Rupert Murdoch has called for Tony Abbott’s chief of staff, Peta Credlin, to be removed, in a series of tweets in which the News Corp executive chairman dispensed political advice to the prime minister.
“Abbott again. Tough to write, but if he won’t replace top aide Peta Credlin she must do her patriotic duty and resign,” Murdoch posted to his half a million or so Twitter followers on Wednesday.
Abbott again. Tough to write, but if he won't replace top aide Peta Credlin she must do her patriotic duty and resign. More
— Rupert Murdoch (@rupertmurdoch) January 28, 2015
The US media mogul’s advice for Abbott echoed that of one of his Australian commentators, Miranda Devine, who wrote in the Daily Telegraph earlier that day that Credlin had to go.
Abbott has to make a “sacrificial offering to convince his colleagues that he has learned a lesson”, Devine wrote.
“Something that causes him pain, like chopping off his right arm. In other words, moving on chief of staff Peta Credlin.”
It is unclear what role Credlin had in Abbott’s widely derided announcement of Prince Philip’s knighthood on Australia Day, and Abbott is not telling. Asked about it directly at a press conference on Wednesday, the prime minister replied: “I am just not going to get into this sort of internal navel-gazing … I did what I thought was appropriate.”
But Murdoch, on his Twitter platform, had no doubt Credlin should pay the price for the “knightmare”.
“Forget fairness. This change only way to recover team work and achieve so much possible for Australia,” he added in a follow-up message. “Leading involves cruel choices.”
Forget fairness. This change only way to recover team work and achieve so much possible for Australia. Leading involves cruel choices.
— Rupert Murdoch (@rupertmurdoch) January 28, 2015
Some of his Twitter followers disagreed, saying the buck stopped with Abbott. One journalist, Georgina Dent, answered with evident sarcasm: “Yep because rather than holding say, the leader, accountable why not lump all blame on his adviser?”
Murdoch subsequently softened his stance slightly by tweeting that Credlin was “a good person”, but appealed again to her “proven patriotism”.
Credlin a good person. Just appealing to her proven patriotism.
— Rupert Murdoch (@rupertmurdoch) January 28, 2015
When tweeters became suspicious everyone at News was singing from the same song sheet on Abbott, Murdoch replied: “re Miranda. Completely wrong. Just read it.”
@SpudBenBean re Miranda. Completely wrong. Just read it.
— Rupert Murdoch (@rupertmurdoch) January 28, 2015
Devine was not the only News commentator to argue Abbott had lost his way. The Australian in its editorial on Wednesday called for Abbott to change direction and Brisbane’s Courier-Mail depicted the prime minister as a court jester on its front page – just days away from Queensland’s state election.
“Mr Abbott’s unpopularity is an ingrained political fact,” the Australian thundered.
“The decision to turn a distant duke into a knight downunder suggests a prime minister who is tone deaf or worse, complacent in his power to push through a personal preference indifferent to the fact that it is bound to enrage and bewilder many.”
Devine said it was Credlin’s job to stop her boss making such a blunder and suggested it was time to replace her with the Australian’s own associate editor Chris Kenny.
“Credlin’s replacement should be the person she didn’t want to hire as head of communications strategy, despite various entreaties from high-level media and political figures: Chris Kenny,” she wrote.
“As editorial writer for the Australian, a seasoned journalist and a former adviser and chief of staff to Alexander Downer and Malcolm Turnbull, he’s in touch with the world, has the right ideas, shares Abbott’s broad world view without the kinky bits.”
