Tony Abbott has been left red-faced after a member of his opposition frontbench sought the ''tainted vote'' of suspended Labor MP Craig Thomson.
Liberal senator Mathias Cormann has admitted he sent a letter  to Mr Thomson asking the independent MP to support a Coalition bill to amend government changes to superannuation.
The letter was sent to all crossbenchers and Senator Cormann asked the MPs to ''seriously consider'' the issues raised by the Coalition, saying they were ''worthy of your support''.
Senator Cormann said today it was a clerical mistake that should never have happened.

''It was my mistake,'' Senator Cormann told ABC Radio. ''I should never have written to him.''
Mr Thomson's name would be taken off a database of crossbench MPs used by his office, Senator Cormann said.
The incident is an embarrassing episode for the Coalition, with Mr Abbott determined not to ever accept Mr Thomson's vote.
However, the Opposition Leader's refusal to accept the vote of one scandal-plagued MP will not preclude him from accepting the vote of another, the newly independent MP Peter Slipper.
''I think there's a fundamental different between Peter Slipper and Craig Thomson,'' Mr Abbott said yesterday.
''How [Mr Slipper] votes is up to him, but if he chooses to vote with the Coalition we will be happy to accept that vote.''
Prime Minister Julia Gillard said today Mr Abbott was guilt of clear hypocrisy.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/liberal-mp-erred-in-seeking-thomsons-vote-20121011-27ebg.html#ixzz28wUjYGz4

OPPOSITION Leader Tony Abbott was accused of misleading Parliament yesterday when he claimed a Perth pensioner had suffered a massive hike in her power bill because of the carbon tax when in fact the woman had doubled her electricity usage.
Mr Abbott used question time yesterday afternoon to resume his attacks on the carbon tax, producing a bill from a woman named Hetty Verolme, a resident of Perth whose latest bill had more than doubled.

Scrutiny of the bill quickly and clearly shows that Mrs Verolme used approximately twice as much electricity over the most recent period compared with the previous one. 

TUESDAY was a dark day for federal politics. Even by the appalling new lows we've become used to, the standard of debate and behaviour in our nation's parliament has been especially farcical and sad.

The Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader each claim to be victims of the other, yet neither has the discipline or decency not to stoop to the other's level. Tony Abbott employs a horrible phrase against Julia Gillard - at least horrible in its context now - and she rightly cries foul play.

However she then leads and directs a full-frontal assault on Abbott for being a woman-hater - an attack which even before Monday's fireworks Labor had vowed to pursue with full vigour even after Mr Abbott's wife had offered herself up as a political human shield.

Feeling personally under siege, Mr Abbott clearly decided the best defence was offence and he caused it in both senses of the word. The remark was tasteless, stupid and wholly inappropriate in light of Alan Jones's appalling invocation of Ms Gillard's father. The truly sad thing, however, is that the remark was not entirely out of place in the new vicious bullpit of Australian politics.

The end result of this cruel cacophony was that Peter Slipper was reluctantly dragged to the chopping block in a piece of political theatre that can only be described as bizarre.

Mr Slipper insisted his departure was voluntary and therefore honourable. But in politics, nothing is ever entirely voluntary or entirely honourable.

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/opinion/politicians-at-war-losing-our-respect/story-e6frezz0-1226493089063

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This editorial  is a bit rich coming from a news organisation (Murdoch's) that has been super-hostile to our PM Julia Gillard and very soft on Tony Abbott — even promoting him often as a person who knows what he's doing... He's an idiot.... So now when Tony starts to smell, the editorial trick is to place him and Julia both in the same dirt bag...

In fact, it has been my unbiased observation that Julia Glllard has been very patient while she was getting more and more insulting insults from the little ratbag Tony Abbott... Rude comments which of course were also repeated (fed?) by the Merde-och press... When Abbott's mate Alan Jones when that teeny weeny too far, Tony had to take some of the Fliegerabwehrkanone and be squarely punched between the eyes which Julia Gillard did in a bright and sensible manner by calling him a misogynist and more... As well, she was correct not to throw Slipper out due to a court case in progress, a move that would pre-empt the judicial findings... That Slipper later on resigned was his choice...

