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| Down Under |
| Australia foreign minister quits |
| 2012-02-23 |
| CANBERRA: Australian Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd resigned on Wednesday, saying he could no longer work with Prime Minister Julia Gillard, stoking speculation he will challenge her for the leadership and plunging the government into a new crisis. Gillard’s minority government has sunk in popularity as Gillard and Rudd, whom she ousted in 2010, have waged a personal feud that has split their Labour Party and alienated voters. They differ little on policy, but the battle — described by Rudd as a “soap opera” — threatens to trigger an early election and a defeat for Labor’s economic reform agenda, including major mining and climate change legislation. Senior ministers had in the past week urged Gillard to sack Rudd due to the leadership speculation and increasing animosity between the two camps. “The simple truth is I cannot continue to serve as foreign minister if I do not have Prime Minister Gillard’s support,” Rudd told a news conference in Washington. “The only honorable course of action is for me to resign.” Rudd’s supporters believe only he can stem hemorrhaging voter support to opposition leader Tony Abbott and his conservative coalition, which holds a strong lead in opinion polls. But a move back to Rudd risks losing the backing of independents who give the minority Labor government a one-seat majority. |
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #2 booger-eatin mo-ron |
| Posted by: Frank G 2012-02-23 16:28 |
| #1 Rudd was ousted from the position of Prime Minister just before the last election due to his dysfunctional and egomanical style of governing. Gillard, the first female Prime Minister, took over from him. To say that she has been a disaster is an understatement. This word cloud gives a good indication of what people think of them. The major disaster of both of them has been the refugee policy. The previous prime minister John Howard had the problem under control, but Rudd felt that under his leadership he needed a more "compassionate and humanitarian" As the words suggest, the new policy has been an unmitigated disaster. It didn't take the Taliban long to suss out that Australia was being run by an idiot.The vast majority of "refugees" are now from Afghanistan and the vast majority of them them have major mental and physical issues. It has been calculated that each Afghani cost one million in the first year and half million per year thereafter. Nine out of ten are still unemployed after ten years. A phenomenon that has been observed is that a lot of those with issue return to Afghanistan once they are well, the self same country they fled, to "visit their families". Some return to Australia, the majority don't. Drones perhaps! |
| Posted by: tipper 2012-02-23 10:20 |
