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The Game: A Portrait of Scott Morrison
What happens when the prime minister views politics only as a game?
Australia wanted Scott Morrison. In a time of uncertainty, the country chose in 2019 to turn to a man with no obvious beliefs, no clear purpose and no famous talents. That we wanted Scott Morrison was the secret we did not know about ourselves. What precisely that secret is forms the subject of this book.
In The Game, Sean Kelly gives us a portrait of a man, the shallow political culture that allowed him to succeed and the country that crowned him.
Morrison understands – in a way that no other recent politician has – how politics has become a game. He also understands something essential about Australia – something many of us are unwilling to admit, even to ourselves.
But there are things Scott Morrison does not understand. This is the story of those failures, too – and the way that, as his prime ministership continues, Morrison’s failure to think about politics as anything other than a game has become a dangerous liability, both to him and to us.
‘An engrossing, illuminating and often disquieting study of Scott Morrison. Sean Kelly’s forensic analysis of the man he describes as the “symbolic perfection of a certain version of Australia ” compels us all to consider our complicity in his creation.’—Niki Savva
‘It’s been almost impossible to get a handle on Scott Morrison. Until now. Sean Kelly has done it, comprehensively.’ —Barrie Cassidy
‘Sean Kelly exposes Morrison with wit and righteous precision. After reading this insightful, funny and absolutely maddening dissection of the man, I can now clearly see him for what he is.’ —Tom Ballard
Australia wanted Scott Morrison. In a time of uncertainty, the country chose in 2019 to turn to a man with no obvious beliefs, no clear purpose and no famous talents. That we wanted Scott Morrison was the secret we did not know about ourselves. What precisely that secret is forms the subject of this book.
In The Game, Sean Kelly gives us a portrait of a man, the shallow political culture that allowed him to succeed and the country that crowned him.
Morrison understands – in a way that no other recent politician has – how politics has become a game. He also understands something essential about Australia – something many of us are unwilling to admit, even to ourselves.
But there are things Scott Morrison does not understand. This is the story of those failures, too – and the way that, as his prime ministership continues, Morrison’s failure to think about politics as anything other than a game has become a dangerous liability, both to him and to us.
‘An engrossing, illuminating and often disquieting study of Scott Morrison. Sean Kelly’s forensic analysis of the man he describes as the “symbolic perfection of a certain version of Australia ” compels us all to consider our complicity in his creation.’—Niki Savva
‘It’s been almost impossible to get a handle on Scott Morrison. Until now. Sean Kelly has done it, comprehensively.’ —Barrie Cassidy
‘Sean Kelly exposes Morrison with wit and righteous precision. After reading this insightful, funny and absolutely maddening dissection of the man, I can now clearly see him for what he is.’ —Tom Ballard
304 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2021
65 people are currently reading
457 people want to read
About the author
Sean Kelly
1 book13 followersSean Kelly is a columnist for the Nine papers and a regular contributor to The Monthly. He was a political adviser to Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 95 reviews
December 13, 2021
Australian politics is dominated by a single great force – a US citizen called Rupert Murdoch who controls about 70% of our print media and lots of other bits of TV and radio as well. If we were a nation with any sense of self-respect, we wouldn’t allow foreign nationals to dominate our media – but we have no self-respect. A consequence of this is that the conservative party in Australia, the Liberals, get a free ride. The extent of this free ride is sometimes quite breathtaking. For example, at the moment our nation’s parliament is intending to sit for just 10 days between now and August next year. Ten days in nine months. A large part of the reason for this ‘pause’ in democracy is that the current ruling coalition parties are unable to keep their members on side. Many of them have threatened to cross the floor of parliament to vote down government legislation. Others are spreading conspiracy theories about Covid and vaccines. If we had a properly functioning press in Australia perhaps our ‘centre-right’ government would be held accountable for some of the more crazy stuff it has done over the last decade. But it is highly possible that our current, deeply dysfunctional government will be re-elected next year. The opposition Labor Party has sought to make itself a small target – often by agreeing with the half-baked policies of the governing coalition parties. Maybe it will work – hard to tell. I’ve never proven much of a soothsayer. But I don't know why people would change to a party that is offering more of the same.
I’ve said all of that by way of background. I suspect this isn’t a book that many people overseas would be likely to read. But I don’t think I’ve ever known a politician quite like Scott Morrison before. About 15 years ago there was an advertising campaign encouraging people to come to Australia put out by Tourism Australia. It was highly controversial. It was based around the slogan, “So where the bloody hell are you?” The point being that where you bloody well should be is here in the land of Aus. The person in charge of Tourism Australia at the time was Scott Morrison.
Scott isn’t someone who takes the blame for any mistakes. If he had been analysed prior to the last election in the way a Labor politician might have been, we might have learnt this about him. He was sacked from Tourism Australia and then went to work for New Zealand’s Office of Tourism and Sport – where he was sacked from that job too. You might think that might have been something he would have needed to explain before he got into parliament...
It seems he played quite dirty in getting his seat in parliament. As a politician he has been involved in, or responsible for, some of the most deeply shameful acts in Australia’s recent history. For example, when a boat filled with asylum seekers smashed against Christmas Island in 2010 and 48 people drowned, Morrison’s response was to question why surviving members of the families of those who drowned (you know, children of the drowned) were flown, at taxpayer expense, to the funerals of their family. Morrison is a fundamentalist Christian – a form of religion I don’t pretend to understand. They clearly don’t do compassion.
Morrison has spent much of this time in public life having no public persona. He was the ultimate ‘clean-skin’ before becoming Prime Minister and generally gets members of his 'faction' to do his dirty work for him, while he is able to show 'clean hands'. He was so unknown that he felt he needed to introduce himself to Australians once he had become PM – despite having been Treasurer and before that our immigration minister. He has a metal boat on his desk with ‘I stopped these…’ written across it. But his lack of a public persona tells you a lot about the man. He is not so much ‘deeply private’ but rather insanely secretive. As this book makes clear, he does not believe that his ‘true beliefs’ are anyone else’s business – and while that is fine for most people, for someone in public life, and Prime Minister at that, that can’t really be a good thing. The author speculates that Morrison sees most of public life as a kind of game – hence the title – but perhaps a better title would have been The Act – since he seems to adopt the persona he feels best suits his various roles, none of which really reflect himself all that much.
I really don’t give a stuff about sport – I will never be a politician in Australia, and so I can say that without fear – but even I find it hard to accept that a politician might adopt a sporting team (and change sporting codes) purely for political reasons. There are quotes here where he ends interviews as Treasurer of Australia by incongruously saying 'Go the Sharkies' - his adopted team. I am deeply embarrassed that this didn't immediately end his career, but rather had the opposite effect.
One of the first things Morrison did as Prime Minister was to tell the Australian public that his nickname was ScoMo. This is something played up in the book – how Morrison adopted this persona on becoming a politician, and added football and making curries for the family on the weekends as things that would identify him as a typical Australian bloke. It is remarkable how many of these ‘characteristics’ were late inventions.
