Tony Abbott Reluctantly Concedes Reality Is A Thing, Admits He Lied About Cuts To The ABC (Sort Of)

It’s Monday morning, and already the government’s given itself a solid head-start on this week’s Fuck-up Quota by having the Prime Minister front a marathon press conference and just let loose like a smoke machine during a part-time DJ’s set on a Tuesday night.

This morning Tony Abbott answered Press Gallery questions for a solid 45 minutes to address what he described as “a bit of a ragged week” for the government last week, which is a bit like saying the way this goat can turn its head around a full 360 degrees is “mildly worrying”.

Abbott defended the government’s record, saying it has “a very solid year of performance under its belt”, which I suppose is true if that “performance” was the massacre scene at the end of Hamlet. Surprisingly, though, Abbott finally bit the bullet and kinda-sorta-half admitted that the thing he said about “no cuts to the ABC or SBS” was, in fact, a thing he said. Further, he also admitted that he is now doing something different to what he said back then, namely taking a Freedom Axe to one of the world’s most treasured public broadcasters and its spunky younger cousin.

“I accept that what we are doing with the ABC is at odds with what I said immediately prior to the election”. That’s some Braveheart-level oration right there. Give it up.

On one extremely optimistic level, that’s progress; the sitting Prime Minister of Australia has learnt, in an extremely roundabout and dim way, that people don’t like it when you say you won’t do something and then go and do that thing so much Quentin Dempster gets sacked.

However, he also said this:

“I don’t think anyone would say a co payment is bad in principle” #TonyAbbott #auspol

— news.com.au (@newscomauHQ) November 30, 2014

Me! I would! I would say a co-payment is bad in principle! I have, a bunch of times, and so have the few hundred thousand other people who’ve been campaigning against it all this time.

Baby steps, then. Baby steps.