Whatever you thought of his politics and his seminal role in the vice regal dismissal of the Whitlam Labor government almost 40 years ago, John Malcolm Fraser was, above all else, a genuine liberal in the best sense of the word. Thus he goes to his grave appalled, surely, by the oafs, boofheads and lesser ninnies that not only control the Liberal Party and conservative politics in this country these days, but take their disgrace to the summit of running Australia too.

How could it have come to this, J.M. Fraser must have wondered, constantly, in more recent years, as political behaviour, state and federal, from top to bottom, in our parliaments and out, and right across the three major parties in our democracy, became uglier, greedier, less inclusive, less civil, less caring, more irresponsible, more ill-mannered, more shrill, more ratbag, and wholly more venal, indeed blighted in any and every way you care to look at what is happening to national political life in this country?

read more: http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/malcolm-fraser-dead-the-liberal-party-turned-its-back-on-former-prime-minister-20150320-1m45wq.html

Managing editor David Donovan says former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser was a complicated but decent man who, ultimately, should be remembered well by the nation.

OVER a year ago, the former PM began following me on Twitter. He didn't follow many others. I don't know why he liked reading my often banal tweets.

I always felt conflicted about him. As a child, he was the only PM I'd known — before Hawke replaced him in 1983.

Later, as I become more politically aware, I could not become a hater of Fraser. He espoused many of the principles of equality and humanity I hold dear — the ones that seem missing, all too often, in our current crop of leaders.

Fraser was flawed. He was rich. He was a little pompous. He felt it was his right and destiny to rule. And he was consumed by ambition to realise that end. He made a tragic mistake. He suffered for it until the day he died. And I think he tried to atone for it every day until he did.

We should remember him well. Ultimately, Malcolm Fraser was a decent man. And his decency shines brighter with every passing day.