At one point, relatively early in his career, he was interviewed on a TV program on public television called Kitchen Cabinet. Basically, a politician chats with a journalist while making and eating a meal. Unsurprisingly, ScoMo made a curry - on-brand. The journalist said that she had been told he would make his ‘ScoMosas’ (samosas). He replied, “That’s what my staff call them, yeah, the ScoMosas, everyone’s getting used to this new nickname.”
I’ve got to say, that really stopped me in my tracks. Is there nothing about this guy that isn’t made up – that is authentic?
His actual nickname now isn’t the one that someone on his marketing team made up – ironically enough, he has become known as Scotty from Marketing or the Prime Marketer. He seems congenitally incapable of telling the truth. I mean, even if the truth would be easier and less damaging to him, he seems compelled to lie. It is so extreme that the Labor Party recently ran with it in parliament for a whole sitting fortnight. Morrison’s response was to lie about having told the leader of the ALP that he was going on holiday to Hawaii during our last lot of massive bushfires. When the leader of the ALP (nickname Albo - no, you couldn't make this shit up) said he hadn’t been told where Morrison was going on leave, just that he was going on leave, Morrison was forced to make a further two statements to parliament correcting himself.
And if he is not lying, he is dog-whistling to the right.
If Australia was an open democracy, I don’t believe Morrison would have a chance in next year’s election – but as I said at the start – this is not an open democracy. Our media is dominated by Murdoch. In the State where I live the two major news sources are the Herald-Sun, owned by Murdoch, and The Age, run by Peter Costello, an ex-Liberal Party treasurer, just like ScoMO himself. You don’t get much more media diversity than that… There is talk that if the Labor Party win the election there will be a royal commission into the media – expect ScoMo’s golden ride in the press to continue unabated. If there is one thing we know for sure, Murdoch hates to lose.
I’ve said all of that by way of background. I suspect this isn’t a book that many people overseas would be likely to read. But I don’t think I’ve ever known a politician quite like Scott Morrison before. About 15 years ago there was an advertising campaign encouraging people to come to Australia put out by Tourism Australia. It was highly controversial. It was based around the slogan, “So where the bloody hell are you?” The point being that where you bloody well should be is here in the land of Aus. The person in charge of Tourism Australia at the time was Scott Morrison.
Scott isn’t someone who takes the blame for any mistakes. If he had been analysed prior to the last election in the way a Labor politician might have been, we might have learnt this about him. He was sacked from Tourism Australia and then went to work for New Zealand’s Office of Tourism and Sport – where he was sacked from that job too. You might think that might have been something he would have needed to explain before he got into parliament...
It seems he played quite dirty in getting his seat in parliament. As a politician he has been involved in, or responsible for, some of the most deeply shameful acts in Australia’s recent history. For example, when a boat filled with asylum seekers smashed against Christmas Island in 2010 and 48 people drowned, Morrison’s response was to question why surviving members of the families of those who drowned (you know, children of the drowned) were flown, at taxpayer expense, to the funerals of their family. Morrison is a fundamentalist Christian – a form of religion I don’t pretend to understand. They clearly don’t do compassion.
Morrison has spent much of this time in public life having no public persona. He was the ultimate ‘clean-skin’ before becoming Prime Minister and generally gets members of his 'faction' to do his dirty work for him, while he is able to show 'clean hands'. He was so unknown that he felt he needed to introduce himself to Australians once he had become PM – despite having been Treasurer and before that our immigration minister. He has a metal boat on his desk with ‘I stopped these…’ written across it. But his lack of a public persona tells you a lot about the man. He is not so much ‘deeply private’ but rather insanely secretive. As this book makes clear, he does not believe that his ‘true beliefs’ are anyone else’s business – and while that is fine for most people, for someone in public life, and Prime Minister at that, that can’t really be a good thing. The author speculates that Morrison sees most of public life as a kind of game – hence the title – but perhaps a better title would have been The Act – since he seems to adopt the persona he feels best suits his various roles, none of which really reflect himself all that much.
I really don’t give a stuff about sport – I will never be a politician in Australia, and so I can say that without fear – but even I find it hard to accept that a politician might adopt a sporting team (and change sporting codes) purely for political reasons. There are quotes here where he ends interviews as Treasurer of Australia by incongruously saying 'Go the Sharkies' - his adopted team. I am deeply embarrassed that this didn't immediately end his career, but rather had the opposite effect.
One of the first things Morrison did as Prime Minister was to tell the Australian public that his nickname was ScoMo. This is something played up in the book – how Morrison adopted this persona on becoming a politician, and added football and making curries for the family on the weekends as things that would identify him as a typical Australian bloke. It is remarkable how many of these ‘characteristics’ were late inventions.
At one point, relatively early in his career, he was interviewed on a TV program on public television called Kitchen Cabinet. Basically, a politician chats with a journalist while making and eating a meal. Unsurprisingly, ScoMo made a curry - on-brand. The journalist said that she had been told he would make his ‘ScoMosas’ (samosas). He replied, “That’s what my staff call them, yeah, the ScoMosas, everyone’s getting used to this new nickname.”
I’ve got to say, that really stopped me in my tracks. Is there nothing about this guy that isn’t made up – that is authentic?
His actual nickname now isn’t the one that someone on his marketing team made up – ironically enough, he has become known as Scotty from Marketing or the Prime Marketer. He seems congenitally incapable of telling the truth. I mean, even if the truth would be easier and less damaging to him, he seems compelled to lie. It is so extreme that the Labor Party recently ran with it in parliament for a whole sitting fortnight. Morrison’s response was to lie about having told the leader of the ALP that he was going on holiday to Hawaii during our last lot of massive bushfires. When the leader of the ALP (nickname Albo - no, you couldn't make this shit up) said he hadn’t been told where Morrison was going on leave, just that he was going on leave, Morrison was forced to make a further two statements to parliament correcting himself.
And if he is not lying, he is dog-whistling to the right.
If Australia was an open democracy, I don’t believe Morrison would have a chance in next year’s election – but as I said at the start – this is not an open democracy. Our media is dominated by Murdoch. In the State where I live the two major news sources are the Herald-Sun, owned by Murdoch, and The Age, run by Peter Costello, an ex-Liberal Party treasurer, just like ScoMO himself. You don’t get much more media diversity than that… There is talk that if the Labor Party win the election there will be a royal commission into the media – expect ScoMo’s golden ride in the press to continue unabated. If there is one thing we know for sure, Murdoch hates to lose.
May 4, 2022
If you're looking for examples to illustrate the banality of evil, they don't come more banal than Scott Morrison. Despite lacking ideas, vision, charisma, integrity, loyalty or the ability to string together a five sentence paragraph that actually makes sense, he has managed to become Prime Minister of a major Western country. He has a decent shot at keeping his job in the upcoming Australian election, though right now the polls slightly favour Labour. This unputdownable book (I finished it within twelve hours of purchase) does a terrific job of explaining ScoMo's rise. It turns out that you don't need to make good decisions, or advance meaningful policies, or even look appealing on TV. The only thing required is to project an image which resonates well enough with the voters that a sufficient number of them prefer you to the other guy. The author, who has a great deal of experience both with political journalism and with the highest levels of Australian politics, shows you how the machine operates.
