Julia Gillard is right to ignore the critics who are calling for our bid to be dumped.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard was right to make clear this week, as she did on ABC Radio the morning after her decisive leadership win, that Australia would continue to pursue its bid for a two-year non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council, which comes to a vote in October.

Some pundits have been arguing in recent days (for example, Raoul Heinrichs on this page yesterday), as has the opposition for many months, that this campaign is a misplaced national priority, and a dimension of Kevin Rudd's legacy that should rapidly be abandoned. But they have been missing the point about the national interests involved, and the Prime Minister is to be applauded for ignoring their advice.

The fallout and praise from yesterday's spectacular Federal frontbench reshuffle is continuing today.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard's decision to parachute former NSW premier Bob Carr into the Foreign Affairs portfoliohas been well received by many.

But the demotion of Federal MP Kim Carr from the manufacturing portfolio has sparked a backlash from the troubled industry.

Mr Carr was moved out of the Manufacturing portfolio after he supported Kevin Rudd's failed attempt to seize the Labor leadership.

He will now take on the Human Services outer ministry role.

Tributes from the industry have been flowing.

Ian Jones from the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union says it is unfortunate Senator Carr has been moved.

"Kim Carr is extraordinarily highly regarded in his role around the world," he said.

But Mr Jones has also welcomed the news that Greg Combet now adds manufacturing to his duties.

The Food and Grocery Council says it is positive to see the ministry has been elevated but it is concerning it is no longer a standalone portfolio.

And the Chamber of Automotive Industries has joined other manufacturing organisations in thanking Senator Carr for his work during a troubled time for the industry, which is facing the prospect of continuing job losses.

The chopping and changing has infuriated the Coalition, which says the ministry will be buried because Mr Combet has so many other responsibilities.

Though the Opposition is unhappy, there is much optimism over Bob Carr's appointment to the role of Foreign Minister.

The former head of the Foreign Affairs Department, Richard Woolcott, says it is a good move.

He has described Ms Gillard's decision to bring in Mr Carr as "imaginative" and "potentially excellent".

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-03-02/manufacturing-industry-laments-carr27s-switch/3866068?WT.svl=news1

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The opposition is unhappy? Tony Abbott should be fuming!!! He's just been given a wedgie to his budgie smugglers... I see the next toon: Carr pulling Abbott's underpants from behind with a cross-eyed Abbott....

SENATOR-TO-BE Bob Carr has called on his Labor colleagues to put the public first, end the ''backbiting'' over the recent leadership battle and ''dwell a bit more on the horror of an Abbott-led government''.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/think-about-abbott-horror-20120303-1u9nh.html#ixzz1o6FIx6OG

When Simon Crean turned out to be a dud leader in 2003, a serious attempt was made to convince Carr he should step down as NSW premier and take over the federal Labor leadership.

He declined, telling friends his batteries were too flat to start over again. Labor and the nation got Mark Latham instead.

But, after half a dozen years of books and travel and fine dining, Carr’s batteries are presumably recharged.

His return to politics will help Gillard. And, by showing the toughness and determination to ignore those opposing his appointment, Gillard has helped herself.

Laurie Oakes is political editor for the Nine Network.

http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Brand-new-carr-adds-razzle-dazzle-to-gillard-front-bench/

They pointed to her speech at the national conference in December where she failed to mention Rudd, the Australia Day debacle and a strange decision to appear in a Four Corners special on the Labor leadership. All of these mistakes were her own and now opponents can point to the initial mishandling of Carr's appointment - not to mention her mid-week obfuscation about it.

Gillard may have won the week but she has given further evidence to the Coalition's case prosecuting her trustworthiness and further grief to the 31 MPs who did not vote for her last Monday.

The other view is, of course, that these are the unpleasant but necessary ins and outs of political sausage-making. The process might be unseemly but the end result is still a barbecue stopper.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/gillard-wins-fight-but-at-a-cost-20120303-1u9r1.html#ixzz1o6xlN3Lr

First let's point out to when Abbott singed his underpands on a barbecue... He should have done it while wearing them. As I have mentioned many times before, sausage making is a bit messy ... Doesn't have to be, but often is... As well, to those scribes and politicians claiming that Carr "destroyed" New South Wales by "not investing", one has to argue that he never destroyed such thing and invested within NSW means. What one can add however is that for the ten or so years Carr was Premier, Little Rattus Howard was shortchanging New South Wales by about 2 billion dollars a year of federal revenue and was giving a proportionally bigger slice to Queensland and WA... It may not be much by super-rich standards, it's still a lot of bickies when looking at my pockets' dark holes... As well, the "Olympics" (promoted by the Libs, inherited by Carr) lost a huge amount of money and some imaginative accounting had to be done so he could claim not a cent "was lost"... . Blame the Liberals (conservatives) if you want to blame someone... and consider that no-one's perfect... It's a matter of relativity of being a bit more astute than the next vacuous celebrity or stupid poliie....

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During Carr’s 10 years as Premier net debt was reduced from 7.4 percent of gross state product to zero. Carr claimed his government was the first in the state’s history to reduce debt rather than add to it. But, he argued, investment in infrastructure was running at record levels during his years in office. He argued that in 10 Carr budgets he allocated $61 billion to new infrastructure and $10 billion to debt retirement.[17]

Carr said public investment was running in real terms adjusted for inflation at 33 percent higher than the average for the 1990s and 66 percent higher than the average for the 1980s. He quoted as examples the $2 billion spend on the new Epping–Chatswood rail link, the $1.5 billion rail clearways plan and the $490 million on 140 Millennium trains plus 440 million on other rolling stock. He also instanced the new bus transit ways such as the $346 million transit way from Liverpool to Parramatta that provides express way conditions to bus travellers in Sydney’s west. He boasted of $3.7 billion on 27 major hospital projects from Broken Hill to Wyong. He particularly instanced the new St Vincent’s, the new sections of Royal Prince Alfred and the new Canterbury Hospital. He referred to the rebuilding of the Conservatorium of Music and the new Sydney Theatre in Hickson Road.[17]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Carr

From Mungo Mccallum

...

Carr is no Kevin Rudd: he will not frighten the bureaucrats with a 24/7 work load and is unlikely to match his predecessor's travel plans or his desire to crash through on big, complex issues such as the G20 - Rudd's greatest triumph. But he will be steady and competent and gives Gillard and her government a big boost in terms of gravitas, debating ability and sheer political nous.

It could even be too big; if Gillard fails to recover in the polls, it will not be long until plots are being hatched to move Carr in as the long-elusive third man, a leadership candidate on to whom the anyone-but-Rudd brigade can latch if their current leader appears ultimately unsalvageable.

He would probably resist; one poisoned chalice in a lifetime is enough, and in any case, Carr has never been one for the genuinely hard slog. As things are, about 18 months revelling in his life-long dream, even if it ends up in the defeat of the Government - in fact, especially if it ends up in the defeat of the Government - should just about see him out.

But you never know. At the very least, Carr adds a new and potent ingredient to the always simmering stew that is the modern Labor Party.

http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/3869290.html?WT.svl=theDrum