Speaker 1: Live on Sky News.
Speaker 2: This is Shari.
Speaker 3: Good evening and welcome to the show.
Speaker 1: I'm Danikiti, Giorgio filling in this week for Shari Marksen
Speaker 1: coming up tonight. The nauseating charm offensive continues. Our Prime
Speaker 1: Minister cuddles up to China. But what did he actually
Speaker 1: raise with the Chinese President?
Speaker 3: Today?
Speaker 1: Unions push for a Gillard style carbon policy to lower
Speaker 1: the cost of net zero. Bartaba Joyce is standing by
Speaker 1: ready to fire up. Is this shaping up as the
Speaker 1: first broken promise of Labour's new term? First the Treasurer
Speaker 1: tells us he's relaxed about tax hikes and now it
Speaker 1: seems he's open to the idea. And Donald Trump issues
Speaker 1: Vladimir Putin with a fifty day ultimatum end the war
Speaker 1: in Ukraine or face one hundred percent tariffs. But first tonight,
Speaker 1: hard conversations needed to be had today when the Prime
Speaker 1: Minister met with Chinese President Shijing Ping in Beijing. But
Speaker 1: judging by the Prime Minister's press conference after, Albo is
Speaker 1: just cuddling up to China.
Speaker 3: And I'll show you that in a moment. But look
Speaker 3: it was all smiles.
Speaker 1: Today and her boy was like watching two lifelong best
Speaker 1: friends fall and over each other.
Speaker 4: With joint efforts from both states, the Channel Australia relationship
Speaker 4: has rouse from the setback and turned around, bringing tangible
Speaker 4: benefits to the Chinese and Australian peoples. The most important
Speaker 4: thing we can learn from this is that a commitment
Speaker 4: to equal treatment, to seeking common ground while sharing differences.
Speaker 5: I note your comments in your opening remarks about seeking
Speaker 5: common ground while sharing differences. That approach has indeed produced
Speaker 5: very positive benefits for both Australia and for China.
Speaker 1: Has it really all that common ground? Anthony Albanese even
Speaker 1: posting this picture of the two of them getting excited
Speaker 1: by that shared common ground, except, of course, this is China.
Speaker 1: We are dealing with our greatest strategic threat and there
Speaker 1: isn't a lot of common ground to work with. Remember
Speaker 1: the live fire drills off our coasts, the spy ships
Speaker 1: sent our way, the military near missus, the punative tariffs
Speaker 1: on Australian goods, and a lack of investigation into the.
Speaker 3: Origins of coronavirus.
Speaker 1: Even today, a group of Australian TV journalists, including from
Speaker 1: Sky News, were blocked from getting on their bus by
Speaker 1: local security officials before that meeting began and were told
Speaker 1: to hand over their footage for viewing by Chinese police,
Speaker 1: and luckily Australian embassy officials successfully intervened. What was that
Speaker 1: again about common ground? In fact, I am willing to
Speaker 1: bet Anthony Arbanzi went into the meeting with President She
Speaker 1: with a shopping list of grievances between our two countries,
Speaker 1: barely said Boom, and judging by his press conference after
Speaker 1: the meeting, it doesn't really leave you with much hope
Speaker 1: as to how strongly he prosecuted the issue of live
Speaker 1: fire drills and spy ships.
Speaker 6: Did you seek assurances that Australia would be better informed
Speaker 6: in future about the PLA's navy in Australian waters? And
Speaker 6: has China asserted its right to free navigation in those waters?
Speaker 5: Yes to the former. And secondly, in response, of course
Speaker 5: it was president she said that China engaged in exercises
Speaker 5: just as Australia engages in exercises.
Speaker 1: Well, look good to know what she said, So you
Speaker 1: know all must be okay? Then why is the Prime
Speaker 1: Minister acting as a mouthpiece for the president. So the
Speaker 1: journalist then sought classic for clarification.
Speaker 6: So can I just clarify on that answer that you
Speaker 6: specifically thought that the notification was really issue that Australia
Speaker 6: had had earlier in the year.
Speaker 5: I said what I said at the time, which was
Speaker 5: that it was within international law. There was no breach
Speaker 5: of international law by China, but that we were concerned
Speaker 5: about the notice and the way that it happened, including
Speaker 5: the live fire exercises.
Speaker 3: Oh well, that settles it, then, doesn't it.
Speaker 1: The live fire drills were all above board, and so
Speaker 1: the journalists sought clarification again.
Speaker 3: And once again the answer was just as bad.
Speaker 7: The military build up and what its purpose is, what
Speaker 7: china strategic and military aims.
Speaker 5: Are, well, you would be surprised if that was brought forward.
Speaker 5: I'm not sure what you're getting out of what you're
Speaker 5: suggesting might be. So I'm not sure the context.
Speaker 7: Well, your government's raised concerns about the military build up,
Speaker 7: the lack of clarity around what it might be used for.
Speaker 7: Do you feel confident that China is a force for
Speaker 7: peace in the region after this meeting or do you know.
Speaker 5: What we did was we put forward Australia's position or
Speaker 5: I did, which is that we want peace and security
Speaker 5: in the region.
Speaker 1: The Prime minister has given a stronger position on China's
Speaker 1: interests than the Australian and listening to that it makes
Speaker 1: you wonder how little was said by albo. The Prime
Speaker 1: Minister also confirmed the Port of Darwin was not raised
Speaker 1: despite promising to take it back from China.
Speaker 5: I don't need to sorry to jump in none. It
Speaker 5: wasn't raised. I can't be clear.
Speaker 7: As any were any issues raised by him.
Speaker 5: I can't be clearer than to say the question I
Speaker 5: was asked was not raised.
Speaker 1: Look, this is a prime minister who is so scared
Speaker 1: of offending the Australians. A foreign editor, Greg Sheridan actually
Speaker 1: summarized very well the Port of Darwin's situation today.
Speaker 8: But because Canberra is so nervous, so fearful, so hesertat
Speaker 8: And if you want the company to sell the lease,
Speaker 8: tell them to sell the lease. If they won't sell it,
Speaker 8: then take it back as an active government.
Speaker 3: Then the matter is done and.
Speaker 8: Resolved at the moment. Because a coward dies a thousand deaths,
Speaker 8: and Australian governments are so cowardly we're just trembling and
Speaker 8: in terror time after time.
Speaker 1: But this was, of course Albanesi's fourth meeting with China,
Speaker 1: and that roundtable, as you can see there on the
Speaker 1: bottom of your screens, is still going.
Speaker 3: The meetings today are still happening.
Speaker 1: And gee, it's such a strange situation because our Prime
Speaker 1: minister is out there looking like the best friend of Shijingping,
Speaker 1: while at the same time at odds and alienating our
Speaker 1: number one ally in the United States. And this visit
Speaker 1: comes as the US is demanding we lift defense spending
Speaker 1: and clarify our position on Taiwan should China go to war. Now,
Speaker 1: of course the US is watching this extended visit to
Speaker 1: China closely, and Shijingping has the handsome boy exactly where
Speaker 1: he wants him. Even before today's meeting, The China Daily,
Speaker 1: Beijing's mouthpiece, praise their handsome boy in an editorial called
Speaker 1: common ground prevails over differences. It said Australian PM Anthony
Speaker 1: Albanesi's ongoing visit to China is not only of significance
Speaker 1: for the bilateral and trade relations between the two countries,
Speaker 1: it also sends a message amid the changing global trade landscape.
