#crikey #malcolmturnbull #tariffs #newscorp #murdoch #smh #trump
“ I won't be gaslit over Trump. If you suck up to him, you will get more bullying — Malcolm Turnbull(The Sydney Morning Herald): I was not surprised to see the News Corp publications gleefully adopting Trump's abuse and claiming that I had “torpedoed” any hopes of securing an exemption from steel and aluminium tariffs. It has always been most unlikely that Australia will secure an exemption this time. It was hard enough in 2018 and all the signals from the administration are that the tariffs will be applied across the board.
And it perhaps never occurred to the team at News Corp's Holt Street HQ in Sydney that it is utterly bizarre that the unremarkable comments of a former prime minister would cause the US to decide not to exempt Australia from tariffs. Not a word of criticism of Trump, of course!
I was amused to reflect on the mental stress this episode was causing our friends at News Corp. Such a target-rich environment! They can blame me for the tariffs, or Kevin Rudd, or Anthony Albanese. Surely they can work out a formula where it's the fault of all three — but never, ever the fault of Donald Trump!”