Paul Sheehan
Paul Sheehan is a columnist and editorial writer for The Sydney Morning Herald, where he has has been Day Editor and Washington correspondent. He is the author of two number-one best-sellers, 'Girls Like You' and 'Among The Barbarians' and been published in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The New York Times and numerous anthologies.
Paul Sheehan
Greens stay silent after abject elections
Paul Sheehan It was surprising how little was made about the meltdown in the Greens vote in statewide local elections held in NSW over the weekend.
Paul Sheehan
Union's best-laid plans may come back to bite it - and PM
Paul Sheehan When a group of construction workers held a rally outside the Melbourne headquarters of the building industry watchdog on a winter's day in 2010, they were addressed by a union official, John Setka,...
Paul Sheehan
Firestorm set to ignite when power runs out
Paul Sheehan Any subject, even the humble household energy bill, can become interesting if it turns into a horror story. In 2015, the NSW government will face an election. It will also face an energy shock.
Paul Sheehan
The truth on refugees is worse than fiction
Paul Sheehan The viral email about Australia's generosity to refugees may be wrong in its details, but the truth is a story of government gullibility without end.
Paul Sheehan
Green light for boats is the worst of both worlds
Paul Sheehan A m I naive to be waiting for a minister in the federal government, a government which now has so much blood on its hands, to take responsibility for the policy failure and resign?
Paul Sheehan
Swinging in breeze over the abyss
Paul Sheehan Julia Gillard was rarely to be seen in the byelection campaign for Melbourne, which culminated on Saturday.
Paul Sheehan
Woman in the wooden mask remains unable to break from type
Paul Sheehan The recurring mystery of Australian politics is why the first woman Prime Minister in our history, who has shown a quick wit in Parliament, warmth when dealing with the public face-to-face, and...
Paul Sheehan
Reminder of Rudd as Gingrich clings on
Paul Sheehan It is a fascinating time for the politics of selfishness, for seeing public self-absorption and public vendettas taking precedence over party loyalty and personal humility.
Paul Sheehan
Gillard treading water as ALP continues its slippery slide
Paul Sheehan The following text message was allegedly sent by Peter Slipper on February 1 to one of his staffers, James Ashby: ''But you're [sic] call and no hard feelings in that you only want businesslike...
Paul Sheehan
Thomson charade still going as the players await a final curtain
Paul Sheehan Let us pause for a moment to enjoy the majesty of Craig Thomson's magnificent gall, the gall on which Julia Gillard and her government have relied for the entire time Gillard has been Prime Minister.
Paul Sheehan
Secrets and lies - how Labor has been digging its own grave
Paul Sheehan Enough about prostitutes. Enough about Craig Thomson's antics. What we haven't heard are the big questions on the big issue that is taking the Gillard government into a death spiral, even as it...
Paul Sheehan
Judgment day here for Labor's life of shame
Paul Sheehan In the months leading up to the 2007 federal election that ended the Howard era, the NSW central coast was alive with a political blitzkrieg.
Paul Sheehan
Brit trick is an insult to the system
Paul Sheehan In recent days John McTernan, the director of communications for the Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, has indulged a taste for insult. Here are some samples of his writings via the medium of Twitter:
Paul Sheehan
O'Farrell finally pulls trigger on reform
Paul Sheehan In the language of hunting there are two kinds of shot, the ''sight shot'' and the ''sound shot''. Opportunities are often fleeting, so the sound shot is a reaction to noise only.
Paul Sheehan
Boats keep coming and the real cost keeps rising
Paul Sheehan The numbers are extraordinary. The failure is breathtaking - a failure in every possible way, of policy, morality, practicality, security, sovereignty, fairness and budgeting.
Paul Sheehan
Magnetic polls draw young star from west
Paul Sheehan It is rare for an Australian politician to hold an audience in laughter for more than a few jokes. The first time I ever saw Christian Porter he had a large and savvy crowd in stitches.
Paul Sheehan
Far from an outsider or innocent
Paul Sheehan There were six people in the room. Morris Iemma was there with his top advisers to meet Rob Oakeshott and his key staffer. It was 2007; Iemma was premier of NSW, Oakeshott was an independent state MP.
Paul Sheehan
One small word, one giant leap for NSW
Paul Sheehan I voted for Clover Moore. I marked Clover ''1'' on my ballot paper even though in many ways my local member stands for the micro-managing, grimly earnest, nanny-state, tax-guzzling policies that I...
Paul Sheehan
Power is the reason for this fight
Paul Sheehan Ian Widdup is dying - he has advanced leukaemia - and for some people he cannot die soon enough. The NSW government, the construction group Multiplex, and the building union the CFMEU, would all be...
Paul Sheehan
Lives lost currying US favour
Paul Sheehan Thomas Dale, 21, killed by a bomb. Grant Kirby, 35, killed by a bomb. Jason Brown, 29, shot dead. Tim Aplin, 38, killed in a helicopter crash. Ben Chuck, 27, killed in a helicopter crash.