Speaker 1: Nothing like the kiss on the forehead from communist China,
Speaker 1: And why wouldn't there be I mean, remember when the
Speaker 1: Chinese conducted those live fire drills off our coast, and
Speaker 1: the Prime Minister went into nothing to see here mode?
Speaker 9: Is this time just to take us down to against
Speaker 9: China publicly against about their actions.
Speaker 5: Well, it's important as well, and Defense have confirmed that
Speaker 5: China did comply with the international law. This is activity
Speaker 5: that has occurred in m waters consistent with international law.
Speaker 5: Australian Defense were certainly.
Speaker 10: Aware.
Speaker 1: Or how about when a Chinese ship was gathering intelligence
Speaker 1: off the coast.
Speaker 5: We won't, for obvious reasons, broadcast everything that we're doing,
Speaker 5: but we're keeping an eye on this as we do.
Speaker 5: Of course, I would prefer that it wasn't.
Speaker 1: There, and obviously it's gotten worse since our ADF is
Speaker 1: preparing for the arrival of Chinese spy vessels monitoring Operation
Speaker 1: Talisman Saber.
Speaker 3: But the Prime Minister again isn't fast.
Speaker 5: That would be nothing unusual that has happened in the past,
Speaker 5: and I'll continue to assert Australia's national interest as I
Speaker 5: do so.
Speaker 1: It's no wonder Beijing's mouthpiece was all praise for our PM,
Speaker 1: even noting his extended stay in China is notably long
Speaker 1: for a state leader. It went on to say, Albanesi's
Speaker 1: visit shows that the Australian side has a clearer judgment
Speaker 1: and understanding of China than it had under previous Scott
Speaker 1: Morrison government. Well, of course, China is all praise for labor,
Speaker 1: not Scott Morrison. I mean, how dare the former Prime
Speaker 1: Minister asked the hard hitting questions on the origins of COVID,
Speaker 1: what happened in the Wuhan lab, China's ambitions in the
Speaker 1: South China Sea, and on the punitive tariffs imposed on
Speaker 1: Australian goods like lobster, barley and wine.
Speaker 3: Everything Albo wouldn't dare touch.
Speaker 1: Scott Morrison has responded, telling The Australian having a character
Speaker 1: reference from the China Daily was never one of my
Speaker 1: foreign policy aspirations.
Speaker 3: Well, I say wear it as a badge of honor now.
Speaker 1: The difference between Anthony Albernesi and Scott Morrison, of course,
Speaker 1: is that Albo is an.
Speaker 3: Apologist for China.
Speaker 1: China has eagerly responded to his weakness, throwing its support
Speaker 1: publicly behind Anthony Albanesi while trying to drive a wedge
Speaker 1: between Australia and the United States, and experts agree.
Speaker 2: It seemed to me that the most important the goal
Speaker 2: of a chigin King ridin in this visit, it's to
Speaker 2: divide the United States of the deliot.
Speaker 3: Which of course works very well for Beijing.
Speaker 1: And it seems as though this Prime Minister is all
Speaker 1: caught up in the hype and spin. Anthony Arbernezi has
Speaker 1: always been weak when it comes to foreign policy. That
Speaker 1: is why he can't stand up for our values on
Speaker 1: the world stage. That is why the PM cannot get
Speaker 1: a meeting with Donald Trump. That is why Australia is
Speaker 1: drifting away from the US from a long standing alliance
Speaker 1: and straight into the arms of China, blinded by the
Speaker 1: Beijing pomp and ceremony with promises of free trade and.
Speaker 3: Seeking common ground.
Speaker 1: And let's be real, China couldn't give a toss about
Speaker 1: seeking common ground. China does what China wants. It's just
Speaker 1: a shame the handsome man from Australia is so dizzied
Speaker 1: by the red lights. Joining us now to unpack this
Speaker 1: is former Liberal Senator Holly Hughes and former Speaker of
Speaker 1: the House Bromwin, Bishop heart of both of you, thank
Speaker 1: you very much for joining.
Speaker 3: Me on the show.
Speaker 1: Look let's obviously start bromwin with this meeting today between
Speaker 1: Shijingping and Anthony alban Easy.
Speaker 3: Based on the.
Speaker 1: Comments that we just heard from Anthony alb and Easy
Speaker 1: at that press conference, how satisfied are you that these
Speaker 1: issues were prosecuted by the Prime Minister.
Speaker 11: Quite frankly, he sounded more like the governor of a
Speaker 11: vassal state paying homage to the dominant state rather than
Speaker 11: the Prime minister of a sovereign state of Australia. And
Speaker 11: I found the whole episode very concerning. Indeed, I noticed
Speaker 11: that mister Forrest popped up and said, oh, we must
Speaker 11: have an agreement on AI and the Communist Party of
Speaker 11: China giving them access to all of our information. I
Speaker 11: don't think so. We didn't see him stand up for
Speaker 11: Australia once. We didn't see him stand.
Speaker 10: Up for the.
Speaker 11: Diver who was damaged by the sonars from Communist Party ships.
Speaker 11: We didn't see him stand up for the pilot who
Speaker 11: was threatened when they were doing.
Speaker 3: A surveillance flying.
Speaker 11: And we certainly didn't hear anything about the live fire
Speaker 11: around our coastline, mapping out no doubt all the cables
Speaker 11: that link us up and then saying twenty five percent
Speaker 11: of our trade is tied up in China, and he
Speaker 11: wants more.
Speaker 10: I want less.
Speaker 3: I don't want to be dependent.
Speaker 11: I want to see our trade diversify, absolutely. And if
Speaker 11: we don't start to do that and don't backtrack, And
Speaker 11: you know, Richo has a good statement about socialist culture.
Speaker 11: If you're rat once, you're rat twice. And the fact
Speaker 11: of the matter is that when it was Maurice Paine
Speaker 11: who said, led to us where COVID came from, wham,
Speaker 11: we copped all those tariffs. There was a discussion here
Speaker 11: today by bloggers in China about the port of Darwin
Speaker 11: coming back to us. What did they say, Well, we
Speaker 11: might buy your iron ore. It's the same thing. So
Speaker 11: never mind about what Donald Trump's doing. What is China
Speaker 11: going to do to us? The more we become dependent
Speaker 11: upon them, we can be destroyed by means other than
Speaker 11: a live fire That can come later. But in the
Speaker 11: first instance, the Communist Party of China is just that,
Speaker 11: the Communist Party dictatorship, no human rights, no individuality, none
Speaker 11: of the things that we cherish in this nation. And
Speaker 11: that Prime Minister sounded like the governor of a vassal
Speaker 11: state wanting to suck up.
