If this perfectly comprehensible decision for continuity of government purposes was the worst thing Scott Morrison did as Prime Minister in the past two years .... we must have experienced very different pandemics. No sensible PM would have done otherwise esp in March 2020.
The absurdly hyperbolic media reaction in August 2022 to this perfectly sensible move in March 2020 is why no sensible PM would ever share it with media absent a crisis where it became relevant to do so. Our system places enormous power in the Executive for war & crises.
The hatred of Scott Morrison personally is overwhelming what already fragile knowledge of basic civics & how our system works exists, especially the Prime Minister's role in our system, among our media #auspol circle of lunacy.
Imagine any PM telling our emotionally incontinent media - which was already freaking out in March 2020 - that he had been sworn in to additionally shadow his ministers in case they died in the pandemic, so any necessary authorisations under law could still be given?
I doubt [most strongly] that Scott Morrison could have organised all this so it would be good to see all the Commonwealth legal advice that supported these arrangements come out, given the public interest. Perhaps then people can fulminate ... or not. Sigh.
The machinery of Govt exists (regardless of who is in power, electorally) to ensure the Australian nation state continues on. If you remember March 2020 & the media freaking out that went with the pandemic, not sharing everything may not have been transparent but nonetheless wise
Anyway, hopefully all the legal advice will be released .... immense power is reposed in the Crown and the Executive to meet and deal with crises. Doubt strongly that ministerial arrangements were the most fraught parts of the pandemic, constitutionally speaking.
Morrison's biggest problem here is whether on not there was a proper appointment of him as an additional minister - this appointment on a plain reading of s64 has to be done by the Governor-General ... one presumes there would have to be relevant paperwork.
Will end this by saying this matter & others is why we urgently need a Pandemic Royal Commission - with commissioners who have no baggage - to look at what was done, what worked, what did not, what powers should be codified and limited, what should we never do again, etc.
Statement from the Governor-General's office ....
I did try to tell some of you ....
[via @samanthamaiden ]
I did try to tell some of you ....
[via @samanthamaiden ]
It is usually very hard to overstate how much media writes for each other & for gratification from twitter maniacs in circumstances where earlier generations of news media had editors who were mature adults & more concerned to be right than first .... but not today.
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