happy to use them if anyone in Australia understood the French.
Putin and Trump are brothers against democracy. Dealing with the USA has become transactional. End the subs part of AUKUS, make Pine Gap conditional upon our access to weapons and intel that we want. No foreign troops stationed here without security guarantee, if such guarantee is believable. Transform relationships in our region into our multilateral alliance security cornerstone.
Our biggest threat apart from climate change is post truth and an oligarchically aligned MSM, Labor only seek to manage it, LNP rely on it. If not addressed we’re peasantry bound. India and Indonesia will have to resort to geo engineering for national survival.
My observation was more simple than either Kelly – don’t read and could not abide via Insiders – or Hartcher – which I read from subs to The Age, the only MSM media I read, all others Independent media for years.
My summation is that Trump is a traitor, pure and simple, which The Age refused to publish.
Agreed Heather. There is simply no other explanation. He must not be pandered to under any circumstance. On the contrary – make it known we prefer to do it our way thanks – and that we’ll be setting our own agenda based on what’s good for us (and our genuine allies).
Trump talks of making Japan, Korea and others pay for the ‘protection’ US provides. Perhaps they, and we, should be charging the US rent for using our countries as bases for its containment of China.