Yes well who's laughing now, we have a system of getting rid of a dud leader without have to resort to a year regailed by clowns
BEFORE Joe Hockey takes his role, Australia’s outgoing Ambassador to the US Kim Beazley has revealed what the US thinks of Australia’s recent political turmoil.
Mr Beazley was being interviewed on ABC 7.30 when he was asked about the unexpected changes to Australia’s prime ministership while he’s been in the US.
Mr Beazley’s appointment as Australia’s Ambassador to the US began in early 2010, and he was away when Julia Gillard famously knifed former prime minister Kevin Rudd and challenged him for the leadership in June of that year and succeeded.
In June 2013, Rudd re-emerged and successfully challenged Gillard for the top job.
Mr Beazley also missed Malcolm Turnbull’s recent ousting of former prime minister Tony Abbott in September last year.
When asked if it became “embarrassing” to explain Australia’s high turnover of leaders, he said Americans find it “bemusing”.
He also said Americans were “curious” about how Australia’s political system allows for such changes to occur without an election.
“It’s never been embarrassing, it’s just been from the point of view of the Americans bemusing,” he said.
“I mean they have not made an assumption from all of that that somehow or other Australia has achieved an unacceptable level of instability.
“They are just curious about a system which permitted so many changes. But they have noted, and it’s something, of course, you always point out to them at the time, that there’s great continuity administration on administration. So it’s not been a difficult thing to explain, it’s just been somewhat unusual.”
Personally, he said he was “mildly surprised” by what had happened while he was out of the country.
“I think there’s been around the last couple of decades a bit of a preparedness to be very judgmental about leaders, particularly from within the ranks of the parties from which the leaders are taken,” he said.
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