How Albanese is using Trump as a weapon

From Schwartz Media. I'm Ruby Jones. This is seven am. Donald Trump's presence looms large on the campaign trail, as both leaders face questions about how they would handle his trade war. The market chaos, the uncertainty, the escalation of

The Prime Minister has wanted to draw as much attention as possible to what Donald Trump is doing in the US, but without actually kind of naming Trump himself.

People will look at similar policies around the world and they will make their own decision.

The Prime Minister is hinting that Peter Dutton's policies are inspired by Donald Trump and his Make American Great Again movement, but he's not actually naming Trump.

I don't want to see the Americanization of the health system. I want the Australian system what Medicare should be, which is free.

When the Prime Minister talks about the Americanization of the healthcare system, I think what he's saying is that Peter Dutton wants to turn Australia's health system into a US style health system and apply the same sort of cuts to healthcare that Donald Trump is trying to force through in the US.

Peter Dutton's position was that you shouldn't see not just for free. He tried to abolish bulk billing by having a GP tax every time.

And of course it's not just the Prime Minister who's been out there trying to link Peter Dutton to Donald Trump. Treasurer Jim Chalmers has been doing it too.

We've got an opposition leader and an opposition which is absolutely full of these kind of those y sicker fans who have hitched their wagon to American style slogans and policies and especially cuts which would make Australians worse off.

And the other thing, of course, that Treasurer Jim Chalmers has been trying to do is contrast the stable shore footedness of the Albaneze government with the complete sort of chaos that we're seeing in Washington.

So this is a pretty important choice, a Prime minister speaking up for Australia and standing up for Australians, or an opposition leader and an opposition to have made it clear for some time that they take their cues and their instructions and their policies directly from the US, and I.

Think to prepare for what the consequences of those market swings might be on the Australian economy. Jim Chalmers has brought together the heads of the Big four banks, the see of mcquarie Group, the heads of the Keith of branuation funds. He's also convened the Council of Financial Regulators.

The Treasurer walking off the election campaign today and straight into an emergency meeting with the Reserve Bank planning for a global economic meltdown.

We are confident that we can weather these global conditions, but we're not complacent about that, okay.

And given how little transparency there is around Trump and what his next moves might be, what is your view on whether or not by having these meetings Charmers is actually making anything happen or is something like this really just performative?

Look, I think it is performative. Jim Chalmers is putting on a show here for voters, but I think there is a purpose there too. If he wasn't getting the insights and views from people like Michelle Bullock, the heads of the four banks, then I think people would be wondering whether or not Jim Chalmers really is in control and does he really understand the gravity of what's happening

And we know a lot of work has been done to try and negotiate our way out of tariffs that ultimately did not work, and we were hit with that ten percent baseline figure like a lot of other countries were. But given we are now in caretaker mode, where have we left those negotiations.

Well, I think the negotiations are very much on hold. The government is certainly looking at other things that can do if they are re elected on May third. The Trade Minister Don Farrell, and the Foreign Minister Pennywong, and the Prime Minister himself have all ruled out concessions on things such as the Pharmaceutical Benefit Scheme, which the US has cited as being detrimental to its own pharmaceutical industry.

And these moves that Trump is making, I mean they're about trade, but they're also bigger than that, aren't they. He's really testing us and everyone else for weakness and seeing how we respond. So if you are to look at the situation from that lens, how important is it that we hit the right note with these negotiations.

Well, I think it's very important. The US Alliance is sacrasanct for both major parties and neither the Prime Minister nor Peter Dutton would do anything that could be seen as jeopardizing the strength of the alliance. In the past, whenever Labor has been seen to criticize the US Alliance, that has really damaged the party electorally. We saw that happen to Arthur Cowell in the nineteen sixties. We saw

Coming up, Peter Dutton the Drake inspired distrack.

Hi, I'm Daniel James. Seven Am tells stories that need to be told. Our journalism is founded on trust and independence and now we're increasing our coverage. Every Saturday until the election, will bring you an extra episode to break down the biggest political moments of the week. If you enjoy seven Am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at seven am podcast dot com dot au slash support. Thanks for listening and supporting our work.

Jason, as you've mentioned, Charmers is really trying to pin Dutton to Trump, and Labor obviously thinks that that's damaging to the coalition. So how has Dutton talked about how he would handle the issue of trade and how do you think he's responding to that line of a time from labor.

