The revival in Kevin Rudd’s fortunes as shown by this morning’s Nielsen Poll tell us one thing: silence often is the best way for a politician to revive public standing. It is an approach I have suggested several times in Crikey to Julia Gillard but Kevin Rudd has followed it courtesy of his spell in hospital and recuperating at home from a hear operation. His comparative silence has coincided with an increasing desire of Australians to see him returned to the job of Prime Minister.
The senior ministers in the Gillard government are naturally enough expressing their loyalty to their current leader. They really have no option but to do so unless they have the courage to hand in the keys to their ministerial offices. But have no doubt, this Nielsen poll showing Kevin is a winner while Julia is a loser will be frightening all of them.
Not that I would expect any immediate move to change the leadership. The next best approach to the silence of convalescence for Foreign Minister Rudd is a spell overseas playing Foreign Minister. His best chance of an unlikely return to the nation’s top political job is to stay out or the leadership debate and let the pressure grow.
Silence continues to be his best policy.
3 Comments
Cannot agree more on your advice to the Prime Minster. Just what they told us in primary school (which is a good comparison to politics today): Be quiet and get on with your work. If the polls really do reflect public opinion of her it is plain that the present approach is not working. Why do we need a daily photo op/doorstop/press conference/talkback appearance?
I wonder what post rossmcg commented on?
It wasn’t this one.
She isn’t saying much in terms of arguing her case.
That argument is long lost.
She is ploughing on and accelerating the ALP over the cliff.
If the Greens act inteligently, the ALP may never be in power again in its own right.
A big ‘if’, admittedly.
Shutting up and getting on with the job would make the rightard singularity known as JamesK implode…DOES NOT COMPUTE!
It’s ‘job’ is only to fill pages with tea party, neocon, climate denialist, extremist cliches and memes …there is no other purpose..at all
classic…type faster and angrier..it only makes you sound even more delusional (if at all possible)