Political Landscape - Political Recalibration

So here's the quick version, Trump, Brexit and th Orange By-Election. 3 examples where "Deplorables" out witted and kazumped even the most experienced Political Commentators.

"Deplorables"? Well most are normal every day people, maybe some are politically savvy, maybe some aren't even close but all of them very peeved with their version of the Political Status Quo and went the big unexpected flick to make the point, catching all & sundry out.

Orange By-Election put a Shooters, Fishers & Farmers Party candidates into Parliament, in a safe Nationals seat. A seat Libs generally don't bother running in. Losing that was a big flat face slap on a cold cold morning for the Nats. However whilst they got belted, their successors are quite possibly, potentially going down the same route that caused the back lash.

In a pleasant exchange with Robert Borsak of the SFFP I remarked that the election result in Orange was going to be good for country people, that perhaps now the Nationals in the eastern states who'd definitely strayed away from the path that country people want them on might recalibrate. That now there's a greater chance that the Nats & SFFP would be able to work together and be a bigger influence to correct some of the wrongs country people are suffering.

He was forthright and quite adamant. He said they wouldn't work with the Nationals, want nothing to do with them, want them out of Parliament and the SFFP wants to replace them all. Now you could cite fanciful thinking mixed in equal portions with grand desires for empire building but whatever the reasoning he was quite staunch and unmoved no matter what I said.

Here's the thing, the Nationals on the east coast are quite different to the WA ones, tons of commonalities but some useful and very positive distinctions. In Queensland they're all but a Liberal party faction & to a lesser degree the same elsewhere. In WA the Liberals hate Nats as much as Labor hates Liberals. Nats are Social Agrarians or socialists but to Labor Nats are the rural rump of the Liberal Party. All very odd.

Here Nats will push for farmers to have veto rights over miners in an attempt to get fracking slowed right down for a proper look & dialogue whilst protecting the land owners. Here they'll take on a Labor pill box in opposing the mining companies and push for a fair & equitable rate on the Special Lease Fee.

In fact it seems Labor & Liberal have changed over the years and the Nats here too, but in recent years the Nationals are slowly returning to their roots, slowly becoming about the staunch defence of fairness. Yes its something they have abandoned over the preceding 30 years. There is slow & steady return without the word reform.

Liberal & Labor have turned into the dominant Coles & Woolies of WA Politics. Another duopoly and in some areas the left has drifted right creating a squeeze out for a position for the Nats, well so it seemed.

Here's the real kicker. What the Duopoly does in the East, the WA respective parties comply. Where eastern Nats have a stance on some things, the WA Nats are independent.

The Adler shotgun was Tony Abbotts SOVEREIGN OVER REACH on the states. Couldn't halt or change the state laws so slap on an import ban until the states did as he wanted. Of course Malcolm unseated him and the ball was dropped but not lost. The Feds eventually continued the Over Reach and the states complied.

Now Rio/BHP sunk big dollars into a Western Australian State election Campaign to unseat Brendon Grylls from Parliament. Yes a wealthy foreign mining companies, making good profits at below $38/ton (that's US Dollars) refuse to pay more than the unchanged 50 year old rate of 25 Australian cents. The ore price is now above $90/ton or above $100 in Australian dollars.

Liberal & Labor were complicit and compliant. The Chamber of Mines & Energy came in, so to the Chamber of Commerce & Industry WA all along side the foreign corporates.

Stunning that Labor sided with the foreigners.

SFFP, well to be honest still finding their stance, think its with the Liberals.

Fact remains, the Upper House layout still to be decided and all the minor players want to be the biggest chunk of the Tier 2 parties, want to cuddle up to the Duopoly.

Might be time for Nationals to take the time in opposition to recalibrate and get truly independent of the Duopoly & hopefully the SFFP will realise too this isn't the eastern states, its here that SFFP & Nats need to work very closely together.

Now if Simon O'Brien takes the President's role, Labor will have an easy passage for legislation...IF the GREENS (of all people) agree with it. President's role has prestige and a much bigger pay packet & its possible O'Brien has "unfinished business" which the President's role ticks off nicely.

More uncertainty but I'm convinced (even if I'm wrong) its time for WA based Nats & SFFP to stick to their guns, be independent but work together where they can to at least halt all acts of Sovereign Over Reach by federal governments and foreign multi national companies.