Credlin | 26 June

A council worker who objected to an acknowledgement of country wins his unfair dismissal case, and the Trump leans into the ‘Daddy Trump’ label. Plus, the Albanese government faces growing pressure to boost defence spending. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Peter krandlerd Live on Sky News Australia.

Speaker 2 (00:06):
Good evening, Welcome to the program. Let's have a look
at what's coming up tonight, pending, of course, a crazy
press conference from Donald Trump. Again a win for common sense.
A council worker sack from objecting to an acknowledgment of
country when tis unfair dismissal case it's the right call.
But goodness me, how did he get to this? Never
want to pass up a bit of flattery. The Trump

(00:27):
administration's really leaning into the whole daddy Trump label following
those meetings at NATO. Now his critics might cringe, but
on any assessment, it's been a cracker of a week
for the President, perhaps his biggest yet. We'll have some
analysis in a moment from a former Australian Army brigadier
coming out. Plus I get all the chaos Israelis have
had to endure over the past few weeks. I will

(00:49):
bring you tonight the astonishing story of a baby born
in a bomb shelter in Jerusalem. And if the BRESSA
wasn't already on it is now the Trump administration secure
in that dramatic hike in defense spending from almost all
but one Spain NATO countries, and yet our government here
is insisting that we are paying half of what they

(01:10):
are and that's enough.

Speaker 1 (01:13):
What matters now is that the quality of that defense
spending is the best that it can be.

Speaker 2 (01:25):
But first, what is it with the Albanezi government who
are making us about as popular as the North Koreans.
With Australia snub again at an international event? In what
a waste of one hundred thousand dollars or so that
it's cost taxpayers does end Richard Miles and his entourage
to the NATO summit this week and for Miles end
to miss out not just on the meeting with the
US President, but also his own counterpart, the US Defense

(01:49):
Secretary Pete Hegsith. And just in case Miles misread, the
snub is placed in the NATO family photograph made at
all crystal clear not just to us in an Australia,
but every other government in the world who knows how
to read these sort of diplomatic displays. And what could
we expect given our readiness to vote against the United

(02:10):
States at the UN over and over again on the
question of Israel and our stubborn refusal to increase defense
spending when every other close ally of the United States is.
It shows just how out of step we are that
the Starmer government in Britain, in many ways the ideological
soulmate of the Albanyzer government here, is increasing its defense

(02:33):
spending to two point seven percent of GDP immediately, and
to three point five percent of GDP early in the
twenty thirties, and of course this new five percent. But
here at home, we're just limping along around two percent now,
even though we admit these are the most perilous times
in seven decades that we are unable to defend ourselves,

(02:54):
and that we are reliant on an ally that doesn't
really want to know us anymore. Here's trying to justify
his trip.

Speaker 1 (03:03):
What matters now is that the quality of that defense
spending is the best that it can be, so that
we are in fact increasing production across all of our countries,
which will mean that there is actual better capability which
results from this increase in expenditure.

Speaker 2 (03:24):
And here is the government's leadership and the Prime Minister
down trying to justify existing parless levels of defense spending.

Speaker 3 (03:33):
We are actually already very substantially increasing our investment in defense.

Speaker 4 (03:37):
We found room in tight budgets. We have to rethink
our approach on defense. How volatile the world is.

Speaker 3 (03:45):
Our approach here and is very clear, which is we
will ensure that Australia has the capability that we need, and.

Speaker 1 (03:50):
Of course we will determine our own defense spending based
on Australia's national interest.

Speaker 2 (04:00):
Whatever you think of Donald Trump, there's no doubt he's
had our triumph for a few days. First, he's done
what all these recent predecessors threatened to do but couldn't.

Speaker 5 (04:10):
As long as I'm president of the United States, Iran
will not get a nuclear weapon.

Speaker 2 (04:14):
Here's my message to Iran's leaders.

Speaker 6 (04:17):
The United States will never allow you to acquire a
nuclear weapon.