Speaker 3: I think you're spot on.
Speaker 1: This is why here, Bronnie, I think perfectly perfectly summarized.
Speaker 1: But Holly, this is why China could not give a
Speaker 1: toss about this common ground that both she and Albineazi
Speaker 1: spoke about.
Speaker 3: Today they do whatever they want to do, and that
Speaker 3: is the dangerous part.
Speaker 12: Look, Rovin's one hundred percent right when she talks about trade,
Speaker 12: and we saw how we were impacted when there were
Speaker 12: particularly wine lobsters were so reliant on China that as
Speaker 12: soon as their trade was stopped, these producers had nowhere
Speaker 12: to go. We do need to diversify those producers, need
Speaker 12: to not get comfortable in the China basket and start
Speaker 12: to open up their markets so they're not impacted by
Speaker 12: the whims of a communist regime.
Speaker 10: But we need to be really sensible here.
Speaker 12: We've got Chinese inverters attached to most of the solar
Speaker 12: panels in this nation. The ability for China to impact
Speaker 12: our energy markets and shut us down is becoming more
Speaker 12: and more a reality of being able to occur. The
Speaker 12: fact they want to access to AI and materials. I mean,
Speaker 12: I'm starting to think mister Abnezi wants to saw walking
Speaker 12: around saying mee, how soon because he is moving us
Speaker 12: so close to China. It is actually embarrassing to be
Speaker 12: Australian and how challenging things the geopolitical environment is at
Speaker 12: the moment. Yet he seems absolutely unwilling to stand up
Speaker 12: for Australians. Had no consideration for people that were in
Speaker 12: those airplanes that had to be diverted over the live.
Speaker 10: Fire that was notified. They were notified off by Virgin pilots.
Speaker 12: This is unbelievable that this guy has any credibility standing
Speaker 12: up there at all.
Speaker 10: That Australians need to wake up.
Speaker 12: They need to wake up and understand what this guy's
Speaker 12: doing because he's leading us down a very dangerous path.
Speaker 1: Absolutely, when he was all at sea today in that
Speaker 1: press conference, you look completely flustered. But the bright lights,
Speaker 1: the bright red lights, just keep shining and that's all
Speaker 1: that is important to our Prime minister. Now, look after
Speaker 1: an embarrassing gaff from Treasury which saw official advice to
Speaker 1: Jim Chalmers about hiking taxes released, it seems the Treasurer
Speaker 1: is on board with the idea after all. I mean
Speaker 1: yesterday he told us he was relaxed about the leak
Speaker 1: today he tells us he's open to a number of
Speaker 1: methods for making the budget more sustainable.
Speaker 13: When you make the kind of progress that we've made
Speaker 13: on budget repair, two surplus's biggest ever noomenal turnaround in
Speaker 13: the budget, and a single parliamentary term getting the Liberal
Speaker 13: debt down by one hundred and seventy billion dollars, that
Speaker 13: always involves a combination of measures.
Speaker 1: And let's not forget that you can't trust a word
Speaker 1: this government says when it comes to monetary policy.
Speaker 5: That when you go to an election and you make commitments,
Speaker 5: you should stick to My word is my bond?
Speaker 1: My word is my bond? Run when that tap from
Speaker 1: this line. But look, this was always going to happen.
Speaker 1: Was it over that the Prime Minister a couple of
Speaker 1: weeks ago was talking about tax reform. Now you've got
Speaker 1: Jim Chalmers open to this idea. Do you think it's
Speaker 1: on the agenda?
Speaker 11: Look, the snake charmer is precisely that. The only fact
Speaker 11: that you can rely on. He said before the election,
Speaker 11: the budget's in great shape, he said after the election
Speaker 11: it's unsustainable. Of course he wants more taxation. Of course
Speaker 11: he's looking at ways to further tax the Australian people.
Speaker 11: And what do we see. We'll see wealth taxes, We'll
Speaker 11: see death TAXX.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 11: Well, indeed, their Labor Party has always been in favor
Speaker 11: of death taxes, and it has to be thought and
Speaker 11: the Liberal Party has to be out there first and
Speaker 11: foremost saying this cannot happen. But if you look at
Speaker 11: what they've done, one hundred and forty four billion dollars
Speaker 11: in expenditure, and he's trying to tell us he's lessoned expenditure.
Speaker 11: And furthermore, it's built into the forward estimates. So we're
Speaker 11: in a situation where we've got a I call him
Speaker 11: the snake charmer because it's all illusion and he tells
Speaker 11: us one thing when reality is totally another. And this
Speaker 11: idea of productivity increase, everything they did in the first term,
Speaker 11: from industrial relations to increasing the cost of energy has
Speaker 11: made sure that our productivity.
Speaker 10: Went that way.
Speaker 11: And unless we see look our top three expenditures that
Speaker 11: have got to be examined. We've got the NDIS, we've
Speaker 11: got defense, and we've got the negative. We've got the
Speaker 11: energy policies that they're pursuing. We can't afford all three. Now,
Speaker 11: if you stop rewiring the nation, which is trillions of dollars,
Speaker 11: so we can afford increased defense and we can afford
Speaker 11: the NDA is absolutely.
Speaker 3: I also wonder was this even a leak from Treasury.
Speaker 1: I can't help us think was this a deliberate ploy
Speaker 1: to try and soften the blow?
Speaker 12: You sort of wondered, don't you, whether they were just
Speaker 12: kind of softening the ground up a bit that this
Speaker 12: is how things aren't going great. I mean, look, it's
Speaker 12: not a good look for them. The Treasury is saying,
Speaker 12: there's no way you're going to meet your housing targets,
Speaker 12: there's no way you're going to keep the budget in
Speaker 12: check if you don't raise taxes and reduce spending. And
Speaker 12: I think that's you know, it wasn't one or the
Speaker 12: other either.
Speaker 10: It wasn't tax and spend.
Speaker 3: You know in reduction.
Speaker 12: It was you know, you're going to have to raise
Speaker 12: taxes and find a way to cut spending at the
Speaker 12: same time, and they're just not capable of it.
Speaker 10: But it's you know, we talk about the ndias.
Speaker 12: Before this government came in, Bill Shorten referred to the
Speaker 12: coalition as KABOOKI playing pearl clutches when we tried to
Speaker 12: make changes to the ndis around sustainability.
Speaker 10: And then of course the first thing he did.
Speaker 12: Bill Shortened when he became minister was coming and say,
Speaker 12: oh guess what, it's not sustainable. But yet through three
Speaker 12: years of government, no one was prepared to put their
Speaker 12: big boy pants on and do anything about it. And
Speaker 12: I think this is what we're going to say. And
Speaker 12: now the fact they can get everything through the Senate
Speaker 12: with the grains, it actually looks like it could get
Speaker 12: a whole lot worse rather than better.
Speaker 11: This is why it's so important that the Opposition comes
Speaker 11: out and says we're abandoning net zero by twenty fifty
Speaker 11: because it's impossible to reach and it's not desirable to reach.
