Tuesday 19th of March 2024

petty malcolm heads a petty cabinet full of petty revenge and embarrassing international humiliation...

 

rats...

Former prime minister Kevin Rudd has released a series of letters in which he claims Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull had promised to support his bid for the United Nations' top job as recently as December.

Key points:
  • Kevin Rudd's office releases letters to Malcolm Turnbull
  • Letters feature Rudd saying he had received the PM's backing
  • PM pulled the plug on Rudd's bid for the UN job today, saying he "was not suited" to the role

Mr Rudd made a last-minute dash to Sydney this morning in the hope of lobbying Mr Turnbull to nominate him as secretary-general of the United Nations.

But on arrival the Prime Minister called him and said the Government would not be backing him.

On Friday evening a spokeswoman for Mr Rudd released three letters which Mr Rudd had sent to Mr Turnbull about the issue.

In one, dated May 1, 2016, Mr Rudd said he was shocked to learn Mr Turnbull would not be backing him, claiming he had expressed support as recently as December.

"You will recall that last September I contacted you asking for guidance on how I should address the matter of your previously stated support to me for my candidature when I met Foreign Minister Bishop at the UN General Assembly in September," he wrote.

"You in fact sent me a message on your preferred Wickr system where you stated that you and the FM were 'as one' in your support for my candidature.

read more: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-07-29/rudd-releases-letters-to-turnbull-on-un-secretary-general-bid/7674038

 

malcolm's bullshitic bastardry...

 

...

The former prime minister had written to the government in April formally seeking support for his candidacy. That approach evidently followed a number of informal soundings out of Turnbull about his view concerning Rudd’s candidacy. The feedback from those conversations (meticulously documented by Rudd in private letters he released on Friday night) seemed positive.

Rudd documented several affirmations from Turnbull: one shared via the foreign minister, Julie Bishop, at the UN general assembly in September 2015, with a follow-up Wickr message from Turnbull stating that he and the foreign minister were “as one” in supporting his candidature subsequent to that.

There was a meeting in Turnbull’s Canberra office on 11 November, then another conversation on Wednesday 23 December in his Sydney office. In that final conversation, Rudd says, Turnbull told him the issue of his candidacy would go to cabinet to avoid the perception of a “captain’s pick”.

“You also said to me that the cabinet process would not change the outcome,” Rudd’s letters say.

Turnbull then spoke to Rudd in early May, just before the budget and the calling of the election. Government sources say Rudd was told two things very clearly: that the prime minister did not support his candidacy and, if the issue went to cabinet, the majority of the cabinet would not support him either.

A letter dated 1 May 2016 from Rudd to Turnbull bears that version out. “You will understand ... how shocked I was to receive your telephone call within the last couple of hours, just prior to your taking the matter to cabinet in Canberra,” Rudd told Turnbull.

“In your telephone call you said that neither you nor the cabinet would be supporting my nomination. When I asked the reasons for this, you said that neither you nor the cabinet has the view that I had the qualifications for the position.”

Rudd’s fury bristles from the page. “You will appreciate that you have never expressed that view to me in the multiple conversations we have had on this matter on the past.”

Notwithstanding those bruising communications between Turnbull and Rudd, Bishop was asked to work up a cabinet submission that would be considered by the government after the election.

Government sources say it was Turnbull’s call to put the issue to the full cabinet.

It was apparent Turnbull had misgivings but colleagues had the impression from Bishop that the prime minister would have no option, given the precedents, to take a bipartisan position and nominate Rudd. Bishop then set about the business of establishing whether Rudd was suitably qualified for the post.

The position Bishop arrived at in consultation with her department, and with the prime minister’s office, was that Rudd was eminently qualified for the position. Colleagues say Bishop was of the view that if a former Australian prime minister wanted a significant international post, then the government should nominate them for that position provided they had the requisite qualifications.

read more: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/jul/29/hurt-feelings-why-did-malcolm-turnbull-send-kevin-rudd-mixed-messages

 

Whether one likes Kevin Rudd or not, this is a petty political decision not based on anything but petty politics from a petty Malcolm pleasing his coterie of nasty gangsters in his petty cabinet. Now, one could affirm that Joe Hockey has NIL qualifications to be Australian Ambassador in Washington, while at least Rudd WAS PRIME MINISTER OF AUSTRALIA and HAS a certain popularity overseas. That Malcolm makes such petty humiliating decision while the foreign Minister's office confirmed Rudd was qualified for the job is a sad indictment on Malcolm's bastardry... I did not expect anything better from him anyway. 

Is Malcolm keeping the proposed job vacancy to send Tony Abbott to pasture there? Then god help us and I am an atheist...

 

the general is afraid of his own troops...

The members of the Turnbull cabinet seemed to think they were making a decision about Kevin Rudd. 

They were mistaken. They were making a decision about themselves. And about our country. Their choice tells us a good deal about the newly elected government.  It does not augur well.

There were two frames through which the government could have chosen to see the matter. One was national, the other political. The national frame dictates  Australia should nominate an Australian for a global competition and wish him luck.

How many candidates did Australia have seeking nomination? One. As the former Liberal leader Brendan Nelson put it: "I could spend quite a lot of time having a discussion with you about Mr Rudd's failings, but I think this is an occasion where we need to be at our best as Australians."

 

read more: http://www.smh.com.au/comment/malcolm-turnbull-is-in-fear-of-his-own-party-and-its-a-bad-omen-20160729-gqh2b0.html

it also means you cannot trust turdball at his own words...

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has criticised Kevin Rudd for releasing private correspondence relating to the former prime minister's attempt to become secretary-general of the United Nations.

Key points:
  • Mr Turnbull says releasing the letters "says a lot about Mr Rudd"
  • Mr Rudd released letters claiming Mr Turnbull supported his candidature for the UN job
  • Mr Turnbull says the account of what happened is "absolutely untrue"

Mr Rudd released the letters on Friday night, after Mr Turnbull revealed he had decided not to nominate him for the role as the world's top-ranking diplomat.

In the three letters, dated earlier this year, Mr Rudd wrote that Mr Turnbull had previously told him he would support his bid.

"They were all confidential discussions, they were all private conversations," Mr Turnbull said on Monday.

read more: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-01/turnbull-criticises-rudd-for-releasing-private-conversations/7679872

 

it also clearly means you cannot trust Turdball at his own words...