Clive’s roadmap to Canberra

PALMER unashamedly and it would appear successfully borrowed exactly – and I mean exactly – the strategy and just as importantly the execution that delivered success to Donald Trump.

The absolutely core purpose of the campaign in both places has been to sell the person – Trump there, Palmer here. And, Scott Morrison take note, do so, relentlessly, over months, not just waiting for the campaign itself.

What’s been critical is the projection of the person linked to a simple message, stated again and again, and then said again a few hundred more times.

Over there it was “Make America Great Again”, down here the slightly modified “Make Australia Great” – which I suggest will now “Make Clive Grate Again” (in the Senate).

The important thing about both messages is that they are upbeat.

Yes, both Trump and Palmer were also preaching negative messages – China ripping off America; big foreign multinationals taking our minerals and our billions, and so on.

But they were overlaid by and indeed muted by the big positive ‘solution’ (never mind, it wouldn’t bear much analysis), which was also, importantly, being offered in a cheery not a dour way.

There’s been no “We will (have to) fight them on the beaches etc etc.”

Now of course there are differences.

The big one is that Palmer has had to pay to project; Trump got most of his ‘free and gratis’ from the networks using his celebrity.

The coastal elites over there also looked with scorn and contempt on his ambition to ‘Make America Great Again’ – why wasn’t he apologising for all the country’s sins?

But enough Americans actually want their country to succeed; I suggest the same thing has been playing out here, where Palmer’s similar ambition would be scorned and derided by the latte-left elites of the Melbourne-SydneyCanberra triangle.

Now there are also some big differences. Trump was only selling himself.

Palmer is selling himself and a slew of candidates. So he’s also cleverly modified the technique to sell a broader impression of other people and so the (actually, non-existent) ‘Party’.

Trump also had to persuade more or less 50 per cent of voters.

Palmer only has to persuade 12-14 per cent of Queenslanders to get his senate seat, while as little as 5 per cent or so in individual lower house seats could be queen and king-making.

Critical also has been the impression of business success.