Speaker 11: And if we stopped building this ridiculous rewiring of the nation,
Speaker 11: think of all the tradesmen who'd be released and would
Speaker 11: be able to go into building.
Speaker 3: Homesh I mean it.
Speaker 12: Distorlled red tape they've put on absolutely everything. The compliance
Speaker 12: costs the costs of doing business, and every time businesses
Speaker 12: turn around, they're looking at whacking another another impost on them,
Speaker 12: and it's it's the compliance cost alone is driving more
Speaker 12: businesses than ever out of business.
Speaker 10: Well, these guys just don't know what they're doing.
Speaker 1: I mean, why would you want to go into business
Speaker 1: in this country? You wouldn't know, You just wouldn't Energy policy,
Speaker 1: I our laws is just so many issues.
Speaker 3: I follow you.
Speaker 1: We run out of time. Holly, who's a rollin bishop.
Speaker 1: Good to have you both on probams on five.
Speaker 3: She could energize the name both on fire.
Speaker 1: It's a big day. There's a lot going on, isn't there?
Speaker 1: And I want to get our next guest's opinion on that.
Speaker 1: Anthony Albernezi. Of course, meeting with President Hu jing Ping
Speaker 1: in China today, let's bring the former Deputy Prime Minister
Speaker 1: and National MP Barnaby Joyce, Barbaby are good to see you.
Speaker 3: I want to play you a bit of audio.
Speaker 1: This is what the Prime Minister said about what he
Speaker 1: raised with she about those live fire drills and spy
Speaker 1: ships off our coast.
Speaker 3: Have a listened to this?
Speaker 6: Did you seek assurances that Australia would be better informed
Speaker 6: in future about the PLA's navy in Australian waters? And
Speaker 6: has China asserted its right to free navigation in those waters?
Speaker 5: Yes to the former and secondly, in response, of course
Speaker 5: it was president She said that China engaged in exercises
Speaker 5: just as Australia engages in exercises.
Speaker 1: Barnaby, he's telling us there what cheating Ping said, not
Speaker 1: what he said. Does it leave you with much hope
Speaker 1: about how strongly this was prosecuted?
Speaker 14: No, it seems like the negotiation. It reminds you of
Speaker 14: a sort of negotiations with the communist crocodile. You know,
Speaker 14: he went in and saw them and he said, you know,
Speaker 14: did you bring up live our exercises? I guess And
Speaker 14: what happened, Well, the communist crocodile just sort of stared
Speaker 14: at me, And what about the port of Darwin just
Speaker 14: sort of stared at me? And what did you actually
Speaker 14: get out of this from the communist crocodile and a
Speaker 14: not insensitive just sort of staring at me. And I
Speaker 14: think that's where it is that you know, China, even
Speaker 14: the whole way it meets you, the whole way you
Speaker 14: walk into the room, it's telling you your place in
Speaker 14: the world. And it's not with China. It is expecting
Speaker 14: deference to it. The ultimate goal under sort of a
Speaker 14: Chinese totalitarian regime is for us to be a vassal state.
Speaker 14: Now I've had concerns about this right back, even when
Speaker 14: Tony Abbott was the Prime minist the same I've got
Speaker 14: to change our foreign investment laws. We've got to be
Speaker 14: really careful of Chinese state owned enterprises. This can get
Speaker 14: out of control. I was called a bigot, a racist,
Speaker 14: a redneck xenophobe, and now I'm just called correct and
Speaker 14: you see there. I think it's really concerning if you,
Speaker 14: after all the hype, when we sit back and watch this,
Speaker 14: we'll see that the communist crocodile basically said, look at me,
Speaker 14: I'm big, I'm savage, I have the I'm I'm going
Speaker 14: to wander around chasing you and sort of nachurally kill
Speaker 14: things for the purpose of it, but you're going to
Speaker 14: respect me. And the crocodile doesn't have to listen, you know,
Speaker 14: to the person on the side of the pond. Just
Speaker 14: just be careful. That's what I got out of this.
Speaker 14: Be really, really careful, and let's remember that we've got
Speaker 14: to become as powerful as possible as quickly as possible,
Speaker 14: otherwise we're in real trouble.
Speaker 3: Absolutely.
Speaker 1: I mean, maybe the crocodile Barnaby can be the official
Speaker 1: mascot of this tour. I think you're absolutely spot on there.
Speaker 3: Now, look, I've got to ask you about this story.
Speaker 3: We know I mentioned this just before.
Speaker 1: Actually labor has never been on the side of business
Speaker 1: energy policy ie our laws.
Speaker 3: Why would you want to go into business right now?
Speaker 1: But now the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry is
Speaker 1: warning that the government's overly ambitious twenty thirty five emissions
Speaker 1: reduction target will undermine the productivity, competitiveness and viability of
Speaker 1: local industry. Well, there's absolutely no doubt about that, barnaby.
Speaker 1: But at the same time, unions are calling for a
Speaker 1: Julia Gillard style price on carbon to be considered to
Speaker 1: lower the cost of net zero. G Bartabe, go figure,
Speaker 1: I mean a carbon price now, because that was just
Speaker 1: so popular under Gillard.
Speaker 3: It works so well, didn't it.
Speaker 14: It was a disaster and this whole energy process in
Speaker 14: Australi as a disaster. And leaking these two topics to Nika.
Speaker 14: If we are to become as powerful as possible, as
Speaker 14: quickly as possible, you better ditch net zero in a big,
Speaker 14: big hurry. And got to understand that it won't be
Speaker 14: a war against the weather. It won't be your capacity
Speaker 14: to deal with the rain to be this ludicrous idea
Speaker 14: that you can change droughts and change floods and Chris
Speaker 14: Bowen can basically stop frosts or bring frost on or
Speaker 14: whatever it is. The real issue that's before you is
Speaker 14: the geopolitical circumstances of the area in which we live,
Speaker 14: and a carbon tax is not going to help that.
Speaker 14: It's just going to be more costs. And I was
Speaker 14: a bit disturbed, a bit disappointed actually in Rio Tinto
Speaker 14: because they sort of you know that they try this
Speaker 14: dance to sort of garner favor with the government. Oh well,
Speaker 14: you know, a carbon price should be considered, but we
Speaker 14: also want more billions of dollars of subsidies from the government.
Speaker 14: You know, this is just taxpayers money. All these billions
Speaker 14: of dollars going to those wind towers, the indimendal power precincts,
Speaker 14: the swindle factories, the money that you pay in your
Speaker 14: power bill. This is really hurting Australia and I don't know.
Speaker 14: We need an epiphany across all parties to basically understand
Speaker 14: that if we are going to hand to our children
Speaker 14: a nation that can sustain itself, a nation that is strong,
Speaker 14: then you better redirect your priorities away from this insane
Speaker 14: belief that from Canberra, from Parman House, we can change
Speaker 14: the temperature of the globe.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 1: Look, absolutely spot on, and we spoke about this earlier
Speaker 1: in the week. Barnaby, obviously you're looking to introduce a
Speaker 1: private member's bill.