If you establish the right relationship with the press, you can create a win-win deal that helps both sides. The political journalists have tight deadlines and an audience with short attention spans. You need to give them a straightforward story that's easy to write down and easy to read. ScoMo, who has a marketing background, did this very well. He rapidly created a persona of a down-to-earth suburban father of two, who cooked a curry once a week and supported the Sharks. These well-chosen details were endlessly repeated: soon everyone knew about the curries and the Sharks. It didn't matter that Scotty from Marketing supported a different team until about ten years ago and started cooking Sri Lankan curries even later. He was already fixed in the public's mind as someone who was "authentic" and "relatable".
Everything about ScoMo seems to be fake. He is a "committed Christian", but has been responsible for immigration policy and took pride in his ability to use any level of cruelty to punish illegal immigrants who had tried to reach Australia (he even has a commemorative figurine on his desk). He is a "devoted husband and father" who hardly seems to have time to see his family. He is a "loyal party man" who has benefitted from three dirty internal fights in the Liberal Party, all of which advanced his political career a great deal. So far, none of this has hurt him as much as one would expect. He writes off his constant policy U-turns as "pragmatism", and more often than not he gets away with it.
Of course, ScoMo is far from unique. Donald Trump and Boris Johnson, not infrequently used as comparison ponts, have also done well at selling programs almost entirely based on lies, while simultaneously projecting images of themselves as "genuine" and "trustworthy". But at least they seem to have some talent as performance artists. ScoMo has no obvious talents at all, except for an uncanny ability to work the system. It's as though the active ingredient in the other political conmen has been chemically refined into an almost pure form.
People who are unhappy about the current state of Western democracy may want to consider reading this book.
__________________
Have other people noticed this improved version of the Liberal Party's main election poster?
If you establish the right relationship with the press, you can create a win-win deal that helps both sides. The political journalists have tight deadlines and an audience with short attention spans. You need to give them a straightforward story that's easy to write down and easy to read. ScoMo, who has a marketing background, did this very well. He rapidly created a persona of a down-to-earth suburban father of two, who cooked a curry once a week and supported the Sharks. These well-chosen details were endlessly repeated: soon everyone knew about the curries and the Sharks. It didn't matter that Scotty from Marketing supported a different team until about ten years ago and started cooking Sri Lankan curries even later. He was already fixed in the public's mind as someone who was "authentic" and "relatable".
Everything about ScoMo seems to be fake. He is a "committed Christian", but has been responsible for immigration policy and took pride in his ability to use any level of cruelty to punish illegal immigrants who had tried to reach Australia (he even has a commemorative figurine on his desk). He is a "devoted husband and father" who hardly seems to have time to see his family. He is a "loyal party man" who has benefitted from three dirty internal fights in the Liberal Party, all of which advanced his political career a great deal. So far, none of this has hurt him as much as one would expect. He writes off his constant policy U-turns as "pragmatism", and more often than not he gets away with it.
Of course, ScoMo is far from unique. Donald Trump and Boris Johnson, not infrequently used as comparison ponts, have also done well at selling programs almost entirely based on lies, while simultaneously projecting images of themselves as "genuine" and "trustworthy". But at least they seem to have some talent as performance artists. ScoMo has no obvious talents at all, except for an uncanny ability to work the system. It's as though the active ingredient in the other political conmen has been chemically refined into an almost pure form.
People who are unhappy about the current state of Western democracy may want to consider reading this book.
__________________
Have other people noticed this improved version of the Liberal Party's main election poster?
February 14, 2022
He’s just your average Aussie who loves making a good curry and cheering on his local rugby team - the sharks. He’s a dad, a husband. Australia (or should I say Straya) he’s a bloke! He’s authentic! He’s genuine! A bloke that lives in gods country. Where everyone is given a fair go (or is it if you give it a go)? How good is it?! The lucky country.
No it’s not a David Williamson play or dozens of sitcoms where we have the Aussie bloke archetype.
This is the character that is Scott Morrison. The character created by Morrison to play a staring role in the depressing reality of our political landscape.
Who knows what he believes (except for Pentecostalism) and what he doesn’t (climate change).
What does he stands for and what is he even doing? Apart from waiting to see what polling says or what the mob thinks and then he has a few belated words.
He’s never at fault. Amazing that accountability is a value that seems to be missing from politicians. Hardly true blue Scomo!
The prime minister role and all his others roles is a job. A role that he takes on, because that is the way politics is played.
With that mindset, where you view leading a nation as a job, a role you play in the political game, you can almost excuse yourself from moral rectitude.
And that is Unaustralian.
Terrific book - great insights. A must read.
No it’s not a David Williamson play or dozens of sitcoms where we have the Aussie bloke archetype.
This is the character that is Scott Morrison. The character created by Morrison to play a staring role in the depressing reality of our political landscape.
Who knows what he believes (except for Pentecostalism) and what he doesn’t (climate change).
What does he stands for and what is he even doing? Apart from waiting to see what polling says or what the mob thinks and then he has a few belated words.
He’s never at fault. Amazing that accountability is a value that seems to be missing from politicians. Hardly true blue Scomo!
The prime minister role and all his others roles is a job. A role that he takes on, because that is the way politics is played.
With that mindset, where you view leading a nation as a job, a role you play in the political game, you can almost excuse yourself from moral rectitude.
And that is Unaustralian.
Terrific book - great insights. A must read.
November 3, 2021
Easily the best book about Australian politics in the 21st Century.
Who is Scott Morrison? Nobody, not even him, knows.
That says a lot about Morrison. It says even more about Australia and its decaying political culture, which began in 1974 with the blocking of Supply, and the subsequent double dissolution election of May of that year.
And what does that say about an election in 2022. It will be fucking terrifying, whoever wins.
Who is Scott Morrison? Nobody, not even him, knows.
That says a lot about Morrison. It says even more about Australia and its decaying political culture, which began in 1974 with the blocking of Supply, and the subsequent double dissolution election of May of that year.
And what does that say about an election in 2022. It will be fucking terrifying, whoever wins.
December 2, 2021
A vivid portrait of a man set against a fuzzy background of a nation.
While I don't read many of these kind of books anymore, I do rather enjoy them. Not least a good old fashioned mauling. A take behind the bike shed and break the kneecaps kind of political critique. Kelly is an original, relentless and incisive critique of Morrison, and the portrait he draws is compelling. Australia's Prime Minister is a man so obsessed with politics that there's nothing there beyond the politics. Whatever offers tactical advantage is what proceeds, and whatever is needed to be done to get ahead is what is done. With no regrets or even consideration it could be any other way.
