Jacinta Nampijinpa Price must be confused about what, exactly, she did wrong, after suggesting Labor was bringing in Indian migrants to shore up its vote. No wonder she says she has nothing to apologise about.
It was only in February that then Coalition leader Peter Dutton peddled a similar version of the Great Replacement Theory, arguing that Labor was bringing in Gazan migrants to shore up its vote. He did so without rebuke from his colleagues or the media, despite the links between the Great Replacement Theory, antisemitism and mass murders. Indeed, Nine’s Karl Stefanovic encouraged Dutton.
Now Price’s colleagues are trying to distance themselves from her, without outright condemnation, with the strong theme being that Price merely expressed herself poorly. That’s a little unfair — it wasn’t the most eloquent articulation of the Great Replacement Theory, but it was clear enough:
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There is a concern with the Indian community, because there’s been large numbers and we can see that reflected in the way that the community votes for Labor at the same time. So if they’re going to see a reflection that, okay, these individuals are going to vote for us more so than other parts of the community; well then of course they’re going to express the view that will get those sorts of individuals into our communities.
Indeed, the reaction within the Coalition is more along the lines of “uh-oh, there’s another major ethnic community we’ve alienated. D’oh.” But you have to feel for the conservatives — between the Chinese spies handing out for Labor, the fresh-off-the-boat Gazans queueing up to vote for Albanese, and now the Indians with their community bloc support for the ALP, it’s surprising the Coalition managed to get to 23 seats in May, let alone 43. Maybe white people should get two votes?
Price is ostensibly the junior shadow defence minister to Yesterday’s Man Angus Taylor, though she rarely troubles the scorers in her designated portfolio. She is, we’re told, the superstar of right-wing politics in Australia, but her recent track record consists chiefly of annoying her colleagues: going full MAGA during the election campaign just at the moment it was dawning on the Dutton campaign that Trump was a negative for their vote, annoying her Nationals colleagues five minutes after getting reelected as a National by leaving them, and annoying Liberals by tilting at the deputy leadership of her new party but cutting and running during the vote. And then annoying more of them five minutes after her leadership stunt by declaring she wanted to be prime minister.
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Price, evidently, can’t help herself. The Nationals must be thinking they’re well rid of her. But Price isn’t really the problem, so much as the ongoing susceptibility of much of the Liberal Party to MAGAisation, despite learning during the first half of the year just how badly burned by the electorate they can be if they ape Trump.
Michaelia Cash, the prize clown capering and gambolling about as their Senate leader, remains stuck in culture war mode with her obsession with Welcome to Country ceremonies and the Aboriginal flag. Her WA colleague and the next Liberal leader Andrew Hastie has a xenophobic conspiracy theory about net zero to offer you, when he’s not pushing his own dogwhistle “one flag” campaign. And the whole party is rent over the Nationals’ push for a reembrace of climate denialism.
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Despite her Great Replacement Theory drivel, Price today will be at a fundraiser for right-wing NSW state MP Tim “Sid” James. James is quoted saying Price is a “politician of conviction and courage” with “love and support for people from corners of the world” — whatever that means. James holds the electorate of Willoughby — Gladys Berejiklian’s former seat — and came within a few hundred votes of losing to a local independent at the 2022 by-election to replace her. James’ electorate has a significant overlap with the federal seat of Bradfield — won by community independent Nicolette Boele — though the Liberals are still trying to convince a court to throw Boele out. Timmy might discover that the teal-friendly voters of Chatswood, Artarmon and Willoughby aren’t inclined to look so fondly on his dalliance with someone peddling the Great Replacement Theory.
Indeed, if the Liberals remain obsessed with MAGA and Trump, and believe culture wars, hating on migrants and denying climate science is the path to victory, who knows the electoral damage they can inflict on themselves. There aren’t that many Liberal metropolitan seats left at the federal level for the Liberals to lose, but they can sure load some heavy baggage on more centrist Liberal parties at the state level.
The result, at both the state and federal level, will be mediocre governments like Albanese’s Labor in Canberra, or outright rotten governments like that of Chris Minns in NSW, getting a free pass and being allowed to operate without any significant electoral threat or accountability. Still, let’s keep beating up on brown people, huh? At least it makes you feel good in a long stint on the opposition benches.
