HOW LIBS WILL WIN
MACDONALD SAYS NEGATIVITY WILL BE POSITIVE
VETERAN North Queensland Senator Ian Macdonald says the key to winning the next election and staying in power, is to attack ALP leader Bill Shorten.
Negative attack ads against Mr Shorten will help Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and the LNP stay in government, Senator Macdonald says. The long- serving Senator is “highly confident” his party will win the marginal seat of Herbert from Labor’s Cathy O’Toole.
Senator Macdonald, who was relegated to an almost unwinnable position on the Senate ticket opened up on what he thinks of the Prime Minister’s election campaign style.
THE NORTH’S LNP SENATOR IAN MACDONALD HAS NEVER BEEN AFRAID TO SPEAK HIS MIND AND TELL HIS LEADERS AND HIS PARTY WHAT HE BELIEVES IS BEST FOR NORTH QUEENSLAND AND THE NATION. IN THE SECOND OF A TWO- PART SERIES HE TELLS CLARE ARMSTRONG WHY HE BELIEVES THE LIBERALS SHOULD RUN A NEGATIVE CAMPAIGN AT THE NEXT ELECTION AND HOW HE THINKS THE SEATS WILL FALL IN THE REGION.
NEGATIVE attack ads against Labor leader Bill Shorten rather than an ineffective “presidential”- style campaign will return the LNP to government, according to veteran Senator Ian Macdonald.
LNP Senator Macdonald told the Bulletin he was “highly confident” his party would secure the key marginal electorate of Herbert from incumbent Labor MP Cathy O’Toole at the next federal election.
“We’ll win Herbert for sure this time, I’m very confident of that,” he said.
“I think we’ll hold Dawson and Leichardt … Warren ( Entsch) should be right. I’m confident Phillip ( Thompson) will win in Herbert ( and) I think Frank Beveridge is a show in Kennedy.”
But he said a repeat of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s “disaster” 2016 campaign was not the way to win.
“We had a great opportunity to run a negative campaign against Shorten then and we didn’t do it,” he said.
Senator Macdonald said he had told Mr Turnbull the party needed to learn from the success of negative campaigning in the South Australian and Tasmanian state elections earlier this year.
“Malcolm was saying oh isn’t it good we won … and I got up and said yes it is good Malcolm but why we won in Tasmania in particular is that we ran a negative campaign, which last time you refused to do,” he said.
“I said you ran a campaign with Malcolm Turnbull and presidential seals on it … that was a disaster.
“( Mr Turnbull) said oh you’re right Ian I know that.”
Senator Macdonald said a lot of people in the LNP didn’t like negative campaigning “but it works”.
“I’m not giving away any state secrets here. If you have a look at the Longman ( byelection) campaign online, our ads are all very negative,” he said.
“You’ll find that we will be very negative and we’ve got a great target with Shorten, I have to say.”
Senator Macdonald said he hoped Mr Shorten retained the Labor leadership as he would be easier to beat.
“Anthony Albanese, who I do know, would be a much more formidable ( opponent) … we’d have a bit of trouble with him so I’m hoping that Bill stays.”
Senator Macdonald said he would continue to speak his mind in the LNP party room for the next 12 months as he prepares to leave the Senate after he failed to secure a “winnable” position on the party ticket during preselection.
“In the party room, I’m not vindictive. Most people get up in the party room and say Prime Minister you’re so wonderful, and Julie ( Bishop) you’re so marvellous, and Scott Morrison you’re doing a wonderful job in the Treasury but … if I’ve thought something I’ve got up and said it,” Senator Macdonald said.
“Not everyone’s liked it, Malcolm sometimes gets a bit short, but that doesn’t worry me and that’s not going to change.”
Senator Macdonald said it was “disappointing” to watch some of his colleagues pursue politics for personal gain.
“Politics is a game for most people … whereas for me it was never what’s in for me, it’s what can I do for the community that I love and respect and I’ve grown up in that I’m part of, which is North Queensland,” he said.
Reflecting on his 28- year career in the upper house Senator Macdonald said one of his regrets was leaving the North without a representative.
“Now there’s talk that one of the others is going to move up here but I’ll believe that when I see it,” he said.
“You can’t breeze into town having spent all of your life living the capital city and suddenly understand what Northern Australia is all about.
“I’ve been in the North most of my life, so it’s part of me, and that’s what driven me for most of my career.”