While reading this book, I couldn't help but be reminded of someone Kelly used to work for, Kevin Rudd. Neither Morrison or Rudd have a quote-unquote 'natural' affinity for the public. Both rely heavily on artificial ockerisms in their language to make up for it. Both have had to fake a personality in order to achieve what they want, and both are very good at knowing and delivering what their particular tribe wants. And both will ultimately leave a legacy of no real significance. Being innovative or driving the national interest isn't in their DNA because that would mean going against the tribe and other than for momentary political advantage, not be the logical thing to do.
I really enjoyed this book, but if the first third is compelling and powerful, the arguments in the second and third section feel slightly underdone. Not wrong, but as somewhat 'flat', if I can borrow a term from Kelly's own critique. Two issues stand out
First, there's a well known business book by Simon Sinek that argues people don't buy what you do, they buy why you do it. This captures a current Left/Right divide in countries such as the US and Australia. The left has endless proposals for 'what' they will do if they have power. The right has a very clear sense of 'why' they must have power. To the left's befuddlement, people actually want to buy that why. Kelly is always concerned with the 'what' of politics (would rushed legislation actually stop more needles in strawberries, who did the Medevac legislation actually apply to), and though he recognizes it in asides, rarely engages the why. He implies that the what is reality, the why just marketing, but that's not right. Nor does it give the public enough credit. We all know politicians can't stop random idiots putting things in our food, but we may find it valuable to have a leader who speaks for us by saying 'this isn't on and we'll punish those who do', simply for the sake of saying so. It's not clear that serving the why is intrinsically wrong (and as Sinek notes, those who primarily serve the what, struggle to attract loyal followers).
Second, Kelly is brave and right in saying that by electing such a man, we do need to think about the nature of the Australian public who put him there. He is right to say we can't just accept Donald Horne's implication that only the elites are to blame. Yet where the language about Morrison himself is both exact and original, the writing about the public becomes general, repeats itself (including returning to Horne's own descriptions) and far less playful. Kelly at one point notes that many left wing intellectuals found Morrison boring, and I can't help but fear he like other left wing intellectuals thinks much the same of the general public (a point Judith Brett makes in her book on the Middle Class and Gideon Haigh observed in reviewing a recent QE). As such, though the issue is an important one to raise, what we get is a somewhat one-sided picture of the public. A 'why are you not ashamed by X, Y and Z' insistence, without really grappling with why the public are not and might not need to be. Kelly implies he does not really understand why people could be proud of Australia and its history, but ends up using very European traditional standards (Wars, great intellectual movements etc) to compare it against. Why should this be the standard? There's no attempt to see how others may 'balance' (a word which appears in a Howard quote on this topic in the book but goes unremarked) it, in a utilitarian fashion.
The real skill of George Orwell, Christopher Hitchens observed, was his 'power of facing'. That is not simply 'speaking truth to power', it was sometimes about speaking truth to the powerless. Orwell famously is the loyal socialist who wrote the best critique of communism, the man who lived with the 'down and out' but never saw them as angels. Kelly shows touches of this. Especially early on, he is able to offer three-dimensional portraits, and he is right to raise the question of the public's response and responsibility in our current malaise. But these sections never feels as thought throug and well rounded as it could have been. I hope that Kelly does take up this theme in another book. One he has the time to really tease out why the public acts as it does, why it may not simply be 'turning away' from the issues as implied, but have moral justifications for its approach. (Which is not to endorse, or say we should not change, but simply to say it's a question worth deeply understanding).
Overall, this is a powerful and enjoyable knee-capping of a leader who deserves it.
While I don't read many of these kind of books anymore, I do rather enjoy them. Not least a good old fashioned mauling. A take behind the bike shed and break the kneecaps kind of political critique. Kelly is an original, relentless and incisive critique of Morrison, and the portrait he draws is compelling. Australia's Prime Minister is a man so obsessed with politics that there's nothing there beyond the politics. Whatever offers tactical advantage is what proceeds, and whatever is needed to be done to get ahead is what is done. With no regrets or even consideration it could be any other way.
While reading this book, I couldn't help but be reminded of someone Kelly used to work for, Kevin Rudd. Neither Morrison or Rudd have a quote-unquote 'natural' affinity for the public. Both rely heavily on artificial ockerisms in their language to make up for it. Both have had to fake a personality in order to achieve what they want, and both are very good at knowing and delivering what their particular tribe wants. And both will ultimately leave a legacy of no real significance. Being innovative or driving the national interest isn't in their DNA because that would mean going against the tribe and other than for momentary political advantage, not be the logical thing to do.
I really enjoyed this book, but if the first third is compelling and powerful, the arguments in the second and third section feel slightly underdone. Not wrong, but as somewhat 'flat', if I can borrow a term from Kelly's own critique. Two issues stand out
First, there's a well known business book by Simon Sinek that argues people don't buy what you do, they buy why you do it. This captures a current Left/Right divide in countries such as the US and Australia. The left has endless proposals for 'what' they will do if they have power. The right has a very clear sense of 'why' they must have power. To the left's befuddlement, people actually want to buy that why. Kelly is always concerned with the 'what' of politics (would rushed legislation actually stop more needles in strawberries, who did the Medevac legislation actually apply to), and though he recognizes it in asides, rarely engages the why. He implies that the what is reality, the why just marketing, but that's not right. Nor does it give the public enough credit. We all know politicians can't stop random idiots putting things in our food, but we may find it valuable to have a leader who speaks for us by saying 'this isn't on and we'll punish those who do', simply for the sake of saying so. It's not clear that serving the why is intrinsically wrong (and as Sinek notes, those who primarily serve the what, struggle to attract loyal followers).
Second, Kelly is brave and right in saying that by electing such a man, we do need to think about the nature of the Australian public who put him there. He is right to say we can't just accept Donald Horne's implication that only the elites are to blame. Yet where the language about Morrison himself is both exact and original, the writing about the public becomes general, repeats itself (including returning to Horne's own descriptions) and far less playful. Kelly at one point notes that many left wing intellectuals found Morrison boring, and I can't help but fear he like other left wing intellectuals thinks much the same of the general public (a point Judith Brett makes in her book on the Middle Class and Gideon Haigh observed in reviewing a recent QE). As such, though the issue is an important one to raise, what we get is a somewhat one-sided picture of the public. A 'why are you not ashamed by X, Y and Z' insistence, without really grappling with why the public are not and might not need to be. Kelly implies he does not really understand why people could be proud of Australia and its history, but ends up using very European traditional standards (Wars, great intellectual movements etc) to compare it against. Why should this be the standard? There's no attempt to see how others may 'balance' (a word which appears in a Howard quote on this topic in the book but goes unremarked) it, in a utilitarian fashion.
The real skill of George Orwell, Christopher Hitchens observed, was his 'power of facing'. That is not simply 'speaking truth to power', it was sometimes about speaking truth to the powerless. Orwell famously is the loyal socialist who wrote the best critique of communism, the man who lived with the 'down and out' but never saw them as angels. Kelly shows touches of this. Especially early on, he is able to offer three-dimensional portraits, and he is right to raise the question of the public's response and responsibility in our current malaise. But these sections never feels as thought throug and well rounded as it could have been. I hope that Kelly does take up this theme in another book. One he has the time to really tease out why the public acts as it does, why it may not simply be 'turning away' from the issues as implied, but have moral justifications for its approach. (Which is not to endorse, or say we should not change, but simply to say it's a question worth deeply understanding).