Peter Dutton is trying to convince voters of the idea that if he was Prime Minister he would be able to fly over to Washington in the first sixty days of his prime ministership get a one on one meeting with President Trump and talk him around into dropping the levies that he's put on Australian experts. I'm not sure that's very convincing because what could Peter Dutton possibly offer Donald Trump that no other country has been able to do.

And you k on seven a m just after the debate, and you said that Dutton had performed well, but that that had come off the back of what had widely been seen as a bad start to the campaign. So since that debate, how do you think Dutton has gone.

I think Peter Dunton is doing better in the actual mechanics of campaigning, those press conferences that he's having each day where he's up against the traveling media Party. I think Peter Dutton is showing that he's getting better at responding to those questions. But I think other things are bringing him down and that's turning his campaign. The big one is policy preparedness.

So just to deal with the issue just quickly, if I can summarize it this way.

Electricity is one of Peter Dutton's big policies. Is this policy to force domestic gas producers to put aside some of the gas they produce, so there's always give me enough gas for Australian consumers. But it's quite a complex policy.

We need to change the way in which the system works to bring more gas in and similar to what we've done with the twenty five cent a later cut on petrol and diesel, to that cheaper for consumers. That's apply across the economy, not just pensioners and families, but also small businesses and bigger businesses, delivery truck drivers, and that's the approach we've taken to gas as well.

It has most voters don't really understand what it is that he wants to do. It's quite confusing. Another thing that Peter Dutton has talked about is halving the petrol excise for twelve months. He's got a strange advertisement to try to boost the profile of this petrol excise policy.

How far can having the petrol tax take you?

It's an ad I think that was entirely made using artificial intelligence. It features an alien inner with.

The Liberals having the petrol tax policy does not include phytogets will not the applicable face for terrestrials.

I think while it's sort of unusual and perhaps a bit gimmicky, I'm not sure that it really is a serious to voters. And I'd say the same thing about this this rap song that that the coalition campaign released.

You need to wait. It is supposed to be the money was spinning on groceries. I just want to bust some eggs and cheese one hundred bucks. You can't in men. It cost for much to live. The economy is looking a mess man, so we live in shape to check labor Gadi is still and self stressed we need a fantasy.

It seemed a bit trivial to me, and I'm sure it's the serious pitch that Peter Dutton needs to convince voters that he's ready for government. Both the you know the aiad and this rap song, what both of those things say to me is that the Coalition isn't quite as prepared as it should be. It hasn't put in the hard yards and it's been forced to resort to sort of gimmicky advertising.

Okay, and what about the domestic policy questions, so on cost of living, on housing, how is Dunton handling those well.

Another surprise appearance on the campaign trail on Monday was Peter Dutton's son Harry, who told reporters that he was struggling to save enough money to buy a house.

As you've probably heard, it's almost impossible to get in in the current state.

So I mean, we're saving luck, mard, but it doesn't look like we'll get there.

But again you have to question Peter Dutton's judgment there, because Peter Dutton, of course has been a very successful property investor over the years, and I don't think anyone doubts that if it really comes down to it that Peter Dutton is going to help his son to buy that first home, and of course that's not an option that most parents out there really have. And I think Peter Dutton himself really struggled to answer that question when it was put to him by reporters on the campaign trail.

You're doing pretty well yourself, why won't you support him a bit and give him a bit of help with getting his house.

I haven't finished the excellent points I was making. The next point is why people should know.

But finally, I think the biggest mistake that Peter Dutton has made is this decision to delay the policy roll out to the campaign itself. He's been calling for an election for the last eighteen months, yet he hasn't really released any policy over that eighteen months, and I think that's the real reason we're starting to see the Coalition fall behind in the campaign by so quickly and by

Jason, thank you so much for your time.

Ruby, absolute pleasure talking with you. Thanks so much.

Also in the news today, Prime Minister Anthony Albanesi has said officials are seeking further information after a report emerged that Russia is seeking to base military aircraft in Indonesia. The report, by a defense and security website says Moscow has requested permission for aircraft to be based in Indonesia's remote Papua region on Australia's northern doorstep. When asked about the report, Albanesi said, we obviously do not want to