Is it just me, or is this election period more intense then previous years? I might be feeling this way because this year I am actually active in my pursuit for knowledge about our political leaders, but still I think there is something in the air at the moment.
It could be due to this growing approval and support for Kevin Rudd. I suppose everyone has tolerated John Howard for a long time now, not to mention suffered at the presence of Kim Beazley as Opposition Leader, so Rudd’s company is a fresh reception. It appears to have been clear sailing for Rudd ever since he jumped onto the scene, or ever since we started taking notice of him anyway. Give or take a stripper or two, Rudd isn’t doing too badly on the public support scale.
I think Australian’s are just a bit worn-out of John Howard. There is no denying he has done his best for the country in the past 11 years, but as Lawrie Oakes of The Bulletin claims, the feeling towards the Coalition government is becoming noticeably sour.
An important issue concerning the election and the future of Australia’s public hospital system is Rudd’s proposal of a national hospital plan. Oakes identifies the plans as being more about process than detail and I suspect this is true.
True or not, Rudd has appealed to public frustration over the current public hospital system, something Health Minister Tony Abbott has been arguing to change as well. There is no doubt about Abbott’s support for Canberra taking over the running of public hospitals altogether, despite his need to discredit any confidence in Rudd’s proposals.
The current system of federal support for public hospitals where by the federal government helps to fund public hospitals yet has no role in running them, is not working, and this situation only advances Rudd’s position in his fight for to win the election.
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