Speaker 7 (04:22):
We will not allow Ran to acquire a nuclear weapon.

Speaker 8 (04:26):
What we need to do to ensure that Iran never
achieves the ability to be a nuclear power.

Speaker 2 (04:35):
That is one of my highest priorities. Now, unlike their
mere words, he's most likely wiped out Iran's nuclear weapons program. Second,
he's achieved what all his predecessors sought to do but
never were able to achieve. His forced America's European allies
to substantially increase that defense spending, which leaves us more

(04:57):
isolated than ever in Australia, having totally failed to respond
to pretty reasonable requests of our ally the same Maley,
of course, on which we're totally depended on for the
defense of Australia. In a couple of weeks time, the
Talisman Saber multinational military exercises will take place here in
Northern Australia. It's an impressive display of democratic unity and resolve.

(05:21):
We can't expect our allies to do more for Australia
than we are prepared to do for ourselves. And we
can't expect American sons and daughters to put their lives
on the line for Australia when they're spending close to
four percent of GDP on defense and we are spending
half that. As I wrote in my column today for
The Australian, under the alban Ezy government, the US Alliance

(05:43):
is on life support at best. And that's why Anthony
Albenezi wouldn't go to NATO. That's why he won't go
to Washington either, but he will go to Beijing. Now,
this is a bloke who feels more comfortable with an
Australia that's an economic colony of China, and in Australia
that's a military ally of the United States. And it

(06:04):
can't bear being exposed to an overl office dressing down
before the media for failing to do what every self
respecting nation should, namely maintain the ability to defend itself.
This government is cannibalizing the armed forces now to pay
for orcus subs that won't arrive for seven years if
at all. Look at the record of them, you know

(06:27):
they Albadeza government's canceled an order for an extra squadron
of F thirty five's, it's drastically cut back on an
order for new armored vehicles. It's prematurely retired in anzac frigate.
It's failed thus far to place an order for new frigates,
and it's about to retire our last mind sweepers. Now,
if he was a soldier leaving his post undefended like this,

(06:49):
Now for the other and easy face of court Marshal,
it's somehow as PM he thinks it's okay and we're
letting him get away with it. And you walk the
graves of Gallipoli, a psalm or Vietnam, and you tell
me that freedom is free. You tell me freedom is free,
because it is not. The price of freedom is eternal vigilance.

(07:11):
And this Prime Minister is sleepwalking Australia into danger. And
look a rare win for common sense with a Victorian
council worker sacks for questioning a workplace to acknowledgment of
country then winning his unfair dismissal case or hallelujah for

(07:33):
common sense. But what kind of an employer would insist
on beginning every meeting, even a weekly meeting of the
street cleaning team, or a new acknowledgment of country, And
what kind of an employer would try a then sack
a staff member who dared to question the practice. Well,
the Daraban Council, that's who possibly the most woke council

(07:53):
in Victoria. I'll tell you what's better of competition for
that title, But they're pretty bad. Well good on Sean
Turner taking them mine up. But they sacked him for
alleged misconduct after he merely expressed incredulity at the need
for an indulgent of country before a meeting to discuss
the coming weeks street sweeping schedule. And Turner said if

(08:15):
anyone was to be thanked. He said, it's the people
who have worn the uniform and fought for our country
to keep it free. Well here here, he said that
acknowledgments of country were getting out of hand and people
are losing it. He said that they were okay, a
big formal occasions, but shouldn't be made at the opening
of an envelope. Get this bloke a seat in parliament,

(08:36):
I tell you what. And for this Turner was sacked
supposedly for serious misconduct. Now it is defense pointed out
that he'd grown up with Aboriginal people. He even has
an Aboriginal brother in law. Now, thankfully he won his
case and now it should be reinstated. But it should
never have come to this. These acknowledgments have to only

(09:00):
got out of hand. They're becoming a way of saying
that the country belongs to some of us more than
to all of us. And that's not right. As Bob
Hawk said, in this country, there is no hierarchy of descent,
there is no privilege of origin, and we must keep
it that way. All right, let's get the headlines now.

