State politics grabs headlines for a change

State politics finally got a look in this week after Federal issues dominating political coverage for several months, as the powerful few in South Australian Labor politics decided it was time for the kiwi to move on. The leader who can pick the right time to quit is becoming rarer and rarer, after a brief surge last decade thanks to Carr, Bracks and Beattie. Of course none of them got 48% of the vote in their last election, which you’d think might have made the writing on the wall all the easier to see…

Meanwhile, the flood inquiry pushed Anna Bligh and Campbell Newman up the list, with Stephen Robertson copping most of the opprobrium and the Government promising to raise the Wivenhoe dam walls while Newman claimed the high ground on dam levels before the flood.

As Federal focus slowly starts to shift from the carbon price, State premiers were also getting plenty of coverage with the long awaited completion of the hospital reform, the Opposition claiming it had been all give and no take from the PM, as she desperately seeks some good news and a different theme to taxes or boats. Speaking of which, the latest Essential poll shows that the majority of Australians don’t like the Malaysia solution, but doesn’t make it any clearer what they do want. Each asylum seeker treated harshly but humanely, strongly deterred but in a respectful way? Here’s my punt – the average Australian spends roughly 0.0% of their week thinking about that one.

Julia Gillard continues to be the number one target of the mainly negative comments about all politicians on talkback, while Tony Abbott continues to cop slightly more online. Comments across both media run at about 3 to 1 critical of both leaders, the very small volume for Abbott on radio an interesting development. If you’ve got nothing nice to say about your less disliked alternative, don’t say anything?

Zara wanted a quiet wedding. Was this ever possible? Television and magazines just love a royal wedding.