My mum is 80 today (go mum, I hope I've inherited some longevity genes). She's a lifelong ALP voter. Over lunch at the Gosford RSL she told me of her dislike for Julia Gillard and the way in which she 'won' the prime ministership. She says former ALP leaders would be rolling in their graves. The voters put him in office and the ALP should have let the voters give their verdict at the forthcoming election.
Of course, she has never met Rudd so perhaps Latham's tawdry test applies. Nevertheless, she has lots of questions about Gillard. Why isn't she married? Why did she choose politics over children? Why did she follow Rudd around for 3 years talking about how wonderful he was and then knife him in the back? When did her 'concerns' start?
But why 'kind'? My Mum's on the pension and she credits 'kind' Mr Rudd with the biggest pension increase ever. People forget, she says, but for people like me that was a very big deal. People talk about the mining tax and superannuation, but for Mum and her friends it's the pension that matters.
The ALP is busy distancing itself from one of just a handful of federal leaders to lead it from Opposition to Government, but my Mum, and I suspect many others, will not forget in a hurry.
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