Thread by @iMusing

good morning☀️happy Sunday! Today on #Insiders the interview is with Cobble Cobble Professor Megan Davis. The panel is ABC referendum corro Dan Bourchier, 9fax (Age/smh) politics corro David Crowe, and 9fax (AFR) columnist Jennifer Hewitt.

opening spiel: the “big ambition” of the Albanese government. Fixing the health system, submarines, referendum. The No campaign is “grabbing attention” - a newsroom choice - says Speers. #Insiders

summary editorialising (“here’s where we are”) is a hotch potch of federal referendum and one local town. The montage is also about Mparntwe. Dutton gets a run, lying about the usual rank disunity in the Liberal Party room. #Insiders

#MakingNews is a drop on the PM giving a speech, covid deaths in aged care, and a dog balloon off the coast of a Carolina. More editorialising from Speers on the referendum. The lies Dutton tells get another run. #Insiders

we start the panel with two Davids discussing a First Nations Voice to Parliament. How apt. #Insiders

Crowe describes polling commissioned by 9fax and a forthcoming PM speech that refs justice reinvestment in Bourke.
Speers says what he expects to hear from the Yes campaign. #Insiders

on to Bourchier who says people switch off over summer and “there is a real risk around the polling” and Speers starts talking about the No campaign and the peculiar flex from Mundine on “refugees and immigrants” #Insiders

it’s a distraction, says Hewitt. She repeats the “good will” line that Dutton and Crowe parroted. There is doubt which is very bad for referenda says Hewitt dourly. #Insiders

the Davids agree that outline and architecture and principles are key. Hewitt repeats “architecture” and says the government has “no concept” and does not want to release more detail and is a “big risk” there are risks on both sides. #Insiders

clip of Perrottet saying the referendum is a time to bring people together and the Davids dwell in their happy place - the politics of what the Liberal Party will do. Probably come out against the Voice, but what about the teal seats? is the gist. #Insiders

more dross from Hewitt. All her lines are so repetitive and add nothing. She finds three more ways of saying “more detail”. Bourchier adds some “national conversation” lines. Seague to interview. #Insiders

clip of Dutton on his questions. Did he al these Qs in the meeting? No.

Prof Davis says the Voice is about a seat at the table. It is about consultation on decisions that impact people in community. Its operating procedure comes from the parliament. #Insiders

the Dialogues folks spelt out the process that created the Uluṟu Statement from the Heart to Dutton. There is only so much we can detail, says Prof Davis. First Nations people will contribute to the design, she says, which is logical and fair. #Insiders

Speers gives his opinion of Dutton not asking his 15 questions while the Dislogues reps were all there. Prof Davis says there is a tipping point around too little/too much detail. They are aware of the need for people to know what they are voting for #Insiders

there is a CtG report coming out next month which shows we are not Closing the Gap, says Prof Davis. She says there is urgency to this change. She explains the process of constitutional conventions. The core Q was “what is meaningful recognition to you”? #Insiders

the old people who were around in 67 believe strongly in working with the Australian people, says Prof Davis. She is talking about the process that led to the current referendum proposal. #Insiders

trying to do better for communities, says Prof Davis, comes from having a seat at the table. Speers asks about local and regional Voices. She says the decision makers in Canberra do not necessarily understand communities. #Insiders

A Voice to Parliament and to executive government? Does that matter? Not really, says Prof Davis [abridged] and cites a former HCA CJ - the French article, I think - saying no it is not a big deal whether voice is described as to Parly or the executive #Insiders

whattabout a No vote? There are downstream risks, says Prof Davis. We are only focused on the Yes, she says. We got a No straight off the bat from a prime minister and woke up the next day and decided to turn every No into Yes. Doing nothing is not an option, she says. #Insiders

back to panel. More detail? asks Speers tediously. Bourchier says there are mechanisms on the ground that has created this process - the Uluṟu dialogues etc - and Hewitt again recites her detail/no/difficult lines. We do know the system is not working, says Hewitt. #Insiders

it is obvious to everyone the system is not working says Hewett. Crowe revives the definition of Aboriginality Q that Dutton barfed up. Then he quotes former CJ French on the “little to no” likelihood of constitutional cases arising from a Voice amendment as proposed. #Insiders

Crowe says the Yes folks have to fight for it like an election campaign and Speers circles back to Mparntwe Alice Springs. Crowe gets first comment, and says people were calling for grog restrictions last year. Then Dan, who grew up in Tennant Creek. #Insiders

clip of Natasha File saying the response can not be race-based. Speers says Stronger Futures was a Gillard government policy (he means extension of Howard gov policy). Bourchier says we have to get away from the politics of grog. Alcohol bans are not a panacea, he says. #Insiders

Hewitt says there are lots of problems domestic violence alcohol in Western Australia too. She says there have been lots of programs that have all failed. Bourchier explains that alcohol bans are about buying some time, alcohol is a symptom not a cause. #Insiders

the one-town handwringing is over. Health reform, says David to David. This is about the pharmacists prescribing suggestion. AMA are totally opposed. Medicare rebate increase? We find out in the May budget #Insiders

clip of Health Minister on range of potential reforms. They have to find some money, the panel chuckle. No stage three tax cuts comment, and we move on to interest rate speculation. Bourchier describes how tuff things will be for people will million dollar mortgages #Insiders

the essay Chalmers wrote in The Monthly. Values based capitalism? Was that it? What about increasing unemployment benefit and dropping the stage three tax cuts then says Crowe. He says it was misrepresented #Insiders

Hewitt jumps in to say it was too vague to pin any meaning and seemed to be about good intentions and “business has good intentions” hahaha what a weird leap #Insiders

#TalkingPictures is with Jack the Insider, a Speersy man from memory. #Insiders

Labor governments might have Arts policies but they were also responsible for putting pokies in pubs which was a hammer blow to live music. - Jack. Good point. #Insiders

#FinalObs 1 is Bourchier on the #Robodebt RC. He mentions the release of peoples details to media and Speers calls this seeing how the sausage is made. Like you know 9fax publishing those details. #Insiders

I missed Hewitt. Crowe is very exercised about Greens internals again today. He demands to know how Senator Thorpe can stay in her portfolio. The usual way I guess. #Insiders

the outtake is Perrottet bagging Adelaide. Hur hur. #Insiders

this has been another edition of watching #Insiders so you don’t have to 👋🏼👋🏼👋🏼