EVEN AS WE SPEAK, Peter Dutton is huddled up in a disused broom closet of Parliament House, rocking back-and-forth and muttering ‘Every mic’s a hot mic, every mic’s a hot mic’.
The Immigration Minister was caught out this afternoon making a quip about Pacific Island nations facing climate change by a mic that was still recording. (Note the sparse use of four flags behind this “private conversation”, as Dutton later described it.)
Here’s the context: Tony Abbott had just returned from Port Moresby, New Guinea, where he met with Pacific Island leaders to discuss climate change.
Their next meeting on Syrian refugees was running late, to which Dutton joked that it was running to “Cape York time” – (is that a thing? A Liberal insider joke?) – and Abbott replied that “we had a bit of that in Port Moresby.”
Which is where Dutton said these fateful words: “time doesn’t mean anything when you’re about to have water lapping at your door.”
Dutton, what’s good?
I think we can all agree who the real hero is today.#dutton pic.twitter.com/Suv6bZzzUD
— Reid Parker (@ReidParker_) September 11, 2015
@BridgetOFlynn #Abbott could fall on his sword and sack #Dutton. A political “murder-suicide”. That would be one to remember.
— David Bongiorno (@DavidBongiorno) September 11, 2015
If Abbott wasn’t planning a Cabinet Reshuffle this morning
He is now…
— Sir craigjack36 (@craigjack36) September 11, 2015
just a quick reminder that today is day 214 of good government #auspol #dutton
— Scott Ludlam (@SenatorLudlam) September 11, 2015
because having your whole country wiped off the map by sea level rise is *hilarious* #dutton #TheresABoomUpThere
— Scott Ludlam (@SenatorLudlam) September 11, 2015
Now, because the internet is a beautiful, magical place where ~ anything ~ can happen, someone’s already added the ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm‘ theme to the clip and it’s just perfect, well done you.
Old mates Tones is rumoured to be doing the old Cabinet shuffle-roo in the very near future. So, y’know. Keep an eye out for Dutton in the classifieds.
.@PeterDutton_MP good luck with the job market mate ???? #auspoI #dutton pic.twitter.com/UJJRSfwavR
— Nick Musgrave (@nickskies) September 11, 2015