Overall, this is a powerful and enjoyable knee-capping of a leader who deserves it.
November 4, 2021
Sean Kelly is, arguably, Australia’s best political writer. This is a brilliant expose of what sustains Scott Morrison. Sean has absolutely nailed this most enigmatic of all Australia’s prime ministers.
December 18, 2021
This was excruciating. I’ve read many political books on those I don’t like but with each chapter all I could hear was Scott’s smug voice and the lurking smirk. It was a good book but reading it made me stabby.
For anyone thinking Scott has done a good job, read this and then talk to me.
For anyone thinking Scott has done a good job, read this and then talk to me.
January 3, 2022
I come away from most biographies with a new and improved list of adjectives that sum up the person, a list of adjectives that do the opposite, and anecdotal examples to accompany each of them. This is an oversimplification of both the person and the work, but it means that my working image of the person is more functional that it was previously.
I didn’t quite know what I would walk away with, here. As Kelly writes, it seems as if we feel we know all that we need to know about Morrison. And we do - Kelly does not unearth any telling tidbits, or any points of interest heretofore unknown to the public. But he paints an image of Morrison, using these familiar colours, that is incredibly illuminating.
I felt like I understood Morrison before, but now I feel I have the words and the reasons for that understanding. This is a man who is always performing himself, and his self happens to be just the right sort of person. He has no sense of narrative, of conflict; he has no story in his head or in his life, he has no past or future. He is incapable of imagination, empathy or understanding. He is a series of images. He is a series of actions - often false ones, but perceived as actions nonetheless. He is a husband, a father, a Sharks fan. He cooks curries. He’s an Australian. He’s worked hard, and he has been rewarded. He is a particular sort of Christian. And, truly, there is no answer beyond this. I get the sense that he is nothing more than turtles all the way down - where the turtles are just shorthand for the layers of acting, unreality, untruths, gameplaying that make up his day-to-day. A very simple man. But a difficult one to understand.
I find myself utterly frightened of this, and of him.
I didn’t quite know what I would walk away with, here. As Kelly writes, it seems as if we feel we know all that we need to know about Morrison. And we do - Kelly does not unearth any telling tidbits, or any points of interest heretofore unknown to the public. But he paints an image of Morrison, using these familiar colours, that is incredibly illuminating.
I felt like I understood Morrison before, but now I feel I have the words and the reasons for that understanding. This is a man who is always performing himself, and his self happens to be just the right sort of person. He has no sense of narrative, of conflict; he has no story in his head or in his life, he has no past or future. He is incapable of imagination, empathy or understanding. He is a series of images. He is a series of actions - often false ones, but perceived as actions nonetheless. He is a husband, a father, a Sharks fan. He cooks curries. He’s an Australian. He’s worked hard, and he has been rewarded. He is a particular sort of Christian. And, truly, there is no answer beyond this. I get the sense that he is nothing more than turtles all the way down - where the turtles are just shorthand for the layers of acting, unreality, untruths, gameplaying that make up his day-to-day. A very simple man. But a difficult one to understand.
I find myself utterly frightened of this, and of him.
March 21, 2022
Who is Scott Morrison and what does he stand for?
In a couple of months, we Australians will have a federal election. While we do not directly elect our Prime Minister, we know that the leader of the party with a majority in the House of Representatives will become our next Prime Minister. Unless something extraordinary happens, the choice will be between Labor’s Anthony Albanese or the Liberal’s Scott Morrison. I cannot see much policy difference between the two major parties at present, and neither leader inspires me a vision for the future. Shades of beige, perhaps.
‘In truth, we are bored by Scott Morrison not because we know enough about him, but for the opposite reason: we know nothing important about Morrison the man at all.’
But surely, I am missing something in relation to Scott Morrison? Surely there is more to the man than making curry, playing the ukulele, and following the Sharks? While I have memories of his time as the Minister for Immigration, it is his replacement of Malcolm Turnbull which sticks in my mind.
So, I read this book, and became even more depressed. I have no idea what Scott Morrison stands for in terms of Australia’s future. He may have always believed in miracles, as he told us when he won the last election but winning an election should surely be a first step in leading, not an end in itself.
I’ll leave the last word to Mr Kelly:
‘By this point in Morrison’s prime ministership, a set of recurring traits is clearly visible. There is the dependence on tactics, a sense that politics is a game to be won. There is an overreliance on cheery platitudes in the place of serious thought. There is the inability to see out from his own narrow view of the world, his tendency to focus on only those who remind him of himself, and the defensiveness that arises when he is asked to do otherwise. Most importantly, there is a stubborn, reality-denying belief that everything will turn out well.’
Good luck, fellow Australians!
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
In a couple of months, we Australians will have a federal election. While we do not directly elect our Prime Minister, we know that the leader of the party with a majority in the House of Representatives will become our next Prime Minister. Unless something extraordinary happens, the choice will be between Labor’s Anthony Albanese or the Liberal’s Scott Morrison. I cannot see much policy difference between the two major parties at present, and neither leader inspires me a vision for the future. Shades of beige, perhaps.
‘In truth, we are bored by Scott Morrison not because we know enough about him, but for the opposite reason: we know nothing important about Morrison the man at all.’
But surely, I am missing something in relation to Scott Morrison? Surely there is more to the man than making curry, playing the ukulele, and following the Sharks? While I have memories of his time as the Minister for Immigration, it is his replacement of Malcolm Turnbull which sticks in my mind.
So, I read this book, and became even more depressed. I have no idea what Scott Morrison stands for in terms of Australia’s future. He may have always believed in miracles, as he told us when he won the last election but winning an election should surely be a first step in leading, not an end in itself.
I’ll leave the last word to Mr Kelly:
‘By this point in Morrison’s prime ministership, a set of recurring traits is clearly visible. There is the dependence on tactics, a sense that politics is a game to be won. There is an overreliance on cheery platitudes in the place of serious thought. There is the inability to see out from his own narrow view of the world, his tendency to focus on only those who remind him of himself, and the defensiveness that arises when he is asked to do otherwise. Most importantly, there is a stubborn, reality-denying belief that everything will turn out well.’
Good luck, fellow Australians!
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
December 9, 2021
At one point in the book, the local paper the St. George Leader reported "Asked if there
were occasions when he received the cold shoulder or stony looks Morrison replied
"not in the Shire". Well, he hadn't met my dad - he would have got the cold shoulder,
stony looks and then some from him. Dad, a life long Labor member was absolutely
mortified that Morrison was his local Federal member (although Dad came from the
less upper class suburb of Dolls Point) - maybe Scottie just doesn't get out enough!!
