Source : Perth Now news
They were one, they were many and from all the lands on earth they came.
Or at least so sang attendees at the Conservative Political Action Conference as they swayed to I Am Australian, before a succession of speakers vowed to end so-called “mass immigration”.
Written by The Seekers’ Bruce Woodley and later recorded by singer Judith Durham with the late Yothu Yindi leader Dr M Yunupingu, the song was one of many contradictions surrounding the Brisbane event.
It was advertised as a call for unity between Australia’s warring conservative tribes, promising three leaders in one room with one goal – to remove the Albanese government.
But that couldn’t stop Liberal Party leader Angus Taylor, One Nation’s Pauline Hanson and the Nationals’ Matt Canavan taking shots at each other as they vowed to work together in a future three-way coalition.
Less than 18 months from the next federal election, Mr Taylor’s speech sounded like an appeal to the gathered faithful.
He promised to scrap Australia’s commitment to net zero under the Paris Agreement and end mass migration, and said he was happy to stand in front of three flags “as long as they are all Australian flags”.
At the end of his speech, he received a partial standing ovation.
Next up was Senator Hanson – and immediately, the remaining two-thirds of the crowd stood up.
She said One Nation would work with the Liberals and Nationals to remove the Albanese government, prompting more applause.
“I know what it means to put personal history aside and turn the other cheek,” she said.
“The Liberal Party threw me out, then they threw me in jail.
“I do have reasons to hold a grudge but I also have children and grandchildren … If I can put personal grievances aside for the sake of this country, others should be able to do the same.”
Senator Canavan – wearing a high-vis vest – later reminded Senator Hanson she had vowed to see Mr Taylor removed from his seat.
After praising people wearing high-vis as the hardest-working in the country, he cast shade on the vest’s colour – a reference to One Nation’s choice of orange.
Interviewed by Karl Stefanovic – who thanked the event for “rudely interrupting my unemployment”, referring to his termination by Nine in June – senators Hanson and Canavan continued to trade barbs and bonhomie.
Stefanovic, who hugged both his guests as they took the stage, asked when Australian conservatives would “get their shit together”.
Senator Canavan said the parties were in competition but were “big enough and ugly enough” to come together.
And he harked back nostalgically to the glory days of Australian manufacturing.
“We need to get back to making things in this country,” he said.
That included babies – but he said he and wife Andrea already had five and had done their bit for national productivity.
Interviewing Mr Taylor separately, Stefanovic asked him whether he or Senator Hanson would call the shots in a future Liberal-One Nation coalition.
“I know you’re obsessed with this,” Mr Taylor replied, as the room briefly erupted in jeers, drowning him out.
Notably absent from the event was Mr Taylor’s leadership rival Andrew Hastie, who has vowed never to work with One Nation.
Opening proceedings, conference chair Warren Mundine told an anecdote about bumping into Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen in Canberra.
“I looked at him and my body language gave me away,” Mr Mundine said.
“My mate had to grab me and say, ‘It doesn’t go well on your CV if you murder a federal minister’.”
The line drew laughter from the crowd.
Outside, a loud gathering of rainbow-coloured protesters attempted to disrupt the event.
They were comparatively few in number, but arguably more united than those gathered inside.
