Andrew Hastie shouldn’t challenge for the Liberal Party leadership now, or even in the future, but instead do what Menzies did in 1944 … form a whole new party.
A party which is not only clear about its values but also has the courage to do what it believes.
If you think my suggestion is too far-fetched or unrealistic then consider what Nigel Farage looks almost certain to achieve. Farge posted recently on social media, ‘A new poll in the Sunday Times today predicts total wipeout for Labour and the Tories. Wow!’
With all the media interest and speculation regarding Andrew Hastie, people are forgetting the most important thing of all. A political leader in Australia is not a ‘president’ but rather representative of the party he or she is elected to serve. And it’s because of that detail that even someone as exceptional as Andrew Hastie would not survive.
If Hastie were to become leader – and he is far and away the best candidate – then the centre-left Libs would undermine him from within, just like they did to Tony Abbott and later on to Peter Dutton. The Liberal Party doesn’t simply have a leadership problem, they no longer know what they believe and are just a watered-down version of the opposition.
All of which is to say, the Liberal Party of today is beyond reforming and I, along with every other conservative voter I know, can no longer vote for them. Like yeast in a batch of dough, the progressive rot is just too ingrained.
Back in 2017, when I first coined the term ‘Labor lite’, I explained how Malcolm Turnbull perfectly personified the term. To be completely honest, it wasn’t very difficult as everyone soon saw, Turnbull was the best Labor leader the Liberal Party ever produced. Complete with a green tinge, of course!
Then back in April of this year, I explained why I believed the Liberal Party would lose the federal election. I wrote this in The Spectator Australia:
According to ChatGPT I have subsequently been credited with coining the phrase Labor-lite!
While I’m not a prophet – or the son of a prophet – I’m going to make a political prediction that the Coalition are going to lose the upcoming 2025 Federal Election.
As a conservative, I take absolutely no joy in stating this, but like many people I know, the Liberal party is tasting more and more like ‘Labor lite’.
Do you ever want to drink a watered-down beer?
Once again, the brilliant political cartoonist Ben Davis, produced the following cartoon.
And now, just last week, The Spectator Australia cleverly resurrected the moniker once again with a twist: now, under Sussan Ley it’s appropriately: Leybor Lite:
Are you starting to recognise the pattern?
Regardless of who the leader is nothing changes because the rot is too deep. The Liberal Party is beyond reform and they need to start again.
Donald Trump did it in the US. Nigel Farage is doing it in the UK. I sincerely pray that by the grace of God, someone like Andrew Hastie will do it here. I’d hate to see his face on a can of the beer, the contents of which is exactly the same as before.