Speaker 3: You want net zero, you want it scrapped completely, you
Speaker 3: are absolutely done with it.
Speaker 1: I have to mention to you that I had Pauline
Speaker 1: Hanson on the show last night and I spoke to
Speaker 1: her about your Private Members bill, and she's offered you
Speaker 1: an invitation. She's saying, well, why doesn't Barnabe Joyce come
Speaker 1: and join One Nation? And she was very, very firm
Speaker 1: on that she wants you to join the party. So
Speaker 1: I've got to ask you, would you ever go to
Speaker 1: One Nation? Would you ever consider it?
Speaker 14: Look, if no, Pauline supports getting rid of net zero,
Speaker 14: I know she does. I know Paulinbers I support that too.
Speaker 14: But it's not about changing parties or doing that. It's
Speaker 14: about getting our nation into a strong position. I want
Speaker 14: all parties to ditch net zero. I don't believe I'm
Speaker 14: going to have any luck with the Labor pain and
Speaker 14: the Greens, well you know their crocodile food. But what
Speaker 14: we've got to We've got to get the coalition to
Speaker 14: get out of net zero. I mean, we need we
Speaker 14: just it isn't you know? You can't sort of wave
Speaker 14: the flag on Australia Day, say how patriotic you are,
Speaker 14: and then stand behind a policy which brings our nation
Speaker 14: to its needs, which is deindustrializing our nation. We're down
Speaker 14: to two oil refineries. We've lost our plastic industry. We're
Speaker 14: about to lose our aliuminium industry unless I get billions
Speaker 14: of dollars of subsidies. We've lost our manufacturing glass. We're
Speaker 14: losing the concrete industry. We're losing our fertilizer industry. Our
Speaker 14: grid is a joke. No one can afford it. It's intermittent,
Speaker 14: unreliable and superly expensive. There is no manufacturing moving to
Speaker 14: Australia or it's all talking about moving out. And we're
Speaker 14: doing this to ourselves because we honestly, I mean, if
Speaker 14: you close your eyes and say to yourself, I can
Speaker 14: change the weather and just tape yourself and then play
Speaker 14: it back to yourself, you go, that's insane. But that's
Speaker 14: what our nation's saying that we by ourselves because China's
Speaker 14: not on this gi. America's not on this gig. India's
Speaker 14: not on this gig. Indonesia's not on it, Brazil's not
Speaker 14: on it. It's not happening globally in a majority form
Speaker 14: at all. But we in Australia believe that we can
Speaker 14: change the rain amazing.
Speaker 3: And causing irreparable self harm.
Speaker 1: Vira a system of batteries, wind farms, green hydrogen.
Speaker 3: I mean, the list goes on.
Speaker 1: Meanwhile, these projects are either delayed or getting canceled right now,
Speaker 1: Barnaby Joyce. But we're just continuing on this renewables only crusade,
Speaker 1: over and over again. Barnaby Joyce. Good to have you
Speaker 1: on as always. Thank you very much for joining me
Speaker 1: on the show this evening.
Speaker 3: Appreciate it. Well still to come.
Speaker 1: Jim Chalmers is out spreaking his upcoming productivity round table,
Speaker 1: but is it nothing more than a talk fest? Judo
Speaker 1: Banks Economic Advisor Warren Hogan will join me. Plus Alban
Speaker 1: Easy will not pick a side in the conflict over Taiwan.
Speaker 1: Forum CEO Dr Ross Babbage will have the latest analysis
Speaker 1: that's next. Welcome back, well, Anthony Albanezi says Chinese President
Speaker 1: Hijingping did not raise the increasing pressure the US was
Speaker 1: placing on Australia and other allies to join a conflict
Speaker 1: over Taiwan. Let's bring in Strategic Forum CEO Dr Ross
Speaker 1: Babbage now for more on this, Ross, thanks for joining me.
Speaker 3: How much is China looking to drive a wedge between.
Speaker 1: Australia and the United States, And how much is the
Speaker 1: handsome boy from Australia playing into Beijing's hands.
Speaker 15: Well, it's good to be with you. Look, I think
Speaker 15: Jijinping and the Chinese Communist Party would love to draw
Speaker 15: to push a great, big wedge between Australia and the
Speaker 15: United States. I don't think that's going to happen, and
Speaker 15: I think Gijinping realizes that. But I think he sees
Speaker 15: an opportunity for easing Australia or trying to persuade Australia
Speaker 15: to distance itself more, become less connected to the United States.
Speaker 15: And I think that's a lot of their strategy right now,
Speaker 15: and we'll probably see more of that sort of activity
Speaker 15: in the weeks and months ahead.
Speaker 1: How closely do you think would the US be watching
Speaker 1: Anthony Albanese's extended trip to China, particularly our time would
Speaker 1: of course it's seeking clarification on our position on Taiwan
Speaker 1: and wants us to lift defense spending.
Speaker 15: Well, yes, I'm sure the Americans are looking very closely
Speaker 15: at everything that's the Prime Minister's saying, and other members
Speaker 15: of Cabinet and for that matter, other Australians and some
Speaker 15: of the debates that have taken place here. They're very concerned.
Speaker 15: I think they're very concerned on two or three key fronts.
Speaker 15: Are Firstly, they're really worried about the level of defense expenditure.
Speaker 15: They've been pretty direct, even publicly about their perception that
Speaker 15: we need to lift our game, and I think they're
Speaker 15: not trying to exclude themselves from this. They realize they've
Speaker 15: got to lift their game as well, because the circumstances
Speaker 15: that we find ourselves in the Western Pacific are much
Speaker 15: much more dangerous than they have ever been really since
Speaker 15: the Second World War, and because we're talking about a
Speaker 15: situation where the set of global conflict and power and
Speaker 15: is not on the other side of the world as
Speaker 15: it was during the Cold War. It's right just beyond
Speaker 15: our doorstep, just to our north. And if there were
Speaker 15: to be a major clash or crisis in East Asia.
Speaker 15: Let's say over Taiwan. It's very likely if that developed
Speaker 15: into a major conflict that we ourselves would be intimately involved.
Speaker 15: We would be attacked a number of our facilities and
Speaker 15: other things would be affected very soon, and we need
Speaker 15: to be prepared for that. And the Americans realize that,
Speaker 15: and they realize that not just for our interests, although
Speaker 15: they're concerned about that, but for their own interest too,
Speaker 15: because they see Australia as playing a critical role in
Speaker 15: helping the United States conduct its own operations in the theater.
Speaker 3: Yeah, and look no doubt about it.
Speaker 1: Let's discuss the reports in The Australian Today that former
Speaker 1: Prime Minister and ORCUS skeptic Malcolm Turnbull discussed the packs
Speaker 1: problems with Pentagon.
Speaker 3: Policy chief Eldridge Colby.
