Phillip Coorey

Big dreams not just the hat talking

Phillip Coorey Last Wednesday, as the government and the opposition were busy tearing out each other's throats over events 20 years ago, Bob Katter provided the relief.

Faulkner's reform calls unlikely to go anywhere fast

Phillip Coorey Until now, Faulkner had been railing against the corrosive effects of factionalism on the ALP's structure and membership.

Phillip Coorey

Boats policy comes full circle

Phillip Coorey There is now barely a difference between Labor and Coalition policy on asylum seekers.

Phillip Coorey

No smoking gun but loaded words have already damaged Gillard

Phillip Coorey The gulf between the circumstantial case and anything actually linking Julia Gillard to knowingly having done something illegal as a lawyer 19 years ago is a cause of frustration among the Prime...

Phillip Coorey

Gillard has Howard's view on juggling US and China

Phillip Coorey Blessed with the thickest of political hides, John Howard has never been one to react to every criticism made of him.

Phillip Coorey

Absent Hockey will be front and centre if Abbott falters

Phillip Coorey There was a brief period of unrest in the Coalition last week when MPs were wondering why the shadow treasurer, Joe Hockey, was not among the speakers at an economic summit in Melbourne.

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Phillip Coorey

As the Coalition knows, there is a long history of costing opposition policies

Phillip Coorey The opposition and some sections of the media are in high dudgeon because information has been released. However, it's not the first time a government has costed opposition policies.

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Phillip Coorey

Rushing back to the polls fraught with danger for Abbott

Phillip Coorey Ask the Queensland Premier, Campbell Newman, whether he would like another election any time soon and the answer would have to be ''no''.

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Phillip Coorey

Rudd deserves the most credit for UN win

Phillip Coorey IF there is any scope for magnanimity to exist between Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard, then Australia's successful bid for a seat in the United Nations Security Council should provide it.

Phillip Coorey

Softly, softly, a slide into the red comes into view

Phillip Coorey Revelations today that not a single cent of mining tax was paid in the first three months of this financial year indicate the $1.1 billion surplus forecast on Monday may be gone already.

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Phillip Coorey

Rudd camp stirs the surplus soup

Phillip Coorey Some weeks ago, Kevin Rudd accepted an invitation to join Bob Hawke and Bob Carr at Darling Harbour yesterday to celebrate 40 years of diplomatic ties between China and Australia.

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Phillip Coorey

Abbott campaign takes spousal support to a new level

Phillip Coorey The perception that Tony Abbott has a problem with women has continued to grow, leading to today's nuclear option.

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Pressure piles on Slipper - and Gillard

Phillip Coorey Until now, the question of whether Peter Slipper would return to the Speaker's chair in the House of Representatives rested on the findings of two parallel legal processes.

Phillip Coorey

Soaring rates bill will be on Canberrans' minds when they go to the polls

Phillip Coorey To those outside the national capital, the ACT election held every four years is about as compelling as boils.

Phillip Coorey

Thomson, Labor and the race against time

Phillip Coorey Given the glacial pace at which the legal system moves, it is possible that the civil charges against Craig Thomson could be unresolved by the time of the next federal election.

Phillip Coorey

Nothing new, just more sounding off

Phillip Coorey THE capacity for selfish and destructive behaviour within the Labor Party never ceases to amaze.

Phillip Coorey

Solving a problem like Bernardi nets trifecta

Phillip Coorey TONY ABBOTT hates ill-discipline. Time and again he warns against it, telling his charges the aim is to have people talking about Labor, not the Coalition. Make Labor the story.

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Phillip Coorey

PM picks a winner, but is more cautious about contest at the UN

Phillip Coorey Just before leaving New York, Julia Gillard made one successful prediction - that the Swans would win the AFL grand final.

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A plague on both sides of the House

Phillip Coorey In his lecture delivered last night, Malcolm Turnbull does not single out Tony Abbott for criticism.

Punching on with a popular perception

Phillip Coorey One reason the Coalition does not like the recollection of a former university student contained in David Marr's Quarterly Essay is because it reinforces the perception, be it true or otherwise, that...