Yesterday a woman sat accused with a room full of men silently judging her as another man desperately fired questions at her in a vain attempt to make her appear guilty.
This was not Baghdad, Tehran, or Tripoli, this was Market St Sydney, and the event was Tony Abbott’s Trade Union Royal Commission.
The woman in question was of course Former Prime Minister Julia Gillard.
For Julia Gillard watching Cate Blanchett in the film Elizabeth must almost seem like déjà vu. A world where men are always attacking her for being who she is, for being single, and of course just because she is a woman. Few of them having the guts to recognise her inner strengths, and certainly few having any idea of her resilience.
Yesterday the world once again had a glimpse of that inner strength and the dignity and grace that has been sadly lacking from the Prime Minister’s office since the day she left it.
Yesterday I wrote an article on the legal case surrounding Gillard’s day on the witness stand and the complete lack of evidence against her.
Today I wanted to talk about other aspects of yesterday’s appearance at the Royal Commission.
Julia Gillard faces a room of almost all men
For starters let’s not forget this is a Former Prime Minister we are talking about. To see someone who held the highest office in the country hauled in before a Royal Commission on the back of evidence that is at best less than flimsy and based on the word of serial liars and right-wing conspiracy nut jobs is an absolute travesty in my humble opinion.
If we hold the Prime Minister’s office in such little regard it to me shows just how far we have sunk as a society and how little respect we have for our own nations dignity.
Only a fool would devote so much time trashing the position they sought to fill. Only a fool would make a mockery of the parliament and drive the public opinion of politicians to such an all-time low when they are a politician seeking to control parliament.
Now that fool sits in the Prime Ministers chair running the parliament he made such a mockery of and wonders why the opinion polls make him look even more foolish.
Yesterday we saw that fool continue to trash his own office with his foolish and desperate attempts to smear those who came before him and they political party they represented via an expensive Royal Commission paid for with the public purse.
Such an open display of political weakness and desperation has rarely been seen in this country.
I’ll drag out the daughters again so I don’t look a sexist pig… I just hope my smile doesn’t look to sleazy
If the Prime Minister and Attorney General are going to spend vast amounts of taxpayer funds on Royal Commissions set up for political purposes then where do we draw the line?
When Labor wins the next Federal election should they announce a Royal Commission into Industrial Negligence and Responsibility? They could start off with the asbestos industry which continues to kill thousands and shine a light on Julie Bishop’s role in the industry, or perhaps the treatment of the victims advocate Bernie Banton by Tony Abbott. We could also take a peek at the NSW Liberal Governments handing of the hexavalent chromium spill near Newcastle that they decided to keep secret for a few days despite the risk to the community that we may not see the results of for years.
Or maybe we should just see Abbott take the stand at the Royal Commission into Child Abuse and explain his insistence on writing a personal reference praising paedophile priest John Nestor as a “man of integrity” despite the allegations against him.
One of the few women in the hearing room was Lenore Taylor from The Guardian who raised an interesting point that those of us in the media room missed.
In her coverage of the hearing Taylor tells us;
“…after one short tea break, she returned to the room before royal commissioner Dyson Heydon, and for about five minutes stood at the witness stand, looking into the middle distance, alone and almost unnoticed, while the lawyers chatted and onlookers checked their phones.”
The same also occurred after lunch, Julia left standing there, the only one apparently with enough respect for others to actually show up prepared on time.
I would question whether this was part of a tactic to bring Gillard down a few levels. A way of saying that although Gillard may be a former Prime Minister her time is of far less importance than theirs and they are happy to just leave her standing there ignoring her like she is a complete nobody.
This behaviour and the clear tactic of badgering Gillard with trivial questions to intentionally receive a response of “I don’t recall” do little to protect the integrity of the Royal Commission.
After all that hype I didn’t even need the hard hat….
Despite all of the attempts to rattle her Julia Gillard remained calm and in control, even showing off the sense of humour that made her so popular with so many on several occasions during her testimony.
