By now, you’ve probably seen the footage of Scott Morrison being heckled by residents of the fire-ravaged town of Cobargo. He forced a woman to shake his hand. He was called a “fucking prick”. To be honest with you, it was pretty cathartic to watch and also yet more evidence Morrison is woefully unprepared to deal with the current crisis.
If you haven’t seen that footage, it’s here:
[jwplayer FW7q6R4M]
Well, now even professional bad opinion haver Piers Morgan is putting Morrison’s handling of this bushfire crisis on blast.
“Morrison got what he deserved,” Morgan tweeted, sharing the now-infamous video of Morrison.
“Absolutely unconscionable for a Prime Minister to holiday in Hawaii as his nation burns.”
When Morgan was told to “come off it” by a person on Twitter because there’s “always something going on”, the Good Morning Britain host replied: “If you’re a Prime Minister, not when your country’s burning to the ground. This is not ‘something going on’ – this is one of the biggest disasters in Australia’s history.”
If you’re a Prime Minister, not when your country’s burning to the ground. This is not ‘something going on’ – this is one of the biggest disasters in Australia’s history. https://t.co/Zxc0BmhNDi
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) January 2, 2020
True, Morgan doesn’t really have skin in the game here and yes, he makes a living out of being professionally nasty, but you know something’s been lost when even Piers bloody Morgan says you need to pull your head in.
Morrison’s leadership is under serious scrutiny. From his ill-timed holiday to Hawaii, to saying the fires will be a “backdrop” to the cricket, he’s appeared either ill-equipped or unable to face the unprecedented bushfire crises.
Even members of his own party aren’t happy, with NSW Liberal MP Andrew Constance – whose electorate includes some of the worst-hit areas – said Morrison got “the welcome he deserved”.
Morrison, meanwhile, has brushed of the very real and visceral anger he faced in Cobargo, saying he didn’t take it personally.
“I know people are angry and they’ll often fixate on … a Prime Minister or someone else,” he told 3AW’s Neil Mitchell.
“I understand that. I understand the emotion, I understand the hurt, the anger and frustration.
“All I know is that they’re hurting and it’s my job to be there to try and offer some comfort and support.
“I don’t take these things personally. Why would I?”
If you were wondering if the party can still roll a leader – the answer is technically yes, but now that a two-third majority vote is needed, it’s much, much harder. Time will tell if Morrison’s own party are furious and/or power-hungry enough to do it.
