Via Crikey on today’s Manchurian Dan meltdown:
STACKS ON
According to The Age, Anthony Albanese is pushing for former Victorian premier Steve Bracks and ex-deputy federal leader Jenny Macklin to lead Labor’s review into the Victorian branch stacking scandal, while The Guardian reports the federal party is considering an audit of the entire state membership.
The news comes after Albanese — fresh from delivering a now-overshadowed CEDA speech — was forced to shoot down questions on 7.30 over now-former powerbroker Adem Somyurek’s alleged federal influence. As the ABC reports, Victoria’s Assistant Treasurer Robin Scott also resigned last night so as not to be a “distraction”, while maintaining that subsequent investigations will clear his name.
More today:
Cabinet minister Marlene Kairouz encouraged parliamentary staff to work on branch-stacking activities with dumped powerbroker Adem Somyurek, according to secret recordings in which she describes Labor’s Left faction as “all white” branch stackers.
Ms Kairouz is recorded on tapes obtained by The Age and 60 Minutes at a conference room in the ministerial offices she shares with Mr Somyurek, who jokes the Left is the Ku Klux Klan and former upper house MP Gavin Jennings is the “chief klansman”.
In the meeting earlier this year, Ms Kairouz, who holds the suburban development portfolio, encourages junior parliamentary employees to take over a stacking operation she claims involves her more senior advisers, including chief of staff Michael De Bruyn.
They’ll arrive at work today with a new welcome matt:
Vandals have graffitied a slogan on the tiles outside the Premiers Office attacking the Andrews Government’s Belt and Road deal. People here saying it’ll be hard to scrub off. @10NewsFirstMelb #springst @RossAndJohn pic.twitter.com/2pkqgwisXQ
— Simon Love (@SimoLove) June 15, 2020
Patriots not “vandals”. I hope Victorians are enjoying their one-party state.
