Lucky escape for Mr. Rudd

Despite the fuss over Kevin Rudd’s drunken escapades at a New York strip club last week, the visit down memory lane has not deterred the support of much of the Australian public from the Opposition Leader.

It seems instead such circumstances of, what Rudd calls, “poor judgment” are in fact not that at all. To many Australian’s it has only confirmed that he is an ordinary bloke.

But can an ordinary bloke run the country? The Australian public still believes so. In a Herald Sun-Galaxy poll over the weekend, the survey asked people who they would vote for at a federal election right now. The preferred choice favored the ALP, with a 57 per cent victory over the Coalition’s 43 per cent. These statistics would surely be rattling the Howard Government to the bones as little seems to be working in their favor.

Mr. Rudd has luckily escaped any damaging criticism from the public over his strip club outing on a tax payer funded visit to New York four years ago. The little slip up caused quite a roar in its announcement but it seems that it is nothing more than shove in the right direction for the ALP.

As the Howard Government attempt to disturb Mr. Rudd, the polls suggest otherwise. Both female and male Australian’s believe that the events in New York demonstrate Rudd’s commonality with many Australian’s. The poll also revealed that people are more concerned with taxes than what Kevin Rudd got up to four years ago in a strip club. People are concerned with the state of affairs that affect them now, in everyday life. Evidently people consider taxes to be too high and the poll suggests that the Government’s announcement of a $17 billion surplus on the budget is heavily linked to high taxes.

A sought need for proper and effective economic management is what is driving Australian voters in the coming election, a problem that is not benefiting the Howard Government, particularly since the recent interest rate rise.

the great debate

As temperatures rise before the next election, the race to the finish line for Prime Minister John Howard and Opposition Leader, Kevin Rudd is currently being won by the younger and fitter, naturally! A few factors are contributing to Rudd's advantage over Howard this election, in particular Rudd's approach and appeal to Australia's youth.

Mr. Howard has been described lately as old and rattled and Rudd has taken full advantage of Howard’s manners in the lead up to the election as he is determined to break 11 years of Coalition rule.
Pollster Mark Textor has reported the Prime Minister as old and dishonest, with Rudd appearing as a more desirable, generational change for the better. “Kevin Rudd is someone voters appear willing to make a long-term investment in”, reports Crosby/Textor’s internal report. Rudd has emerged as energetic and comfortable in his prospects in taking over Australia's top job. As apposed to Rudd, Howard seems to be increasingly rattled and not responding well under pressure.

David Barnett, Mr. Howard’s first biographer says the Prime Minister should step aside and retire his position as Prime Minister while still in the good graces of his fellow Australians.

As Rudd takes the lead in the Newspoll, at 56 to 44 per cent, the Howard Government is seemingly fighting a losing battle. Slow and steady is certainly not going to win any races this election, as the apparent “rattled and old” John Howard struggles to break the commanding lead of Kevin Rudd.

Mr. Rudd, 49, has succeeded in his role as Labor Leader as he represents the opportunity for generational change. Rudd has gone so far as to begin his own campaign, “Kevin07”, much resembling U.S. campaigning methods to win over the voting public. Instead of making a huff in the lead up to the election, Rudd has taken the cool, calm and collected approach and it’s
proving successful. It has become a battle against young and old this election and the release of “Kevin07” moves to capitalise Rudd’s appeal to younger voters. In browsing Rudd’s web site, www.kevin07.com.au, it is clear who his target audience is. What do many young people in Australia have? An opinion. The web site offers exactly what many young Australian’s are looking for, a voice. The homepage offers Kevin Rudd’s ear to “your say” about “your ideas, hopes and concerns”, and features imagery and videos of young people giving a voice to their concerns.

Another big issue facing both parties is the Reserve Bank’s decision on interest rates. Today the decision was announced to lift cash rates by a quarter-point to 6.5 per cent, the fourth rise in the last 15 months. HSBC Australia chief economist John Edwards said that whether the Reserve Bank kept its base interest rate steady or raised it, the change would not
make much difference to the volatility hammering Australian investors. This opinion is warmly welcomed by the Howard Government as higher rises in interest rates would certainly damage the PMs Poll statistics even further. Three years ago Howard promised low interest rates if Australian’s granted him their vote for his forth term. Australian’s trusted Howard that election yet interest rates rose.

The undeniable fact is, Rudd has proven his ability to remain strong and politically competent when under pressure. Since Rudd became ALP leader, Howard has “failed to turn around the catastrophic collapse of support for the Coalition”, according to The Canberra Times. Will the young, determined Rudd succeed the so-called clever but old Howard. Only time will tell.