If there is one thing that has been made perfectly clear by Julia Gillard’s handling of this matter from day one, whether it be the press conferences, the snide remarks of shock-jocks and right-wing bloggers, or spending the best part of a day in the witness box under oath at a Royal Commission, it is that she is one tough cookie.
She has taken everything that can possibly be thrown at her in her stride and walked away smiling with her dignity intact.
I sense her accusers won’t be able to do the same.
Like Wixxyleaks on Facebook here
For All Your Video Production Needs
Watching the footage from former Prime Minister Gillard’s appearence yesterday, I was actually moved by her courage and dignity in the face of questioning from that poisonous little turd of a lawyer.
Australia needs to grow up.
This nasty excuse of a man allegedly leading our country will go to any extent to see through his twisted acts of revenge. Remember he was denied government by Julia Gillard and will never get over the humiliation of it all. I really do wish I’d tripped him over when the opportunity arose once in a corridor.
Totally agree!
Former Prime Minister receives is treated with so much more dignity and respect by instutions and people overseas than by the childish bullies, the shrivelled-balled cowards and bottom the sewer scum who have tried so unsuccessfully to drag this amazing woman down to their own pathetic level.
Former Prime Minister Julla Gillard is treated with so much more dignity and respect by instutions and people overseas than by the childish bullies, the shrivelled-balled cowards and bottom the sewer scum who have tried so unsuccessfully to drag this amazing woman down to their own pathetic level
Now that fool sits in the Prime Ministers chair running the parliament he made such a mockery of and wonders why the opinion polls make him look even more foolish. he is there backed by a compliant media and straight out lies made by both the Murdoch Fairfax and ABC united team to bring down a government
Abbott lied in every interview backed these sorry shits that call themselves media
Hear hear, Peter. Spot on – again!
When Julia lost the ballot to Rudd in 2013 and announced she would be leaving Parliament, my partner and I sat and thought and shed tears as we listened to a song by Judy Holiday. Last evening we did the same but although the tears were again for Julias departure, this time it was remembering with happiness and appreciation all Julias strengths Peter has mentioned and others here. The strengths coupled with grace, decorum, belief in the facts she repeated yet again and again unshakable in their truth.
One awesum memory I have from the 4 and a half hours this strong brave woman sat under interrogation, she rarely took her eyes from her tormentor, he Mr Stoljar, head in his notes rarely looking back at the former 1st female Prime Minister, whose name and reputation he was attempting to destroy on behalf of a coward, a liar, a misogynist, a homophobe, a rorter, a racist, a jealous evil man who would see her destroyed.
Not yesterday Abbott, not today, not ever. Julia Gillard is everything you are not and never will be. You are gutter trash.
So last evening we sat, had a wine or two, reminisced and shared a tear or more as we listened to Judy Holiday and remembered good thoughts of a good lady. Doubt we will see her like for many a year.
Thanks too Peter for your full coverage of this sham of a RC and your other investigative work, you excel in your profession
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fdynmsMomw
http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Media/Pix/pictures/2010/7/17/1279368438617/Julia-Gillard-006.jpg
Good to see that even former PMs are not above legal and judicial scrutiny. In case you forgot this is a Royal Commission into union corruption, not Julia Gillard and she was answering questions in her capacity as a former union lawyer not a s a former PM. If she is clean then she will have no problems and good reason to smile. Why should having a vagina exclude her from scrutiny? This article is pathetic in its sappy sentimentality about a person who wielded so much power and obviously tries to appeal to the emotional heart strings of people in an attempt to beatify a person. I note your treatment of Kathy Jackson is diametrically opposed.
The problem with human nature is that when people aspire to wisdom & perfection, they become a bit delusional.
It’s like buying a faulty car, that they won’t admit, was a bad choice.
They will make excuse after excuse sooner than say “I got it wrong”.
When they are political hacks, that old saying goes “He’d bow to Hitler if he came to their team” sooner than admit he was a nutter, just like the LNP have got right now.
This was rampant during Gillards term. Both sides seem to want her gone.
When Rudd won, he loaded her up with 3 portfolios.
