Pauline Hanson and the end of political consequence
6/19/202616 min
This week, Pauline Hanson took to the National Press Club stage with a greatest hits collection of the grievances that have fueled her political career.
Immigration. Multiculturalism. Trans rights. Indigenous Australians. The “political elite”. The changing face of the country.
The backlash from the government, sections of the community and commentariat was immediate.
But that may no longer be enough. For years, Hanson has survived controversies that would have ended most political careers. And as One Nation support grows, one thing is becoming more evident: we are now entering a political era where outrage carries no penalty. Where the shock of what politicians say matters less than the anger they channel.
Today, columnist Sean Kelly on Hanson’s resurgence, the opportunities it creates for politicians of every persuasion, and what becomes possible when voters decide the old political order is broken.
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Guest: Former Labor advisor and The Age & SMH columnist, Sean Kelly
Photo: AAP Image/Lukas Coch
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Transcript preview
First 90 secondsDaniel James· Host0:00
[instrumental music] I'm Daniel James, and you're listening to 7.a.m. This week, Pauline Hanson took to the National Press Club stage with the greatest hits collection of the grievances that have fueled her political career. Immigration, multiculturalism, trans rights, indigenous Australians, the political elite, the changing face of the country were all in her sights. The backlash against her speech from the government, sections of the community, and the commentariat was immediate. But that may no longer be enough. For years, Hanson survived controversies that would have ended most political careers. And as One Nation support grows, one thing is becoming more evident. We are now entering a political era where outrage carries no penalty, where the shock of what politicians say matters less than the anger they channel. Today, columnist and former advisor to Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard, Shaun Kelly, on Hanson's resurgence, the opportunities it creates for politicians of every persuasion, and what becomes possible when voters decide the old political order is broken. It's Saturday, June twenty.
Pauline Hanson· Soundbite1:15
You might remember Elon Nas-Musk was given a, um, a big chainsaw to try and cut, uh, government tape and bureaucracies