Queensland MP’s Dirty Harry prank backfires

Queensland MP George Christensen has given Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull more Nationals headaches with a “bloody stupid” Facebook post of him wielding a gun.

Even though he has removed it, Christensen refused to accept there was anything wrong with the photo of himself pointing a

Australia

pistol with the caption: “You gotta ask yourself, do you feel lucky, greenie punks?”

His apparent attempt at a Dirty Harry-inspired joke came roughly 24 hours after Thursday’s school shooting that left 17 dead in Florida, and has sparked a complaint to federal police by the Australian Greens.

Christensen says it was a flippant comment that had left the Greens “wringing hands and crying”.

Turnbull, still dealing with the fallout from a stoush with Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce, faced more questions yesterday about the messages being sent out by the coalition’s junior partner. “It was very inappropriate and he took it down after he was spoken to about it,” he told 3AW radio. their

Liberal MP Warren Entsch was far more blunt.

“I think it was bloody stupid,” he told reporters.

Greens leader Richard Di Natale has referred the post to federal police and said Turnbull should force Christensen to resign. “This gives licence to people who are unhinged, to people who have violent attitudes, to act,” he said. — AAP