From a Labor MP

While the Prime Minister claimed she ditched preset betting limits because of a lack of crossbench support:

"Mr Thomson insisted her backdown was a "big win" for NSW caucus members who had lobbied for change for the past year."

Also:

The sources claimed Mr Rudd had also been telling MPs late last year he could get the support of Peter Slipper in order to secure another seat in the parliament - before Mr Slipper defected from the opposition to become speaker.

"He was saying for a long time 'I can get Slipper and I can get Katter and we can f ... off all this mandatory pre-commitment stuff," a senior NSW Labor source said. But the backdown and withdrawal of support from Mr Wilkie has left 34,000 people who voted for Mr Slipper as a Liberal National Party MP holding up a Labor government.

This is clear proof that the mandatory pre commitment was hurting labor, and labor ditched it the first chance they could. The "hung parliament excuse" was just another lie by the Queen of lies.

Belly, you remain defiant that the PM has not lied.

So why did she sign that deal, knowing full well it would not be popular?

Secondly, as it appears the majority out there want something done, why did she not take it to the vote?

Finally, she didn't come to this conclusion over night.

So, why didn't she hold talks with Wilki before the slipper issue?

Had she indicated her intensions earlier, the clubs would have saved millions, millions that would have been much better spent on community projects, which is what clubs are all about.

At the end of the day, if she did not lie, then she certainly withheld her intensions until she had the numbers, and most of us saw righ through what she was doning, but one needs to take the blinkers off the see things like that. A tallent that many here lack.

This from a recent link on the web:

"It's not hard to discern the cause of the Government's
new-found caution when it comes to mandatory pre-commitment.
The clubs lobby and it allies in the media and in the
New South Wales Rugby League have waged a savage and
dishonest campaign against the changes. Not only has that
campaign been highly cycnical. It has been highly personal
with Labor MPs such as Mike Kelly in Eden-Monaro personally
singled out in nasty attacks."

As Joe (Loudmouth) pointed out earlier - the current state of
our politics is indeed dirty. Vested interests playing a
major role. What gets to me is that some posters on this thread
keep on baying and finger-pointing with the usual - "she lied,"
statements and accusations. What a load of nonsense. Forgetting
their own "Core and Non-Core promises."

How about
looking at the up-side of what the final outcome of all
this will be? How about looking at the best possible results
that will be achieved under the current circumstances?

I can't for the life of me understand the ignorant sods who
have nothing positive to offer - except constant negativity
and then they insist that they will still win the next election.
Anyone with half a brain would not vote for a party whose
only mantra is negativity - and nothing else on offer.

Rechtub, with all my heart you are in all probability a good bloke.
But TOO firmly I think you have no understanding not a drop, of this subject.
Wilkie INDEPENDENT much despised one, DEMANDED understand no wriggle room DEMANDED.
His bill PASS BOTH HOUSES by May.
Conservatives said no.
Independents SOME SAID NO,
SOME ALP SAID NO
SM said no clubs and pubs said no.
NO CHANCE,NOT EVER IT WAS GOING TO PASS ANY HOUSE UPPER OR LOWER.
Gillard, unloved and unliked, but not STUPID took the path of some reform is better than nothing.
She, is trying, will not get it, to get Conservatives to support SOME REFORM.
Rechtub you by being so unaware of this and many issues stand in the way of a reform this country needs.
West Australia has no poker machines, in all honest we should have no machines.
But we do and they destroy lives.
What would you do? would you put the legislation knowing it would be defeated try to get some improvement.
Mate think about your posts referring to me as fixed opinion holder , it is your bath room mirror that points to that bloke.

A conversation/Debate/Discussion/even a sit down problem solving one, should be free of preconceived biases.
Free of my mob or nothing views.
Sorry rude it may be, but this thread is a feeding station.
By starting it, naming it, before the decisions had been made.
By finding new ways to denigrate Labor /Gillard, even over looking expressed views about the independents as a whole and Wilkie.
Failing to see the expressed views of our author to all that, and the very idea of poker machine reform.
We are feeding anti Labor rants, not looking for results.
And in all truth,we all, are neglecting this .
Every day poker machines drive crime hungry kids broken relation ships.
Conservatives never wanted reform but gloat in others agreeing,with their views.
We feed that, if it is not a debate,a conversation it looks much like PROPAGANDA to me unrelated to honest opinion.
Had ANY CHANCE existed of passing this bill I would call Gillard gutless.
But she, at least, is head and shoulder above Abbott in this matter.
My view of a troll may differ but if not what have some contributions here been?

Dear Belly,

As I wrote in a previous post -

"In all these issues, the choice is between the broader
interests of the nation, and the narrow self-interest
of industries and lobby groups that stand to lose
out because of the necessary reforms. The PM is trying
to do the best she can under very difficult circumstances,
while the Opposition does what it has to do to represent
the narrow self-interest of the industries and lobby groups
that support its party. They will use the usual predictable
weapons that they've been using to date against the current
government - caring little for the actual issues themselves."