Speaker 1: It says the pair are understood to have canvassed arranged
Speaker 1: of topics about which mister Turnbull has spoken in recent weeks,
Speaker 1: including the need for Australia to reclaim greater sovereignty and
Speaker 1: independence in world affairs by standing more firmly on its
Speaker 1: own two feet. Ross, I know that you are actually
Speaker 1: a colleague and you're a friend of Elbridge Colby. Do
Speaker 1: you think that Malcolm Turble's interventions are helpful right now?
Speaker 11: Oh?
Speaker 14: Look, I think.
Speaker 15: Bridge Colby's a very professional and he understands Australia very well.
Speaker 15: In fact, he really likes Australia a lot. And in fact,
Speaker 15: he said that in the testimony he gave to in
Speaker 15: his confirmation hearing in the US Senate, he made it
Speaker 15: very clear in fact that of all the allies the
Speaker 15: United States has, he regards Australia as the closest, and
Speaker 15: he has greater for this place and for a lot
Speaker 15: of Australians, And so he likes talking to Australians. And
Speaker 15: I'm not at all surprised that we've had a former
Speaker 15: Prime Minister who, of course champion in the case for
Speaker 15: a French submarine to be bought by Australia and developed here.
Speaker 15: When that was overturned, I think he, you know, there's
Speaker 15: a sense of real regret in his mind, perhaps if
Speaker 15: been a degree of a grudge almost against Scott Morrison
Speaker 15: for leading the charge in developing the Orchestra Plan. So look,
Speaker 15: I think it's Bridge Colby can understand the dynamics that
Speaker 15: are happening here. He has been immersed in East Asian
Speaker 15: security planning and thinking for a long time. And I
Speaker 15: know how you know, we've been tik taking with each
Speaker 15: other for many years and reading each other's material. He
Speaker 15: is he will just put this in the right context
Speaker 15: and he would see this conversation with Malcolm Turnbull or
Speaker 15: a set of conversations has really just been part of
Speaker 15: the bigger mosaic and he talks to a lot of
Speaker 15: Australians and that's as it should be.
Speaker 3: Yeah, look fair enough. Will be interesting though to see
Speaker 3: what happens from here on in. There's a lot at stake.
Speaker 1: Dr Ross Babbage, thank you very much for your time
Speaker 1: this evening, really appreciate it.
Speaker 3: Well, let's move on now.
Speaker 1: We spoke earlier about Jim Chalmers being open to new
Speaker 1: taxes suggested in an accidentally leaked memo by the Treasury.
Speaker 1: For more on this, I'm joined by Judo Banks, Chief
Speaker 1: Economic Advisort, Warren Hogan.
Speaker 3: Warren, good to see you.
Speaker 1: As always, Treasury is worried about the sustainability of the budget,
Speaker 1: projecting deficits for the next four years. Is there a
Speaker 1: real urgency here for change? Why would this be the
Speaker 1: advice at this stage to raise taxes.
Speaker 5: Yeah, good evening.
Speaker 16: I think the leak, while looking a little bit like
Speaker 16: Paul Keating's banana a public speech, was more likely to
Speaker 16: be inadvertent, and of course this is advice for the
Speaker 16: new government. But it does highlight that the fairly rosy
Speaker 16: picture painted of our government finances at the pre election
Speaker 16: budget may not be as rosy as implied. And of
Speaker 16: course I think there is also some concern here that
Speaker 16: there could be adverse economic circumstances for this country which
Speaker 16: could see our budget deterior rate quite rapidly in an
Speaker 16: environment whereas you've just been discussing, the call on the
Speaker 16: budget for things like defense and potentially other things is
Speaker 16: going to only grow from here. So I'm quite concerned
Speaker 16: about this. I don't think it was intentional, but I
Speaker 16: think it may have a similar effect in focusing our
Speaker 16: community on the government needing to tighten up. But most
Speaker 16: alarming is the suggestion that the way to deal with
Speaker 16: this is to raise taxes. It is not to raise taxes.
Speaker 16: We need to look at what spending can be cut
Speaker 16: in order to accommodate new requirements around defense and so forth.
Speaker 16: After eight years of government spending growing at a tremendous rate,
Speaker 16: fastest rate we've seen in a generation or more. And
Speaker 16: of course the government's share of the economy growing to
Speaker 16: record levels.
Speaker 3: Yeah, record government spending, as you said, certainly hasn't helped. Now.
Speaker 1: Labour's Economic Roundtable is coming up next month, with the
Speaker 1: government set to host business leaders over three days in
Speaker 1: an event focused on resilience, productivity and budget sustainability. Warren,
Speaker 1: Is this a serious attempt to think about how we
Speaker 1: lift productivity which as we know it's had its worst
Speaker 1: performance in fifty years, or should we be adopting a
Speaker 1: degree of cynicism over this?
Speaker 14: Yeah?
Speaker 16: Well, I am very concerned that it's not going to
Speaker 16: be too different to what we saw in the previous
Speaker 16: parliament with the Job Summit, which was really just a
Speaker 16: policy exercise to tighten up industrial relations and in fact
Speaker 16: work against productivity. Because I think I'm concerned about with
Speaker 16: the productivity discussion is what we've seen from this government
Speaker 16: in terms of industrial relations, in terms of growing the
Speaker 16: size of government and funding increasing amounts of activity in
Speaker 16: our economy through their care economy strategy, whether it's NDI health, childcare.
Speaker 16: This is undermining key planks and pillars of what gives
Speaker 16: us productivity. So I don't see any of these key
Speaker 16: strategic economic policies that the government's been running for the
Speaker 16: last three years on the table. And of course this
Speaker 16: idea that you just raised taxes to fix the budget
Speaker 16: is going to be even more hurting for productivity in
Speaker 16: this country. So I am not at all confident that
Speaker 16: we're going to get a serious conversation about reform or
Speaker 16: of course restoring productivity, which is essence needs to be
Speaker 16: about trying to get our economy working as efficiently as
Speaker 16: it can be and not being directed by government and
Speaker 16: government funding.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 1: Absolutely. Now let's talk tariffs. Donald Trump's three month deadline
Speaker 1: came up last week. South Korea and Japan got slapped
Speaker 1: with twenty five percent tariffs and their allies of the
Speaker 1: US look at Brazil at cop fifty percent. That will
Speaker 1: certainly kill trade Warren Trump has alluded that the baseline
Speaker 1: tariffs could change, could go up and down. The Prime
Speaker 1: Minister is in China, now, how important is it to
Speaker 1: ensure free trade but at the same time look after
Speaker 1: our own interests.
Speaker 5: Yeah.
Speaker 16: Well, we've fared well out of the tariff policies so far,
Speaker 16: having attracted just the baseline with a couple of industries
Speaker 16: hit with higher tariffs which were applied to all countries
Speaker 16: still an Aliminium being the main ones. But we've got
Speaker 16: to be very careful here because I think it's pretty
Speaker 16: clear that this tariff policy is really geopolitics. We saw
Speaker 16: that last week where countries like Vietnam and the Philippines,
Speaker 16: really important countries geopolitically for the United States, got let
Speaker 16: off quite lightly with twenty percent tariffs, whereas Brazil part
Speaker 16: of the Bricks consortium of nations supporting the access of alignment,
Speaker 16: China and Russia and Iran of course being here with
Speaker 16: a fifty percent tariff. So we are in the good books,
Speaker 16: and as we all hope to remain in the good books,
Speaker 16: I think the Prime Minister needs to tread very carefully.