A real mystery to me has always been - giving Morrison's repeated treachery throughout
his career, why, oh why did Turnbull put so much trust and reliance in him, knowing that
what Morrison did to Abbott he could so easily do to him. That question is answered in an
early chapter - how can a person grasp and really get to know someone who only projects
the image they want people to see.
I also hadn't realised that Morrison had also used the "you don't have to drag some people
down to lift others up" spiel talking about Australia Day - pretty sure he also used it when
talking about adopting the LNP quota system for women. One of the scariest and insightful
things I learned about Morrison is his way of relating most things back to his own
experience and history ie the Australia Day debate with Morrison defending his own family
history "my family did it tough as well".
Morrison is a perfect example of the type of leader you get when people vote for a
"populist" candidate - someone who is just like a mate, like the bloke next door, the
fellow up the street - do you really want someone like that running the country. It's an
egotism for voters as well - I don't want someone like myself running the country sorry -
I want a person who is a true leader for all, an intellect ect, someone a lot smarter than
myself lol
were occasions when he received the cold shoulder or stony looks Morrison replied
"not in the Shire". Well, he hadn't met my dad - he would have got the cold shoulder,
stony looks and then some from him. Dad, a life long Labor member was absolutely
mortified that Morrison was his local Federal member (although Dad came from the
less upper class suburb of Dolls Point) - maybe Scottie just doesn't get out enough!!
A real mystery to me has always been - giving Morrison's repeated treachery throughout
his career, why, oh why did Turnbull put so much trust and reliance in him, knowing that
what Morrison did to Abbott he could so easily do to him. That question is answered in an
early chapter - how can a person grasp and really get to know someone who only projects
the image they want people to see.
I also hadn't realised that Morrison had also used the "you don't have to drag some people
down to lift others up" spiel talking about Australia Day - pretty sure he also used it when
talking about adopting the LNP quota system for women. One of the scariest and insightful
things I learned about Morrison is his way of relating most things back to his own
experience and history ie the Australia Day debate with Morrison defending his own family
history "my family did it tough as well".
Morrison is a perfect example of the type of leader you get when people vote for a
"populist" candidate - someone who is just like a mate, like the bloke next door, the
fellow up the street - do you really want someone like that running the country. It's an
egotism for voters as well - I don't want someone like myself running the country sorry -
I want a person who is a true leader for all, an intellect ect, someone a lot smarter than
myself lol
January 27, 2022
So deliciously written and an excellent analysis of Morrison that he has only further proven in the months since this was published. I slightly hated having to read about Morrison and all the horrible things he’s done but the prose made it bearable.
December 18, 2021
The subtitle of The Game - A Portrait of Scott Morrison - is appropriate. It is not a biography, and I find this refreshing. As a public figure, I am not interested in where he went to school, what his hobbies were, or what his uni friends thought of him, because it’s his existence as a public figure that I care about. This book starts where Morrison's political career started, and that’s as it should be for many other political profiles.
It has to be said, The Game is as much a polemic as a portrait. Those who already oppose or dislike Morrison will find plenty to justify their views here. Equally though, surely even those who support his policies (inasmuch as he has any) must surely be frustrated that he’s such a ham-fisted advocate for them. Those who admire him must surely wish he’d present himself a bit better.
There are places where the book veers dangerously close to psychoanalysis by media. This is usually best avoided but there are certain subjects, be it Elon Musk, Kanye West, Piers Morgan, or of course Donald Trump, where some amateur psychology is unavoidable to anyone paying attention.
No successful politician is without their contradictions. The normal explanation for this is people are complex. The most confronting aspect of The Game is realising Morrison’s contradictions, and his ability to so blithely deny them, come from a total lack of complexity. There is something to be said for living in the moment, and changing your opinion when circumstances or information changes. This book suggests our current prime minister has taken those things to such an extreme that he can’t quite fathom how what he eats today affects what he poops tomorrow. That’s a worry in a leader.
It has to be said, The Game is as much a polemic as a portrait. Those who already oppose or dislike Morrison will find plenty to justify their views here. Equally though, surely even those who support his policies (inasmuch as he has any) must surely be frustrated that he’s such a ham-fisted advocate for them. Those who admire him must surely wish he’d present himself a bit better.
There are places where the book veers dangerously close to psychoanalysis by media. This is usually best avoided but there are certain subjects, be it Elon Musk, Kanye West, Piers Morgan, or of course Donald Trump, where some amateur psychology is unavoidable to anyone paying attention.
No successful politician is without their contradictions. The normal explanation for this is people are complex. The most confronting aspect of The Game is realising Morrison’s contradictions, and his ability to so blithely deny them, come from a total lack of complexity. There is something to be said for living in the moment, and changing your opinion when circumstances or information changes. This book suggests our current prime minister has taken those things to such an extreme that he can’t quite fathom how what he eats today affects what he poops tomorrow. That’s a worry in a leader.
November 28, 2021
Although a lot of what I read angered and depressed me, I appreciated Kelly’s insightful observations and deductions about Morrison and what makes him tick. I have come away from this book not as a converted voter, but even more steely in my resolve that such “leaders” should not be entertained and considered seriously as candidates worthy enough to run this country.
Well researched and written. Hard for an #auspol junkie to put down.
Well researched and written. Hard for an #auspol junkie to put down.
December 1, 2021
Mandatory pre-election reading. Bearing in mind Sean Kelly’s prior employment in two Labour governments, it is not entirely impartial. Nevertheless, it is at all times a measured and well-constructed examination of Morrison’s prime ministership
February 5, 2022
Fantastic dissection of a truly detestable human. Good humour as well.
December 27, 2021
Australia’s prime minister, Scott Morrison, likes to be known as ‘ScoMo’. And so he should because Morrison invented the character. Sean Kelly – a former media advisor to Labor prime ministers Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard – argues Morrison has invented what fiction authors call ‘flat characters’.
The reader gets to know flat characters from a few keywords. ScoMo is a curry-cooking, rugby league Cronulla Sharks supporter and a daggy dad. He’s just an ordinary bloke from the suburbs. And he keeps repeating this in words and image, helpfully propagated by the media.
Like a lot of fabrications, there is some truth. Scott Morrison grew up in Sydney’s southern suburbs, he has been a rugby fan – though initially rugby union – and he is a father. He is not a phoney. He is authentic. He is one of us. But us is not the entire population. Indigenous people, refugees, women and anyone else who doesn’t conform to his world view are the unspoken ‘them’. They are not part of ‘us’.
It’s the world Scott Morrison knows. Kelly shows, with forensic analysis, the Pentecostal Morrison is driven by the need to win. There is no vision of what he thinks Australia should be or could be; no desire to make improvements. But there is brilliance. Morrison is the consummate spin doctor but spin is no substitute for competence. Cracks in ScoMo’s façade are showing: the bungled Covid19 vaccine rollout, the rorts – sport clubs and carparks – Jobkeeper, to name just three.
Kelly has revealed a vacuous, narcistic and insincere man. If he his skill in spin doctoring was in other areas, he would be a far better prime minister.
