NEWBIE’S LIFE IN POLITICS

SUSAN McDonald from Cloncurry was raised in the cattle industry and has always been around politics. Her father, Don, is a former National Party national president. He was a political confidant of Prime Minister John Howard and before him, Malcolm Fraser. Mr McDonald advised John Howard on the drawing up of the 1996 Wik Native Title ‘ decision’. It is this sort of background that Ms McDonald will take with her into the Senate. Both these two new senators will bring a formidable armoury of knowledge about the mining industry and regional Queensland to the Senate. AND

when elected ( she is in second spot, so her election to office is lay down misere) you can take it as a given that Ms McDonald will set up office in Townsville. Maybe she could move into Senator Macdonald’s office in Denham Street. What could be even better would be a move to the Telstra building on the creek in Tomlins Street, South Townsville. This is where Adani has set up camp. The new Senator moving into the same building? That would be show of solidarity. AND

here is something you won’t know about Susan McDonald. Before she left the family cattle station to study commerce and economics at the University of Queensland she cooked for the ringers in the station mustering camp. In the long distant past I was the recipient of food cooked by mustering camp cooks. And let me tell you, none of them were as fragrant as Ms McDonald. Most had a fondness for alcohol including even ‘ metho’ and Essence of Lemon. Personal hygiene was quite often not a major priority and when they weren’t quietly drunk or coming out of the delirium tremens they managed to knock up the occasional edible meal in their open air kitchens. One I recall had suppurating carbuncles on his wrists. The boss arrived at the camp unexpectedly one day while we were away working and found him mixing dough. His wrists covered in the seeping boils were going in and out of the dough mix. The boss gave him his marching orders, effective immediately. In the main, cooks then prepared curries, stews, dry salted beef and damper over an open fire. The damper was usually so hard you just about needed a chainsaw to cut it. Once in a blue moon the cook might produce a dessert of canned peaches with tinned Carnation Milk. It was a genuine treat. Ms McDonald confided that she cooked the best Anzac biscuits. The ringers loved them. There is one catch. There’s a secret ingredient involved and she is not telling.