I can remember not so long ago that the word 'wedge' used in connection with politics was a dirty word. The ABC and other anointed members of the commentariat used it to create the impression that a war was looming in society. 'Wedge politics' and 'dog whistle politics' became the mantras du jour. Of course they were mentioned with that special 'Juanita of the ABC' look that suggested to the viewer that there was something sinister about them. Now one of those mantras is seen as being positive.

Ain't politics strange.

So, Rudd is big on philosophy. It will be interesting to see how many votes that translates into from Joe and Janet Blow as they struggle away with their mortgages, kids’ education etc. etc. How many of them have heard of Hayek or the Centre for Independent Studies? A recent poll showed that most people hadn’t heard of Rudd himself, until recently. It’s good that Mr. Whelan writes: “If Rudd can successfully articulate this contradiction to the whole electorate …”

It’s a big if. Everything about Mr. Rudd, clever and sincere though he may be, is a big “if” at the moment. Remember, a bloke called Latham who was to end all Labor’s troubles? The regular changing of leaders hardly gives the electorate any confidence in a party’s competence, and a leader cannot carry the whole load. Policies, not leaders, are of importance. Already the media is berating Mr. Rudd for his lack of policies a mere year out of from an election. If he really felt confident enough to challenge Beazley, he should have known why before he did it.

Whelan’s mention of an alternative “like Whitlam” has probably put the mockers on poor old Ruddy, anyway.

However, if the incumbent government is thought bad enough, voters will kick them out. Governments lose. Oppositions don’t win. Beazley, Latham, Rudd - whoever. The Howard government has to displease voters enough to kick them out. People vote against governments, not for oppositions

I agree that IR, Federalism and the GST will be defining points of Rudds run on the Commonwealth. Though I hold a different analytical position than everybody else, probably.

Firstly, IR. By the time of the next election, this wont be such a big issue. Only that it is the ideological playground of the Left and the Union movement, so it will still be bubble and froth for a while yet. The GST, if uncontrolled and untied, could possibly be a windfall for the Left. And finally, Federalism, which in my opinion is in danger of being divested. It is not a fait-accompli as far as I am concerned, and should not be treated as such by any sector of the Australian polity. Whether that be the opposition, the media, judicious mantra or minority lobby groups, or any other influence both on and offshore. If I am correct in my assumptions, the Labor coup has resulted in an amalgamation of two very different political ethos’s. In the dream team, we can see US socio-political culture, and Singaporean socio-economic structures.

I do not agree with some of the political assumptions found in Whelan. To this end, the Rudd wagon train, with its Left leaning ‘AmeriPorean’ amalgamation, is about to break out on a chinese whispering tour which should be regarded with a large amount of wariness by Mr & Mrs Australia.

Leigh,
Has been closest to the money so far in my humble opinion, he is correct Governments do lose elections, Oppositions don't win them. Rudd just makes it more probable for this to happen as he seems to be a genuine alternative to the little rodent.

It is in low and middle Australia where the next election will be won or lost, and with Workchoices lowering average weekly earnings for 2 successive quarters, combined with rising interest rates that we had to have, these families are more likely to turn on the rodent. Former PM Ben Chiffley's "hip pocket nerve" will come into play.

If this demographic turns, Rudd is in, by default.

Who is the shadow for the Mitigation of Peak Oil ?

I know they have one for the enviroment but this is a different job altogether. I have not heard if anyone has been given that job, which is much more imminent than global warming.

A week in politics can be a long time, but I too doubt Kevin Rudd can deliver the goods in a twelve month time frame. Good for him if he can, but he needs to differentiate very clearly between the policies of Labor compared to those of the Coalition. Not an easy task considering the current political landscape. Many people in various posts make the declaration that IR laws will have been forgotten about by the next election and whilst that may be true, what about 2010? IR reform won't be felt excessively until Australian prosperity begins to dwindle after the commodities boom runs out of puff. John Howard was never thinking about providing immediate power to employers to sack people at will in the short term. If he truly thought that, it would have been political suicide to introduce them when he did. Oh no! He's well ahead of the situation of flagging commodity sales, inflation and the following recession. I've predicted before that he'll stay in power at the next election, but resign with "dignity" just before the crash, tossing the whole rotten mess into someone else's lap. That's the type of little snake he is. The people will revolt when they realise that their previous smug position on IR reform has landed them in the deep end and they'll hunt the Coalition out of power in 2010, but for them, it will be a case of "too late she cried!"