The reader gets to know flat characters from a few keywords. ScoMo is a curry-cooking, rugby league Cronulla Sharks supporter and a daggy dad. He’s just an ordinary bloke from the suburbs. And he keeps repeating this in words and image, helpfully propagated by the media.
Like a lot of fabrications, there is some truth. Scott Morrison grew up in Sydney’s southern suburbs, he has been a rugby fan – though initially rugby union – and he is a father. He is not a phoney. He is authentic. He is one of us. But us is not the entire population. Indigenous people, refugees, women and anyone else who doesn’t conform to his world view are the unspoken ‘them’. They are not part of ‘us’.
It’s the world Scott Morrison knows. Kelly shows, with forensic analysis, the Pentecostal Morrison is driven by the need to win. There is no vision of what he thinks Australia should be or could be; no desire to make improvements. But there is brilliance. Morrison is the consummate spin doctor but spin is no substitute for competence. Cracks in ScoMo’s façade are showing: the bungled Covid19 vaccine rollout, the rorts – sport clubs and carparks – Jobkeeper, to name just three.
Kelly has revealed a vacuous, narcistic and insincere man. If he his skill in spin doctoring was in other areas, he would be a far better prime minister.
November 28, 2021
The Russian Revolutionary Nikolai Sukhanov, once described Joseph Stalin as "a grey blur, emitting a dim light every now and then and not leaving any trace.” After reading Sean Kelly’s forensic and thought provoking biography, the above description seems equally apt for Scott Morrison.
June 2, 2022
A detailed examination of Scott Morrison that, like most examinations of Morrison, founders a little on the rocks of there being no there there.
May 27, 2022
I planned to read The Game before the Australian Federal Election 2022 but didn’t get around to it until now, following the news of Scott Morrison’s departure as PM. I’ve never liked the man, but saw him as a rather curious character and wanted to learn more about him hence why I picked up this book. I found it to be an interesting and illuminating analysis of his behaviour and political approach. The book is a little dry at times but not overly so. In any case, it confirmed for me that we are better off without Scott Morrison leading our country. Worth a read if you are interested in Australian politics.
January 9, 2022
A brilliant analysis of our Prime Minister. Who is the real Scott Morrison? the author asks. He finally concludes that it is very difficult to say who he really is but it doesn't really matter anyway. Morrison sees politics as a game and his job as PM is to play a role.
When a crisis comes along that he has never had to deal with before his usual political tactics are not always appropriate and can make the situation worse, e.g. forcing a handshake from a bushfire victim in Cobargo. He suffers from an extreme lack of imagination. He couldn't imagine how Brittany Hughes felt about being raped until his wife told him to imagine if Brittany had been his daughter.
He's not a well - rounded human being. There's no maturity there. A very flawed leader.
When a crisis comes along that he has never had to deal with before his usual political tactics are not always appropriate and can make the situation worse, e.g. forcing a handshake from a bushfire victim in Cobargo. He suffers from an extreme lack of imagination. He couldn't imagine how Brittany Hughes felt about being raped until his wife told him to imagine if Brittany had been his daughter.
He's not a well - rounded human being. There's no maturity there. A very flawed leader.
February 15, 2022
Kelly displays the uninspiring and superficial performance that is Scott Morrison’s Prime Ministership. A man who’s reaction to a problem is a through a series of repetitive focus group approved lines and photo shoots rather then addressing the substance of an issue. His failures of the Hawaii Trip, the bushfires, climate change, sexual violence against women and the vaccination roll out amplify his distance from Australians. Implying women protesting for justice in Canberra should be thankful they are not being meet with bullets are among many painful moments that highlight his lack of empathy and his inability to be a leader. With a looming federal election are the majority of Australia’s content or is there an eagerness to change directions???
December 17, 2021
Torn Cover Collection 004
I Started reading about Donald Trump and his first 18 months in office. I end this reading about Scott Morrison run as Prime Minister to the current date....and somehow im more angry about my countrys leader. A fascinating deep dive into the profile of this blokey leader of the Liberal Party who comes off as an uncaring black hole of a political figure. While i might be spilling my biases, the concern of seeing leadership as a game to be won is still one to be uneasy about. Regardless its a unique profile into a figure and an enigma, a brilliant work worth reading, even to those who are from overseas.
I Started reading about Donald Trump and his first 18 months in office. I end this reading about Scott Morrison run as Prime Minister to the current date....and somehow im more angry about my countrys leader. A fascinating deep dive into the profile of this blokey leader of the Liberal Party who comes off as an uncaring black hole of a political figure. While i might be spilling my biases, the concern of seeing leadership as a game to be won is still one to be uneasy about. Regardless its a unique profile into a figure and an enigma, a brilliant work worth reading, even to those who are from overseas.
February 14, 2022
This didn't tell me much I didn't know already about Scot Morrison. Kelly was unable to find what sort of vision Morrison had for Australia, other than that portrayed by his daggy dad, curry cooking, sharks following persona. He seems to appeal to this idea of Australia and has no intention of changing that view. It seems like he is interested in the power of the office of PM, but not interested in using that power for the good of Australia. Just likes to let people know he is the PM!
April 12, 2022
I didn’t love this book. Though Morrison’s term in government has been appalling on all the fronts Sean Kelly identifies, any profile of such a hollow, deeply uninteresting figure like Morrison better be either funny or an original take to hold my attention. If you‘ve paid attention national politics during Morrison’s Prime Ministership, this book won’t tell you much you didn’t already live through.
December 11, 2021
Really excellent insight into the Australian prime minister with imagination and vision for Australia is shallow and cynical and extends only into the distance of winning power. Scott's game of politics lacks any leadership or management of the country. I despair.
October 30, 2022
Like reading the eulogy for an expired invertebrate
March 9, 2022
“He was used to following certain rules: if things go wrong, express regret and share the blame around; distract from criticism by making your own announcement; make an ad; do a photo op; shake hands. These worked well in the confines of the game. Now though, the entire country was either anxious or angry. Genuine suffering was on display. Images, in which Morrison placed so much stock, were now working against him, illustrating something real and unavoidable rather than something trivial and comforting. The separation of the game from reality was impossible to maintain. Faced with the world as it was, rather than the proxy world his formulas allowed him to handle, Morrison struggled.”
This quote is related to Morrison’s response to the bushfires in NSW in 2019/20. But it could also be applied to the management of COVID, to the vaccine roll-out, and to potentially the recent floods in NSW and Queensland. Sean Kelly offers up an interesting analysis of the context in which Morrison operates – he says “that In this “land of extremes”, Australians are always splitting ourselves in two, then ignoring the half that discomfits us. For Kelly, this mentality explains why the so-called “quiet Australians” have indulged “the game” that Morrison plays, while the others have rejected him entirely (“I am completely different”).” (https://theconversation.com/book-revi...)