Speaker 16: And of course we see those baseline tariffs go up,
Speaker 16: we will more than likely be hit with them. So
Speaker 16: this has got a long way to play yet, and
Speaker 16: I think the next week is critically important.
Speaker 3: Yeah, and plus we'll see if you know, pharmaceuticals could
Speaker 3: now be on the.
Speaker 1: Cards for us as well. Warren Hogan always love to
Speaker 1: see you. Thank you so much for joining me on
Speaker 1: the show this evening. Really appreciate it. Coming up after
Speaker 1: the break, the renewables only fantasy hits another hurdle as
Speaker 1: another green project is acted in Victoria. That's next, Well,
Speaker 1: the renewables only fantasy has hit another hurdle. Another green
Speaker 1: project has been axed after the offshore wind developer Blue
Speaker 1: Float Energy abandoned its plans for one of Victoria's most
Speaker 1: advanced offshore wind projects.
Speaker 3: After failing to secure a buye.
Speaker 1: Joining me now is Deputy Nationals Leader Kevin Hogan. Ge Kevin,
Speaker 1: it's hard to keep count of the number of projects
Speaker 1: in recent months that have either been axed or delayed,
Speaker 1: and all the wild coal is being driven out and
Speaker 1: there are no plans on how to keep the lights
Speaker 1: on in this country.
Speaker 9: No, it's actually quite scary, as we know, Danika, this
Speaker 9: sum we've said about three or four now major wind
Speaker 9: turbine projects basically don't add up. So what the people
Speaker 9: who are the proponents of this have worked out with
Speaker 9: their spreadsheets is it doesn't work. Wind turbines especially exceptionally
Speaker 9: expensive on the offshore win ones. You know, I'm sure
Speaker 9: ones have high maintenance class I have a twenty year
Speaker 9: lifespan there's a lot of wear and tear with sold
Speaker 9: air et cetera. So they're not adding up. And you know,
Speaker 9: we know Labour's renewable only policy is an experiment with
Speaker 9: our energy grid with eighty percent by twenty thirty, which also, Donika,
Speaker 9: no reputable independent analyst is saying that they're going to
Speaker 9: reach that. So I think they have to start to
Speaker 9: be honest with us about that as well. But look,
Speaker 9: their plan an experiment with our energy system and it's
Speaker 9: very dangerous.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and it's costing us all money at the same time,
Speaker 1: and our power bills keep going up.
Speaker 3: Nothing seems to be changing now.
Speaker 1: Look, Australian business leaders are pushing for the Prime Minister
Speaker 1: to lobby for deeper trade ties with China during his visit. Kevin, Look,
Speaker 1: how do we strike a balance here, because obviously diversification
Speaker 1: is so important. We've seen what China's done to us
Speaker 1: in the past with the tariffs. We've got tariffs also
Speaker 1: coming from the US as well. How do we strike
Speaker 1: a balance here and while looking after our own interest?
Speaker 9: Yeah, look, it's delicate, Janika, I think that, you know,
Speaker 9: I think it's great that the Prime minist So I
Speaker 9: think the guy I support the fact that the Prime
Speaker 9: Minister is in China. They are a very important trading
Speaker 9: partner of ours, and I think that's healthy. I mean,
Speaker 9: we were in government when we sign the Chinese Free
Speaker 9: Trade Agreement, We're in government when President Ggping addressed the Parliament.
Speaker 9: So the relationship has had ups and downs, but I
Speaker 9: support the fact that the Prime Minister is there. You'll
Speaker 9: talk about diversifications important, but I'd also bring in national
Speaker 9: security issues as well. I wish I saw the same
Speaker 9: exuberance that Prime Minister Albanese has with the Chinese president
Speaker 9: with the with the American president. They're a very important
Speaker 9: allied national security partner, an economic investor in our country
Speaker 9: as well. So it's unfortunate we don't see the same
Speaker 9: exuberance for the President of the United States that the
Speaker 9: Prime Minister has for the President of China. But I'm
Speaker 9: glad he's there. I'm glad he's in China building the relationship.
Speaker 1: I mean, you know that the Prime Minister does talk
Speaker 1: about the importance of people to people relationships, Well, he
Speaker 1: still can't get a meeting with Donald Trump. Do you
Speaker 1: think the US is watching this trip very closely? It's
Speaker 1: an extended trip it's a very long trip six days
Speaker 1: over in China. Is a US watching observing thinking, well.
Speaker 3: Hang on, what about US, what about the number one ally?
Speaker 9: Well, look, I'm sure they are and I think it's
Speaker 9: unfortunate that the Prime Minister Albanesi hasn't made a priority
Speaker 9: to physically meet President Trump. I mean, I think he
Speaker 9: wasn't keen initially and now he's struggling to get a
Speaker 9: meeting as quickly as he would like. But that's think
Speaker 9: to the great detriment of the relationships. There's been some
Speaker 9: very strong person of personal relationships between both labor and
Speaker 9: liberal prime ministers and US presidents in the past.
Speaker 14: We don't have that now.
Speaker 9: I think that's a shame. They're an important ally, they're
Speaker 9: an important economic partner, so he needs to work on that.
Speaker 9: I think it's to the detriment as we know of
Speaker 9: our still and aliminium industries. We've seen, you know, other
Speaker 9: countries like the UK get exemptions and lower tariffs than
Speaker 9: we have in those sectors. So look, I think it's
Speaker 9: a real I think it's real to our detriment. I
Speaker 9: don't think as we've saw reports last week or a
Speaker 9: week or two ago, I don't think Ambassador Rudd has helped.
Speaker 9: We all know the comments he made about the President
Speaker 9: of the United States, and they're leading them from x
Speaker 9: and Twitter. Doesn't mean they disappear or go from people's memory.
Speaker 9: So that's unfortunate as well.
Speaker 3: Yeah, and the elephant in the room still remains Kevin, right,
Speaker 3: you're not wrong there. Now.
Speaker 1: The Reserve Bank has called for surcharge fees on card
Speaker 1: tapping and payWave to be removed. That fee is costing
Speaker 1: Ossie consumers about one point two billion dollars a year
Speaker 1: and the RBA says scrapping it would bring the Australian
Speaker 1: pay market in line with the rest of the world.
Speaker 3: Is this a good idea, Kevin?
Speaker 9: Look, anything that lawa's cost of living is a good idea.
Speaker 9: So I think it's a great thing that we start
Speaker 9: talking about. Just where that charge goes I'm interested in.
Speaker 9: I mean, if we were to lob that whole charge
Speaker 9: back to small business especially, I think that would be
Speaker 9: very damage into a lot of our small businesses that
Speaker 9: are doing it quite tough.
Speaker 14: As well.
Speaker 9: I'd like to see more transparency around the whole thing.
