The focus has been on well-massaged lines, gotcha questions, personal attacks, heckling and social media outrage.

It is theatre, but not funny. Even when there are laughs.

Greens leader Adam Bandt copped the pop quiz de jour, asked if he happened to know the wage price index at the National Press Club on Wednesday.

"Google it, mate," he fired back, smiling. He then decried Australian politics devolving into a "basic fact checking exercise".

"Elections should be about a contest of ideas. Politics should be about reaching for the stars and offering a better society," Mr Bandt said.

For him, that's lifting the minimum wage, taxing billionaires for universal free dental care and stronger climate action. But the pure political view is that The Greens don't have the balance of power yet.

Standards clearly need to lift. While everyone is looking for "cut through", not many are really, truly being heard. Just when candidates, even the major ones, are presenting themselves as viable options.

After two days of walking back being sprung on the unemployment and Reserve Bank cash rates, Labor leader Anthony Albanese is trying to get back on track. Labor wants to travel on safe ground: health policy. In particular, "Strengthening Medicare" with a rousing campaign-style rally in Melbourne.

But at the same time Labor is defending its decision to drop plans to review the rate of JobSeeker - that means neither major party is backing a post-election boost to the dole.

Feeling let down? The Labor leader laid it down flat, "We can't do everything given the circumstances in which we're in."

Then there was to be no repeat of the past two days.

Allowing the traveling media pack to exhaust themselves with questions on Tuesday did not go too well for Mr Albanese, so his 10- question, eight-minute cut off on Wednesday was an obvious tactic change, even if it was unwelcome on the media's side.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison left his main messaging to later in the day, shouting in the wind outside a Geelong refinery pledging upgrades to protect domestic supply.

His press conference word cloud would feature "strength" and "economy" and "plan", but he is still on the blame game accusing Mr Albanese of setting "the tone for the last three years", and setting the stage for the Labor-associated gatecrasher on Tuesday night to heckle him.

He yelled out to Mr Morrison "you're a disgrace" at a private drinks night with the media, if you had not heard.

Worse still, an uncoordinated media pack questioning the Prime Minister on individual topics is allowing him ample wriggle room. Integrity. Rheem jobs going overseas. Trans children. Heckling. Ukraine. Solomon Islands.

All very worthy topics, but no deeper questioning to a politician who does not often give clear answers. However, he can say he is facing journalists every day.

Mr Morrison is holding court and he is yet to be truly tested.

As he curtailed Wednesday's press conference and walked away a journalist shouted, "What are you afraid of Prime Minister?" Not much clearly. He did not take the bait.