Not only that Tony's party of hypocrites have been fishing for Craig Thomson's vote, while Tony is claiming they'll never accept his vote (one of them Liberalus hypocriticus would have to leave the chamber or vote against themselves to achieve this feat) but Tony Detritus would accept Peter Slipper's vote — about whom he chastised Julia Gillard for not throwing Slipper out... Double-standards-plus in Tony's pockets... 

And then the little prick can't even count or assess a simple electricity bill... How could this idiot become prime minister?... Give us a break Tony, vanish into thin air like a bad smell and leave us to deal with the other doozies...

Time to pack your bags, Tony, and leave... Tony is an iddiott...

Liberal frontbencher Bronwyn Bishop says Prime Minister Julia Gillard had "demeaned" every woman in parliament by playing the "gender card".
Ms Gillard on Tuesday accused Opposition Leader Tony Abbott of a history of sexism and misogyny, in a passionate speech that has become a global media sensation via the internet.
Ms Bishop told parliament today during a debate on the impact of the carbon tax on pensioners, that the prime minister always sought to blame others for her government's failings.
"The day will come when you can no longer call the gender card or the victim card, and by pretending to be a victim the prime minister has demeaned every woman in this parliament," Ms Bishop said."We didn't come here to be told that we could not do the job and needed to be treated differently.
"We came here on this side of the parliament to say we were the best person for the job to represent the people, and the ideas we have are the best ideas to take us into government.
"We don't wish to be treated as somehow less able or a victim of somebody's spiteful words."
The Liberal frontbencher said the prime minister's speech had been "pathetic".

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/bishop-labels-gillard-speech-pathetic-20121011-27fab.html#ixzz28yFtagNa
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Bronwyn Bishop (who has been declared by Tonicchio the spiritual Liberal [conservative] mum of Tony Detritus — himself) would have been spewing chips at the clinical way Julia did the dissection of Tony Abbott (Tony Detritus — himself)... It's the asymetrical war of the sheilas... Bronwyn being old and let's say "old-fashioned"  on the way out, while Julia is still pushing the wheelbarrow of life full of bricks and is in charge of the roost...  So Bronwyn's Tony Abbott has to take it in the budgies.... Not nice...
A feminist, Bronwyn is not, though a powerfully beehived blonde who seems to side with the traditiional ignorant blonde, and who is, of course, supporting a bunch of male Liberal (conservative) chauvinists, who sell porkies and may butter her "ego'... To some extend I am unfair... Bronwyn is not a bad woman — she just plays for the wrong team... and I have no clue why...
... Tony Abbott is an Iddiott...

Women ruled the ballot boxes on Tuesday night.

For the first time in history, women will hold 20 seats, a record number from the current 17, in the U.S. Senate. From Massachusetts to Hawaii, women made significant gains on a night when the war on women became a referendum.

In Massachusetts, Democrat Elizabeth Warren defeated incumbent Republican Scott Brown to become the first female senator in that state’s history. In Nebraska, Republican Deb Fischer beat Democratic native son, Bob Kerrey, and became the first full-term female senator in that state.

A tough race faced incumbent Claire McCaskill, a Democrat, in Missouri against Rep. Todd Akin. His words in August about a woman’s body shutting down against pregnancy during a legitimate rape came back to haunt him on Election Day.

But women made history on other fronts, too.

Democrat Mazie Hirono in Hawaii beat Linda Lingle to become the first Asian-American woman in the Senate. In Wisconsin, Tammy Baldwin became the first openly gay U.S. senator when she beat former governor Tommy Thompson in an open seat.

Heidi Heitkamp, a Democrat, in North Dakota won against one-term U.S. Rep. Rick Berg. Berg conceded Wednesday afternoon.