Indeed Sancho.

One of the funniest aspects of this brouhaha to me is how the Libs have apparently self-destructed immediately following Costello's removal of his hat from the ring.

The Opposition is really in deep poo, isn't it? Talk about squandering opportunities...

belly quote<<.. shadow minister sounds much like Hocky...>>..thats so good...[joe hockey stiche..repeated the shadow minesters statement on lateline a few minutes ago]

shadlow min quote>>...I also recall Kim Weasely calling for Howard's resignation over the AWB scandal without a single jot of evidence that the gov had anything to do with it.>>>...

i couldnt resist thinking ...yeah..but beastlies info was based on truth...[turncoat's info/has been proven FAULSE...sort of a difference there..sloppy/joe hickeys..[shadow]

turn-bull-into-votes..got it wrong...[beastly got it spot-on]..sloppy joe cant even write his own script...i used to like the dude...but really on lateline..he looked like a pouppy dog that done a dirty on the carpet and scatched some sand over it

i noted in parliment question/time..sloppy-joe really went off his nutt..[so to speak]..yesterday..he would appear to be well conected to his treasury liason guy...he thanked by name..publicly in parliment..back in 2002

also noted turncoats...very..precice statement that the email ORIGONATED in treasury..[and his insistance that no liberalie leaked on the carpet..[of course not the treasury dude may..have..[or his handler]..media?

its not hard to see how the same smooth talk..turncoat used on the pm's guy on wed...was used on the treasury dude...your a young guy come clean...you can go far feeding us info...ps you want to run the fed...just keep feeding us the info

[strong motivation to fake up an email..[that turnbull into votes must have known..[or sought to know about]..on wed night]..

its a only a matter of linking the times together,..and only the fed police can do that..interesting joe and mal-con..both SAY they will cooperate fully with the afp..[yet refuse to confirm thier handler..to the insider treasury stooge]...

there must be one..[to have gotten that fake email/to the senet hearing..[from the treasury dudes computer to the senet dude]...if the police dont sort this out..are they on a turncoat promise as well?..oh well time will tell

Early start 3 hour trip over the mountains but must get in here first.
We will hear more this is the end of Turnbull maybe Hockey and more.
A test look at the press from 1975,74 read the untruths.
SEE? its conservative practice.
Now lets not hide our head under the blanket, my party provided that ammunition to them back then.
But remember the dept truck?
Johny short bottoms free truck?
This is a huge fraud, nearly as big as Turnbull him self.
Read the issues storys in todays Australian.
Read your papers.
read the birth place of much of this the Sydney daily Tele, see its muteness on this subject.
I love it!
when very young I saw many rabbits trapped but never one in a trap they set them selves.

Belly et al,

While you are busy gloating, you forget that if the email had proven to be genuine, it would effectively have effectively ended Rudd's political career, and Rudd's resignation would be the very least it warranted, probably followed by criminal prosecutions.

Turnbull reaction was based on testimony to senate by a treasury official, and given the serious implications of the testimony, Turnbull could not have been expected to react any other way.

The author and purpose behind the fake email needs to be found.

In the interim, Grant has still won a gov tender with no apparent reason other than he is labor supporter. The expression "no smoke with out a fire" is appropriate.

All it shows is that Rudd was not stupid enough to leave a paper trail. It took undercover agents to bring down the corrupt Wollongong labor council for the same reason.

Yes...it is all unravelling for the Turnbull protestation of his role as a righteous observer of the events unfolding. Turnbull's link to the Treasury's Uriah-Heep (Dickens, not the band)-in-a-suit is not as innocent as first claimed. The Age now reports that the Liberals admitted knowing Grech's evidence before the Senate hearing on Friday. QED.They knew where they were going when they pulled Grech into the hearing.

Grech cuts a wretched figure now. For those who know the Senior Executive Service levels, it is evident that he has risen briefly, fallen and moved sideways. If you work very hard (as he is reported to do), have at least minimal cerebral funcion and you can't hold a FAS position, something is wrong.

No doubt Grech gained some heady sense of power by leaking confidential information to the Conservatives. That has to be the end of his career. Just as we criticise Government for politicising the Public Service, so must we not accept public servants taking political sides and breaching confidentiality.

Apart from the moral aspect, it has caused the diversion from other important policy debate.

Shadow Minister,

"...........if the email had proven to be genuine, it would effectively have effectively ended Rudd's political career, and Rudd's resignation would be the very least it warranted, probably followed by criminal prosecutions."

What if the origin of the bogus email wasn't found? Wouldn't that have resulted in a gross miscarriage of justice and an assault on our democracy? What next - an armed coup?

If Grech was a Liberal mole working from inside the Treasury (as suspected) and Abetz had previous knowledge of the contents of the email then the method and motives behind this fiasco become interesting.

There should be criminal prosecutions resulting from this but I don't think they will be from the Government.

PUBLIC SERVICE ACT 1999 - SECT 13
The APS Code of Conduct
(6) An APS employee must maintain appropriate confidentiality about dealings that the employee has with any Minister or Minister's member of staff.
10) An APS employee must not make improper use of:
(a) inside information; or
(b) the employee's duties, status, power or authority;
in order to gain, or seek to gain, a benefit or advantage for the employee or for any other person.

Although it's not illegal to RECEIVE leaks, I can't believe that Grech (or someone else) contrived and concocted this independently. The Libs have a track record of this sort of stunt.

Forgery is a whole new level of conspiracy and I don't think even the most devout Liberal sympathiser would take the whole rap for this.

Interesting times ahead.