I remember election night in 2007 well. I was at a "Don's Party" at Enmore and not only were we celebrating the election of the Rudd Labor government after the long Howard years. But also in the seat of Bennalong the impossible had happened; a respected former ABC journalist had knocked off a sitting Prime Minister.
Flash forward to today and we're left to wonder what the hell went wrong? I mean it all started so well... and now? A scandal-prone government lead by the woman who knifed a first term Prime Minister (something I doubt the electorate will never forgive or forget) barely hanging on to power in a hung parliament following the most uninspiring election campaign in living memory. And now the nation faces a nine month campaign (again unprecedented) to probably end up exactly where we are now because no one like either side (and an election I fear we'll see the rise of the lunatic fringe). Meanwhile the ghost of Kevin Rudd follows Julia around like the Ghost of Christmas past.
Maxine McKew was not only a witness to many of the events of Kevin Rudd's rise to power but also a participant in his government (up until the men from New South Wales Labor took over - big mistake). I found this to be a balanced and fascinating chronicle of the events of 2007-2010. This is a must red book for anyone who has an interest in Australian political history and the sad decline of the Federal Labor Party.
A couple of weeks ago I read Steve Bracks' memoir of his time as the premier of Victoria and can't help but wonder: if only they'd let the Victorians take charge and not let the New South Wales Labor disease take hold in Canberra.