When the Telstra boxes asbestos issue arose, it crossed the line of 3 ministers Combet, Shorten & I think Abbotts mate Ferguson, explain why it wasn’t taken care of & all the while Gillard was dealing with her 3, alone.
It all so reminded me of the Lindy Chamberlain case where they hung her out to dry. Context was not applicable. “She killed her own kid” They would have rather that baby be chewed up & swallowed sooner than be alive & wrong.
What this woman went through in that box, without an “er” or an “Ah”, she answered with such articulation, dignity & terseness from her accuser, it was like throwing tennis balls at Roger Federer.
She really was the keeper that stupidity discarded.
Rikda I am not familiar with the saying you concluded your excellent post with. however I suspect a loose interpretation is something like…Julia was the keeper or PM and those who supported Rudd were the stupid. Maybe comes from a TV show I will have heard of, but not seen. Something futuristic as it isn’t anything from everyday speech I have heard.
Hope that’s not gnashing of your teeth I can hear 🙂
So it takes a tory troll to try the hackneyed pathetic ‘this is not an Abbott setup to attack and discredit Julia Gillard’ line. Of course not, he the rorting lying and every other disgusting trait the evil prik possesses, wouldn’t think of such an unPrime Ministerial stunt. Stunt another activity The Rev Abbott has never engaged in.
I wont waste my time with this Tory trolling person further, they are a dime a doz and all beat the same drum..One note idiocy doesn’t require much space in the head cavity.
If you think that she was there because she was anything but a former PM than I think you are sorely mistaken.
Gillard was never a union lawyer for a start, she was a solicitor that worked for a firm that had some unions as clients, there is a huge difference.
Yes I was and still am a fan of Gillard, I don’t shy away from that and never have, but it makes no difference to the facts of this case whether I am a huge fan or Michael Smith, the facts appear to be she has nothing to answer to.
Of course my treatment of Kathy Jackson is diametrically opposed.
These events regarding Gillard were over 20 years ago and at their very worst mean she is guilty of having a dodgy boyfriend at the time.
Jackson on the other hand spent over a million of members funds on credit cards, taken quarter of a million dollars from a cancer hospital so they could screw over their workers to the tune of $3 Million and much much more. Plus she is still part of the union and to this day is heavily involved in the factional wars being played out.
Damn right I will treat her different, only a fool wouldn’t.
I woke this morning thinking i might find the headlines saying NO SMOKING GUN,but to my amazement ,the exact opposite,their are those who will NEVER accept that our former prime minister has nothing to answer for,
OH i hope they all enjoyed their humble pie, some more than others,what a gutsy lady ,
Flabagasted to read Balthazar comparing Julia Gillard to Kathy Jackson. They are worlds apart. Can’t imagine Julia informing the nation of her sexual antics. Julia has poise and dignity, Jackson seems to have none and she’s been living like a millionaire on health workers money, she has many questions to answer.
Well said David D, the former Prime Minister Julia Gillard was put through hell during Question time from both Abbott and Pynne, the way they yelled at her across the table was despicable and she handled it so calmly, also all the grap she received from the shock jocks and newspapers, we lost a very good Prime Minister through all this crap and from her own party too, karma is on its way via the NSW ICAC, full details on Tony Abbott’s site.
Perhaps poor old teary David could shed a tear or two for the Australians still suffering from this appalling PM,s period of reign. Not having been elected by the voting masses, we were lumbered with bad decisions, poor policy and jobs for her union friends who hid the truth on her fraudulent habits.
David sits enjoying his red today because the country is back on track, Royal Commissions are flushing the rats from their holes and we can look to the future without Gillard.
Nobody elects the PM other than a party’s caucus, we vote for our local members and she was elected in her area. Perhaps you should read about how the political process works before commenting on it.
Jobs for union friends?? But speaking of jobs, since she has gone unemployment is well over 20% up, we are copping new taxes and our debt has been blown sky high by Abbott and Hockey more than doubling our credit limit and handing over a cool $8 Billion to the Reserve Bank.
