Like most Australians, I was astonished to hear on the radio yesterday morning that Australia's Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard was planning to challenge the leadership of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.
Although Mr Rudd's stance on the Mining Super Tax, his backdown on the Emissions Trading Scheme, and his apparent laxity regarding asylum seekers were making him unpopular in the polls, he was, after all, the man who kept Australia out of recession during the global financial crisis of the past three years, making us unique amongst developed nations.
Despite my surprise, I was initially excited when I heard that we had our first female Prime Minister - and a red-headed woman to boot.
However, later in the day when I had the opportunity to see the news on television, I began to have some serious misgivings.
In spite of his faults, (it appears that Mr Rudd was a micromanager, and this 'centralised leadership style' alienated him from both business leaders and his Party) Mr Rudd was our elected leader. Prime Minister Gillard's coup seems an awful lot like bullying. And Australians don't like a bully.
While I am no particular fan of Opposition leader Tony Abbott, I am inclined to agree with him that ''a midnight knock on the door followed by an assassination is no way to treat a prime minister.''
What do you think about Australia's new Prime Minister?
Although Mr Rudd's stance on the Mining Super Tax, his backdown on the Emissions Trading Scheme, and his apparent laxity regarding asylum seekers were making him unpopular in the polls, he was, after all, the man who kept Australia out of recession during the global financial crisis of the past three years, making us unique amongst developed nations.
Despite my surprise, I was initially excited when I heard that we had our first female Prime Minister - and a red-headed woman to boot.
However, later in the day when I had the opportunity to see the news on television, I began to have some serious misgivings.
In spite of his faults, (it appears that Mr Rudd was a micromanager, and this 'centralised leadership style' alienated him from both business leaders and his Party) Mr Rudd was our elected leader. Prime Minister Gillard's coup seems an awful lot like bullying. And Australians don't like a bully.
While I am no particular fan of Opposition leader Tony Abbott, I am inclined to agree with him that ''a midnight knock on the door followed by an assassination is no way to treat a prime minister.''
What do you think about Australia's new Prime Minister?
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