Dutton Hits the Right Notes in Budget Reply

Commentary When I watched Opposition Leader Peter Dutton’s speech in reply to the Budget I had lines from Sondheim’s “Bring in the Clowns” running through my head: “Me here at last on the ground/you in mid-air”. Which is more imagery and literary allusion than you got in the whole of Mr. Dutton’s speech. But a plain speech was the medium that carried his message. Not for him the federal treasurer’s 29.05 minutes of exhortations and perorations. He’s the plod-turned-politician who you can rely on to stolidly get the job done—the ordinary bloke who is one of us. A small businessman who employed 40 people....