Meanwhile the Liberal Party is forming a queue at the doors of ICAC as NSW Liberals look at over 10% of the state govt now on the cross-bench or forced to resign, and now it has started honing in on the Federal Liberal Party.
This country has come off the tracks under this government while the Liberal Party is being decimated before ICAC.
Distractions about a previous PM’s boyfriend from nearly a quarter of a century ago can’t hide the foul stench of corruption that follows the Liberal Party everywhere
From time to time I used to watch QT and be amazed at Julia Gillard’s restraint and composure when facing Abbott’s sneery schoolboy type taunts and face pulling. I would not have been able to do the same – I would have thrown something at that repellent creature. When the ALP caucus replaced Rudd with Julia I cheered – fantastic, a woman as Prime Minister, fantastic. Then the tsunami of filth from all quarters began to roll toward her. She did not buckle – she did not run. Julia Gillard faced down all of it. How did she deal with all that for three long years? Where did she find the courage, the steadfastness, the composure. The mysoginy speech sent shivers of pride up my back and into my head. Yes I admire Julia Gillard – always have in the face of a certain amount of ridicule from friends. We lost one of the greats before she was allowed to fully come into her own
Bluetie wixxy owned you just then just as Julia owned Stoljar on wed. Love liberal trolls who hide behind clever inspiring original witty names like blue tie. Stoljar can now hopefully give his full attention to KJ and maybe even summon lawless just like murphy was summoned
Hear hear vicki don’t forget she lost her father during this time. Incredible woman.
Bluetie (noose) another Tory troll who bursts into print, gushes the trash that makes up its twisted brain, no facts, no links to support the rubbish it spews. Just more of what Julia has put up with and has rejected with dignity.. That really gets under the trolls thin skin.
well, I have to say that there is a positive side to the troll posts here today. That is, they are taking notice of what is being said here and are concerned enough to comment. I remember when I first started reading Peters blog you never saw a Lying Nasty Prick (that’s LNP) troll comment here probably dismissed this and all similar sites as irrelevant. But now, somebody is worried and with good reason.
Speaking of Prime ministerial behavior, a hypothetical question in a hypothetical situation. If a member of parliament who has been elected several times has dual citizenship, making all of those elections illegal, and that was to come out and requiring his removal from the parliament.
1/ would all remuneration received from the commonwealth by the person illegally elected be required to be paid back to the commonwealth for the full period of illegally sitting in the parliament?
2/If the person illegally elected knowingly had themselves elected even though they new it to be in contravention of the constitution, be open to prosecution for breaching the electoral act and misleading (there is that word again, so often applied to hypothetical politicians) the electoral commission?
3/ Is the electoral commission guilty of not exercising appropriate probity and care by not sighting any document that proves that the said hypothetical politician had renounced the citizenship for the other country?
4/If the above is correct, and that indeed the politician emigrated from another country and failed to renounce the other citizenship prior to being elected to the parliament, would that make the hypothetical politician an illegal immigrant? (that one I could not resist)
Another hypothetical: If you had a mate receiving the dole, and he asked you to sign a form so that he could do a couple of days work for cash, and not tell Centrelink, would you do it? Probably not. If he did the work anyway would you dob him in? Probably not. And that Peter is where Gillard’s guilt lays. She kept schtum about the whole affair, completely denying the knowledge of any wrongdoing, including hers.
Yesterday Pistorius was found not guilty, today we will find out if he is innocent.
A recent essay published among Labor groups faced up to the disaster that has been the Gillard period. While harsh to swallow, Labor had to admit to the chaos and start the rebuild. Airbrushing Gillard from Labor history, and Rudd has commenced.
“AS the first anniversary of the election of the Abbott government approaches, we are daily reminded of how and why Australians rejected Labor last September.
Thanks in part to Paul Kelly’s authoritative book Triumph and Demise, with its detailed account of the dysfunctionality of the Rudd government(s) and the ineptitude of Julia Gillard’s third-rate administration, the ugliness of the six-year Labor experiment has been exposed.
