Australian Politics Is Having Its "Trump Moment"

Nothing much really happens in Australian politics, uneventful and boring, unlike American politics where Trump is the flavour of the week and dominates the news cycle. Recently the leader of the Liberal National Party also known as the LNP saw its leader and Prime Minister of Australia Malcolm Turnbull voted out by his own party.

_{image from twitter}

It has been quite a turbulent time for the LNP and Australian politics, voters are frustrated that these things keep on happening. Scott Morrison the new prime minister, is the sixth in only eleven years.

After a landslide loss in the Longman by-election and unpopular moves such as attempting to give the big four banks and corporates tax discounts (which were not popular with voters), or the just as unpopular energy plan, he was ousted in a coup originally initiated by Peter Dutton.

The first attempt to kick Malcolm out was a failure, Peter Dutton lost his bid to contest the leadership, however, speculation was rife that he was getting the numbers (43 required signatures) and was going to take another stab at it.

Australians don't always see eye-to-eye, but one thing that many agreed on was they did not want Peter Dutton as their prime minister, in polls Malcolm led substantially as the preferred candidate.

A contender nobody really saw heading for the leadership was Scott Morrison. Speculation was rife that Julie Bishop was a contender for the position, some later leaked WhatsApp messages would show that the party conspired to ensure she didn't get the position and Morrison would.

And since Scott Morrison won the top job, the political theatrics have not stopped. Leaked emails prove that Peter Dutton intervened to help get some au pairs visas for one of his corporate mates, the latest instance is helping AFL boss Gillon McLachlan by intervening in a matter on behalf of his cousin.

It just so happens the McLachlan family are huge donors to the Liberal Party.

Greens Senator McKim said it best:

Dutton has fought tooth and nail to keep sick and dying children locked up on Nauru, but can't act quickly enough when the well-connected come asking for help

And yet, believe it or not, this isn't the first time Dutton has intervened to help his wealthy mates bypass Border Force policies or immigration rules to get nannies visas, he has done it twice before. This third instance just so happens to come off of the back of Dutton's failed coup against Turnbull.

This has shone a spotlight on a situation involving Australian Army veteran Jason Scanes who unsuccessfully tried to get a meeting with Mr Dutton for months. Scanes tried to get his interpreter safe passage to Australia after helping him in war, but so far has failed.

We are seeing a turning point in Australian politics, information about internal happenings inside of the LNP is leaking out at unprecedented levels. A fair chunk of the leaks have been directed at Dutton, but at a whole, we are seeing a party turn on itself and its leader: much like we've seen in the U.S with the Republican party.

While theatrics are playing out like a bad soap opera, war with Syria edges closer, tensions with China are at an all-time high and we are seeing a serious shift of power in the Asia Pacific region, don't be fooled by these distractions, there are some seriously dangerous political chess pieces being moved right now.

If history has taught us anything, it's when the news is looking in one direction, look in the opposite direction for the real story. This what we are seeing play out right now, while the LNP plays musical chairs, the economy is tanking, we're heading towards a recession, conflict with China and who knows what's going to happen with Syria.

The real story isn't the LNP's loyalty troubles, that is for sure. A storm is coming.