Granted Malcolm is an ex lawyer, bag carrier for Packer, ex Merchant Banker, ex dot.com seller while its hot and hang Godwin Grech out to dryer.

But Abbott was divisive - loving uniforms, weapons and paramilitary force!

As a member of Family First, your ultra-conservative opinions are irrelevant to mainstream Australia, as is your misplaced rage at having your religious kindred spirit removed from office.

I understand that from your position a centrist politician looks just like a leftie, but that's your misperception of the actual political landscape of our country.

Most Australians want centrists, and they ain't getting them from you.

I'm judging by the fact the author is a family first member that he didn't actually want Tony either so I don't understand his point.

Let's be clear though our system of government means Australians don't vote from the PM they vote for their local member. Anybody turning up to vote is only going to find people running for their local electorate.

Yes there lies the whole problem, the Liberal party has been infiltrated with Conservatives.

Radically biased against the workers of this nation, was the far right incumbent Mr Abbott. Now Mr Turnbull is faced with the far right within the liberal party. Hopefully he can make it work, it will not take much time to gauge the far right’s influence on him.

Public opinion will be crucial, within the next 3 months, as to the success or failure of Turnbull. He can not go down Abbott’s path, he must be his own man and govern for everybody. There is no special entitlements for PM to go over the heads of his own party.

Turnbull does not come without faults, it is up to him to be a leader of all Australians and not just the elite, otherwise his fortunes will quickly change and become irrelevant. His judgments will be closely scrutinized, by the court of public opinion

Malcolm Turnbull is not on the left at all, or a centrist or a progressive. He is to the right of Tony Abbott. Who opposed Work Choices in cabinet? It was Mr Abbott, not Mr Turnbull. Mr Abbott retains an echo of the social justice beliefs of his Democratic Labor background. Mr Turnbull never had such a background.

It is only media spin and widespread ignorance of what “left” and “right” actually mean that make Mr Turnbull look like he is on the left.

Mr Turnbull supports the creation of “same-sex marriage”, some say. Indeed he does, but that is not a left-right issue. It’s an airhead issue, opposed by a significant minority in the “left-wing” Labor Party. The proposed plebiscite is no more than cover for the Coalition to say that it did not bring in same-sex marriage – the people did. Only a constitutional referendum to restore the meaning of “marriage” in Section 51 to what it was before the High Court changed it can be taken seriously, and no one was offering that!

Mr Turnbull supports an ETS, some say. Indeed, as a free marketeer, he supports a market-based (i.e., right-wing) approach to carbon.

Mr Turnbull supports a republic, some say. Indeed, so do the US Republicans, and they are the party of the right.

The headline writer got it right in The Australian: “The big end of town finally gets its man”, 16/9/2015.

The Liberal base will subside. Its alternative is to create a party to the right to do to the Liberals what the Greens do to Labor. We have never had a widely supported party to the right of the Liberals, other than the rural-based Nationals, probably because there is no real demand for something so extreme.

Mr Turnbull has already leapt ahead in the polls. He will stay there for long honeymoon and, I expect, until an early but not too-early election.

What a steaming pile Chris, at least the bits about Abbott.

He was and is IPAs man. That's far right dude.

https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/politics/2014/05/31/abbotts-faceless-men-the-ipa/1401458400

You can not mix US an AU there is no comparison. What a heap of twisted rubbish. Abbott is that far to the right no one even knew where he was. You Cris live in fairy land.

Bugsy,

So, the IPA is on the right. Tell me something I don’t know.

So, Tony Abbott is on the right. Tell me something I don’t know.

My point is that Malcolm Turnbull is more right wing than Tony Abbott. This fact is disguised because he adopts trendy positions on trendy causes. Let’s just see how workers and unionists fare in the long run under a Turnbull government.

Doog,

Well, that’s an emotive response. Do you want to come back with some reasoning?

That may be so Chris, but considering Turnbull's stance on climate change it appears that the IPA may have just lost control of the country.

Oh dear.