But almost daily new reports of inquiries into Labor’s schemes flaunt the disaster that is Labor’s appalling lasting legacy and relics of Labor’s regime still haunting the bureaucracy appear and reconfirm the utter lack of wisdom that guided Labor’s ideological appointments.”
I can only imagine how Abbott would perform in that sort of situation if he had been quizzed about such matters as anti-Hanson slush funds, rorting of entitlements and just downright general dishonesty.
He can’t brush it off like the “ancient history” of Ashbygate or run away from the cameras.
If karma exists, may it descend upon him soon.
Oh my god, the love in for a human trading gross human rights violator is nauseating.
1. she sat down with three heads of state to trade, traffic and flog off refugees to their deaths.
2. she gave the decree to send home Tamils with no process, 400 a week was the order.
3. she made the intervention far more racist and cruel than even Howard did and humilitated tens of thousands of other struggling Aussies with income management just because they lived in low socio-economic regions.
4. While giving her whinge written by McTernan about sexism, a speech she had written weeks in advance, she had the senate trashing tens of thousands of single parents and justified their poverty by saying they would be better off with a job – didn’t stop to think that making 8 year olds into latch key kids might be somewhat traumatic for them.
5. she didn’t want the pension increases pushed through by Rudd and Macklin.
6. she backstabbed and plotted against 4 leaders, Beazley twice.
7. she is an arch Zionist America phobe loved up by both groups to get Rudd out of office.
She has no dignity when it comes to torture and abuse of others, only when it comes to covering her own backside.
Fair dinkum, she was only marginally better than Abbott and far worse than Howard when it comes to racist attacks on refugees and aborigines. She deleted the bloody country for Christ’s sake, how can you people be so dense?
…and yet, Marilyn, Julia Gillard has more courage, grace and innate humanity than you could ever muster in 10 of your miserable lives.
Sweetheart, it’s really best that you stick to helping the criminals who arrange illegal entries into this country.
“Gillard MFI-1” makes for interesting reading, particularly Tab 7 where in 1996 S&G Board Minutes, this resolution is made.
‘Julia Gillard – The sooner she leaves the better’. Maybe it was just because she is a woman.
Leaving completely aside the politically partisan and emotional responses to the AWU slush fund affair, Julia Gillard may be fortunate indeed if she escapes charges that seem certain to be heading Wilson and Blewitt’s way. However, at the very least, it seems likely she will face censure for her activities as a lawyer giving advice to her sexual partner, without the knowledge of her law firm partners, which allowed the fraud to take root. Of course, never since 1995 has she practiced as a lawyer, so that probably doesn’t bother her too much. I would say her focus now is to avoid criminal sanction, take the (taxpayer funded) money and run.
It is not a salubrious end to a political or legal career. Much more ink will be spilled.
It is however a salient lesson for any practitioner of the law.
Marilyn your ongoing hatred and personal obsession with your imagined, yes imagined list of ‘evils’ continues as it fits in with your long running crusade against Julia. You have been peddling it around the internet and been banned from many sites because of it for years.
Problem is you become more engrossed in your nonsense as you get older, the narrative begins to sound more like those of an aging latter day Germaine Greer, whose thinking has become blurred with the arrival of the mists of time.
That you will continue to beat your well worn drum is as certain as you will sound sillier with each post. You have become sadly a figure of mirth rather than pity, probably a kinder fate as you fade into oblivion.
I look forward to your inevitable response, should be fun :-).i will have the popcorn ready
Petro not a member of Samantha Maidens hate brigade are you, what a load of tripe.
Seems I am the lone soldier at the front. Appears couple of Tory trolls have plucked up courage to post, of course i can only speculate, wouldn’t want to cast dispersions
‘Aspersions’ David. Dispersions are things done from, oh well, for instance, slush funds. To be fair it is Friday, beer o’clock.
Sometimes misuse of words are deliberate. I couldn’t possibly comment.
I too am not one to cast “dispersions” David. However I think the correct conjungation of the verb “to be” would mean that you should have said “misuse of words IS deliberate.” Third person singular. Pretty basic.
Makes me wonder what else you’ve gotten wrong.