Speaker 9: You know, do the banks charge the same church er
Speaker 9: charge to small business they do to big business. I mean,
Speaker 9: I think we need some more transparencies about from the
Speaker 9: banks on this, and I think the banks should be
Speaker 9: the ones that bear some of the cost of this,
Speaker 9: not small business.
Speaker 3: No, I completely agree with you. A good point, Kevin Hogan.
Speaker 3: Good to see you. Thanks very much for your time
Speaker 3: this evening. Appreciate it.
Speaker 1: Coming up after the break, Donald Trump disappointed but not
Speaker 1: done with Putin. We'll cross to the US. Ow Man
Speaker 1: Brad Palumbo will join us live next.
Speaker 3: Welcome back. Well.
Speaker 1: Donald Trump is getting in pace with Russia and has
Speaker 1: given President Vladimir Putin a fifty day ultimatum to end
Speaker 1: the nearly three and a half year conflict or face
Speaker 1: severe secondary trade tariffs.
Speaker 5: As I thought we would have had a deal two
Speaker 5: months ago, but if it doesn't seem to get there,
Speaker 5: so based on that, we're going to be doing secondary
Speaker 5: tariffs if we don't have a deal on fifty days.
Speaker 8: It's very simple.
Speaker 1: Yeah, of about one hundred percent that is joining me
Speaker 1: now is a podcast host of Brad Versus Everyone, Brad Palumbo, Brad, Hello,
Speaker 1: thank you for joining me. Look, Donald Trump's threats are
Speaker 1: getting very serious now, aren't they.
Speaker 17: Yeah, I mean they are, and I think we should
Speaker 17: all be rooting for him on this, that he's able
Speaker 17: to bring an end to the war and negotiate a deal.
Speaker 17: You know, Trump promised that he would stop it and
Speaker 17: come to peace on day one of his presidency. That
Speaker 17: was always unrealistic for being honest, But if he could
Speaker 17: use this trade leverage to bring about a cease fire,
Speaker 17: I think that would be phenomenal. I think everybody would
Speaker 17: appreciate and celebrate that because it's been years of just
Speaker 17: bloody war after Russia's unjustified invasion. But the idea that
Speaker 17: we could just hold out for Ukraine to eventually win
Speaker 17: the day. I mean, as much as I think most
Speaker 17: people would like to see that, a degree of realism
Speaker 17: and practical practicism and practicality is needed here and Trump
Speaker 17: I really hope he can get a deal done. That
Speaker 17: was part of his pitch to the American people. I'm
Speaker 17: a deal maker. I'll bring this stuff to an end.
Speaker 17: We'll have to wait and see.
Speaker 11: Yeah.
Speaker 3: I thought it was interesting as well.
Speaker 1: Donald Trump revealed that Milania Trump actually played a role
Speaker 1: in identifying the issues with Vladimir person. I like that
Speaker 1: it took guy his wife to do so, but what
Speaker 1: more can you tell us about what she said to
Speaker 1: her husband.
Speaker 17: Well, she's actually been an influence on him on this
Speaker 17: kind of issue in a particularly interesting way, given her
Speaker 17: background and her different, very international life and connections. And
Speaker 17: it is interesting that he's open to this kind of thing,
Speaker 17: and that tells you she's in his inner circle. She's
Speaker 17: influencing the president. And on the flip side, though, the
Speaker 17: fact that she was informing him about cities being hit,
Speaker 17: you would think his other officials would be a more
Speaker 17: on top of that. But as long as he's ultimately
Speaker 17: finding out about it in a timely fashion, I guess
Speaker 17: that's fine. And hopefully she can work some millennium magic
Speaker 17: and bring this about and bring this to an end soon.
Speaker 1: Yeah, we're all hoping for that outcome. Now, let's change pace.
Speaker 1: We all know Donald Trump and Rosie o'donald. They have
Speaker 1: had their differences, and I think that's probably.
Speaker 3: Putting it mildly with the pair.
Speaker 1: Gosh, they've been exchanging jabs going back decades. But now
Speaker 1: Donald Trump has said he's considering revoking her citizenship after
Speaker 1: she fled the country to escape his presidency. He took
Speaker 1: to truth social to say that because of the fact
Speaker 1: that Rosie O'Donnell is not in the best.
Speaker 3: Interest of our great country.
Speaker 1: I'm giving serious consideration to taking away her citizenship. She
Speaker 1: goes on brad to say that she's a threat to humanity.
Speaker 1: I mean, you've got a laugh, don't you.
Speaker 17: I mean it's comical in one sense. I think she's
Speaker 17: a clown. I think her stunt of fleeing the United
Speaker 17: States was silly. At the same time, I do not,
Speaker 17: in fact, think she is a threat to humanity. I
Speaker 17: imagine that's just Trump's typical bluster and hyperbole, and this
Speaker 17: is probably just a barb. I don't think he can
Speaker 17: actually revoke her citizenship unless she's committed some sort of
Speaker 17: serious crime or another offense. Americans are entitled to say
Speaker 17: whatever they like, even troll, even be as ridiculous. And
Speaker 17: I'm sord as she has been, and they still are citizens,
Speaker 17: whether any politician likes it or not. So I wouldn't
Speaker 17: anticipate that actually happening. The truth is, though, about these
Speaker 17: kinds of spats, this is good for both of them.
Speaker 17: Rosie O'Donnell will play the victim, but this is great
Speaker 17: for her. This feeds in gets her more attention. She
Speaker 17: wants Trump tweeting about her.
Speaker 3: Of course she does. She wants the attention.
Speaker 1: But I think Donald Trump absolutely loves it when it
Speaker 1: comes to a poor old rosie. Oh now, Brad, You've
Speaker 1: had quite a fun exchange overnight on CNN where commentator
Speaker 1: Anna Navarro dismissed your views because you're a white man.
Speaker 3: Here is that moment.
Speaker 11: I want to respond to you saying that I was
Speaker 11: hyperbolic when I talked about a vein of terror.
Speaker 3: No, it might be hyperbolic for you as a white man. Oh,
Speaker 3: it's certainly not hyperbolic for me, Latino. No, I'm not
Speaker 3: being racist.
Speaker 10: Well, I'm not dismissing your opinion.
Speaker 3: J Brad, why do you subject yourself to CNN?
Speaker 17: I think it's fun. I'm here for the day. I
Speaker 17: love it, and I just found it comical because listen,
Speaker 17: this is the problem with the left and with their
Speaker 17: addiction to identity politics. Na Navarro made a claim that
Speaker 17: Trump was had a reign of terror in America, and
Speaker 17: I said, I think that's a bit hyperbolic. She said, no,
Speaker 17: it isn't. And then, instead of explaining facts or arguments
Speaker 17: about why it's fine, she said, in my race.
Speaker 1: Unbelievable, Brad, unbelievable, seriously typical of the left, Brad Palumbo.
Speaker 3: Thank you so much for joining me, Thanks for your company.
Speaker 3: Now here's James Morrow hosting in the man Cave.