He also puts forward Morrison as a “flat character” (what novelist E.M. Forster called an instantly recognisable “type”). In this case he started work on this persona well into his political career (in 2015) when he realised that being the hardline Minister for Immigration might not make him a personable candidate as potential Prime Minister. He hasn’t been cooking curries all his life – he started just a short while before he went on Kitchen Cabinet. And the “Go Sharks” refrain is something that only appeared quite recently. As Linda Jaivin writes in her review: “…Morrison is a savvy marketing man. He knows that if you repeat something often enough it becomes true, or at least, it appears to be. His constant, performative referencing of the Sharks and curry, his frequent descriptions of himself as “authentic” and “pragmatic”, shape the story, amplified by compliant media, of the “daggy dad” who serves Australia by virtue of his very Australianness. He has made himself, Kelly observes, into what novelists call a “flat character”, readily identifiable by his quirks and catchphrases.” (https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/c...)
One of the things that annoys me the most about him is the penchant for dress-ups. Like a kinder kid, he’s always at the wheel of a big truck, or in high vis, or pretending to be a chef or feigning blokiness with his Sharks scarf. I long for the “Good old days” when it was enough for politicians to turn up to events in an ill-fitting suit. I guess that we, through the media, have created this kind of photo op monster but I really hate it.
And speaking of photo ops…. “Morrison could drop into hair salons in every marginal seat to wash ladies’ locks and still not resolve a deeper problem: his apparent difficulty with women. Women, that is, who aren’t his wife. “I’ve spoken to Jen.” He’ll say, and as so few had heard this demure woman talk until recently, he sounded like a child claiming a chat with an imaginary friend. Jacqui [Lambie] is the anti-Jenny. Her mouth runs like a dumpster fire she refuses to put out because, unlike the seemingly directionless prime minister, she lives with a sense of burning urgency.”
This quote is from a piece on Jacqui Lambie in The Monthly titled ‘Goddamn bloody adult’ by Chloe Hooper. I happened to read it at the same time as I was reading ‘The Game’. What made me want to read this was an extract in the Age which explored Morrison’s maiden speech in Parliament. It comes from the chapter titled ‘Pragmatic’ which explores the in which Morrison dodges questions, withholds “anything that might have a clear and definite meaning, and obfuscates about events. I wanted to know more about how he could get away with it – how a country like Australia, with a relatively robust media, could not hold him to account. Kelly writes a little bit about the interdependence of journalists and politicians – how an adversarial attitude will dampen any leaks or access. He concludes that chapter by saying that there are many ways that Morrison’s propensity to shift positions or abandon values might be described including ‘ruthless’ or ‘cunning’ but instead, it is most likely to be ’pragmatic’; - because this is a word that Morrison uses repeatedly about himself.
I thought this was a really interesting read.
This quote is related to Morrison’s response to the bushfires in NSW in 2019/20. But it could also be applied to the management of COVID, to the vaccine roll-out, and to potentially the recent floods in NSW and Queensland. Sean Kelly offers up an interesting analysis of the context in which Morrison operates – he says “that In this “land of extremes”, Australians are always splitting ourselves in two, then ignoring the half that discomfits us. For Kelly, this mentality explains why the so-called “quiet Australians” have indulged “the game” that Morrison plays, while the others have rejected him entirely (“I am completely different”).” (https://theconversation.com/book-revi...)
He also puts forward Morrison as a “flat character” (what novelist E.M. Forster called an instantly recognisable “type”). In this case he started work on this persona well into his political career (in 2015) when he realised that being the hardline Minister for Immigration might not make him a personable candidate as potential Prime Minister. He hasn’t been cooking curries all his life – he started just a short while before he went on Kitchen Cabinet. And the “Go Sharks” refrain is something that only appeared quite recently. As Linda Jaivin writes in her review: “…Morrison is a savvy marketing man. He knows that if you repeat something often enough it becomes true, or at least, it appears to be. His constant, performative referencing of the Sharks and curry, his frequent descriptions of himself as “authentic” and “pragmatic”, shape the story, amplified by compliant media, of the “daggy dad” who serves Australia by virtue of his very Australianness. He has made himself, Kelly observes, into what novelists call a “flat character”, readily identifiable by his quirks and catchphrases.” (https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/c...)
One of the things that annoys me the most about him is the penchant for dress-ups. Like a kinder kid, he’s always at the wheel of a big truck, or in high vis, or pretending to be a chef or feigning blokiness with his Sharks scarf. I long for the “Good old days” when it was enough for politicians to turn up to events in an ill-fitting suit. I guess that we, through the media, have created this kind of photo op monster but I really hate it.
And speaking of photo ops…. “Morrison could drop into hair salons in every marginal seat to wash ladies’ locks and still not resolve a deeper problem: his apparent difficulty with women. Women, that is, who aren’t his wife. “I’ve spoken to Jen.” He’ll say, and as so few had heard this demure woman talk until recently, he sounded like a child claiming a chat with an imaginary friend. Jacqui [Lambie] is the anti-Jenny. Her mouth runs like a dumpster fire she refuses to put out because, unlike the seemingly directionless prime minister, she lives with a sense of burning urgency.”
This quote is from a piece on Jacqui Lambie in The Monthly titled ‘Goddamn bloody adult’ by Chloe Hooper. I happened to read it at the same time as I was reading ‘The Game’. What made me want to read this was an extract in the Age which explored Morrison’s maiden speech in Parliament. It comes from the chapter titled ‘Pragmatic’ which explores the in which Morrison dodges questions, withholds “anything that might have a clear and definite meaning, and obfuscates about events. I wanted to know more about how he could get away with it – how a country like Australia, with a relatively robust media, could not hold him to account. Kelly writes a little bit about the interdependence of journalists and politicians – how an adversarial attitude will dampen any leaks or access. He concludes that chapter by saying that there are many ways that Morrison’s propensity to shift positions or abandon values might be described including ‘ruthless’ or ‘cunning’ but instead, it is most likely to be ’pragmatic’; - because this is a word that Morrison uses repeatedly about himself.
I thought this was a really interesting read.
June 1, 2022
This was a really well written book. It helps contextualise Morrison's government and how he got to become Prime Minister in the first place. I appreciated the author's balance as well as their wider critique of Australia and its culture. I'm pleased to see Scott Morrison go, and I hope we can learn from his time as Prime Minister, and as a nation, not shy away from hard problems, or self reflection.
June 15, 2022
Fascinating read which delves into the psyche of Scomo and his rise to PM.
November 27, 2021
This was just okay, for me. Certainly well written, but - spoiler alert - there's nothing to Morrison we don't know, and the author acknowledges this is in the first and last chapters. Morrison is actually the sad, shallow, shadow of a prime minister that we all thought he was, so the book reveals nothing new; it doesn't even shed light on why Morrison was fired from Tourism.
I'm done with books on this caricature of a man, not our worst, but certainly our least-inspiring leader. There actually is nothing to say about him, so future studies need to focus more on how we got here rather than just where we are.
I'm done with books on this caricature of a man, not our worst, but certainly our least-inspiring leader. There actually is nothing to say about him, so future studies need to focus more on how we got here rather than just where we are.
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