Ah Edgahr Edgarh how it is to be in the company of the ‘gullable’, i love it kisses my sweet 🙂
David, I thought your howlers were unintentional. I feel such a fool now. Please accept my apologies and my kisses in return.
Of course.We should return to the topic at hand. Peter will be tiring of the back and forth. Stay well.
Returning to the topic: for those interested in documents, it is worth reading item 6.4 of the minutes of the S&G Partnership Meeting of 4 March 1996 available on the TURC website.
It’s all about the vibe – make of it what you will – but one thing is sure, something happened that wasn’t quite right.
Also interesting is Item 4.1.
I’m with marilyn. I gave up reading fairy stories 60 years ago. I can’t believe anyone with half a brain would put praise on such a vile woman, Only union loving labor supporters.
Well, the good news John is that this union man and ALP voter is and will continue to work as hard as I can to push those such as you and Marylin back into the putrescent slime you breed in.
nice to see peter beat up the trolls
Julia shows such grace and courage?? leader of a socialist reform party, Shacking up with a married man who ripped millions of dollars off his fellow unionists, after four years of shacking up with him tells the commission she never talked about the money he ripped off people, says she broke off relationship after learning of his crimes. The only reason she broke it off was because he got caught. Of course all the deaths at sea mean nothing to you but if one person dies under the coalitions watch it is a major blunder by the government. All of labors blunders were trivial but if Tony Abbott farts he would be accused of causing serious pollution. Why do union members continue to pay money to union leaders every week just to have it ripped off by crooks and still the members keep praising the unions for the wonderful job they do for the workers. What a joke.
John you are an excellent example of why Abbott and his Govt are so despised by the large majority of the nation. Your trolling is now becoming obscene and reveals the despicable fool you are. No facts all absolute Tory propaganda.
I for one will not read another word of your insanity.
The facts that cannot be denied are not disputed by Julia Gillard, so much is evident from her testimony sworn under oath. The facts only partly hinted at by the documents that have, so far, not been admitted into evidence are the ones that should give pause for thought. Incisive thinkers should read the documents in full to get an idea of what may yet be to come. It may be that Julia Gillard has sworn to far more than she ought have. I remind readers of the handling Kathy Jackson received in stages from the RC. And where that left her.
Duchy another Tory troll gains ‘dutch’ courage, leaps in with supposed facts that cannot be denied!!!. What facts? Documents not entered into evidence, what documents?
Perhaps you are hinting, not saying of course, that means more facts, that Julia may be called to some other kangaroo court, I seem to recall she was been told she is no longer required by the RC.
Amazing how you trolls scrape the bottom of a filthy barrel and come up with unidentified shite. I repeat to you as to your other mate from under the bridge, Tory propaganda.
David, you should remind yourself of how the case unfolded with Kathy Jackson, rather than resorting to abuse. And Ms Gillard can easily be recalled. You shouldn’t let your political biases blind you. And I am not a tory troll. Far from it. The facts I am referring to are those that Ms Gillard has agreed to and have been presented to her, namely that she assisted in the incorporation of the AWU WRA and in the purchase of the Kerr St property. The facts to be revealed are the ones not yet in the public domain. It is parts of the documents that an astute reader of the evidence so far can deduce that the police must have and which have not yet been rendered public that need to be considered. It is what good counsel will be turning their minds to. I suggest you spend some time reading the documents. Cheers.
David Linehan, not everyone who holds a contrary opinion to yours, or who advances an opposing argument, is a “Liberal troll” or, indeed, any sort of “troll”. Is there no room in your universe for genuine and robust debate? In my opinion, you do yourself, and your argument, a great disservice by your apparent preference to attack the person rather than attack the argument. You need to accept that maybe, just maybe, the people you so readily and disparagingly label as “trolls” are as sincere and as strong in their views as you are in yours.
David, you write such crap about no facts. I suppose Williamson is not in Jail or Craig Thompson is not awaiting sentencing. I imagined I saw all those bodies in the water of Christmas island. There are a lot more of Labor’s policy failures that you and i know are true so get your head out of your arse.