(09:25):
Sky Neese political reporter Trundy Macintosh.

Speaker 9 (09:28):
The Abanese government is for now resisting pressure to dramatically
increase defense spending. NATO leaders promised the US president they
would lift spending to five percent of GDP by twenty
thirty five.

Speaker 2 (09:39):
This would not have happened if you would not have
been elected.

Speaker 9 (09:43):
There was one notable exception. Spain says it's current two
percent target is sufficient. The president is now threatening higher tariffs.

Speaker 2 (09:51):
We're negotiating with Spain on a trade deal. We're going
to make them pay twice as much, and I'm actually
serious about that.

Speaker 9 (09:57):
Last month, the US asked Australia to lift spend to
three point five percent of GDP. It's currently on track
for two point three percent.

Speaker 1 (10:05):
And will continue to assess what our needs are going.

Speaker 5 (10:08):
For there will be further investments in defense.

Speaker 9 (10:11):
I have no doubt about that. The Shadow Defense Minister
is critical. The PM has failed to secure FaceTime with
the US president.

Speaker 8 (10:18):
It's very clear that the Prime Minister is better able
to get a meeting with a Chinese president than the
American president, and I think we should be worried about this.

Speaker 9 (10:26):
And the opposition leader has convened the first shadow cabinet
meeting since the election defeat.

Speaker 7 (10:30):
So our task is now to rebuild with humility.

Speaker 9 (10:35):
The Nationals leader is confident the tide will turn in
the coalition's favor.

Speaker 2 (10:39):
The mob will turn.

Speaker 6 (10:40):
As they turn in this election, they can turn again
and when they turn, they'll turn big time.

Speaker 9 (10:44):
Just a day after Susan Lee open the door to
gender quotas in Liberal ranks. This from her leadership rival.

Speaker 8 (10:51):
I'm not a supporter of quotas. It's not something that
I think is necessary in order to get the outcome.

Speaker 9 (10:57):
Trinty Macintosh Sky News, Canberra, all.

Speaker 2 (11:01):
Right, just before I bring him my panel for News
of the Day tonight. A group of Liberals have launched
a court challenge to John Pisiito's loan from the Party,
which not long ago was adjourned until next week at
the Supreme Court in Melbourne. Our report. Georgie Dickinson has
been watching the developments, She joins me. Now, well, Georgie,
this was a late pushchift for if the joppositor didn't
pay this money. That the whole sum is two point

(11:24):
three There's a party loan though of one point five million.
If that's not paid before tomorrow, he was on his
way to bankruptcy. What's the latest and why this court action.

Speaker 3 (11:37):
Good evening to you, Peter, Yeah, that's right. If he
didn't pay this by tomorrow, we could have seen that
seat of Hawthorne go to a by election. So these
are some interesting developments this afternoon. We started the morning
by hearing that those funds had been paid the two
point three million tomorrow redeeming. But then this afternoon we
had this last minute court action at four point fifteen

(11:58):
this afternoon. Now this court action was lodged to stop
those funds being loaned to John Pursuedo that one point
five five million dollars. Now we did hear in the court.
It was brought about by one of the members of
the administrative Committee, Colleen Harken, And in the court the
judge seemed a little bit annoyed when we first started

(12:18):
the hearing. He couldn't understand why this court hearing was
being deemed an urgent matter due to the nature of
the fact that the funds had already been released. But
nevertheless he continued to hear the matter. But what he
said was he needed to have all members of that
administrative committee present in court. He said, due to the
nature of this and due to how large the sum

(12:40):
of money is that all of those members need to
be in court so that they can appropriately try this
case and appropriately hear both sides of the argument going
for He said that they had come to the court
half baked to quote the Justice McDonald there so instead
of hearing the case today, instead it has been moved

(13:00):
to next Friday, the fourth of July. He says that
all nineteen members need to be served. They need to
come to court to be able to hear this matter appropriately.
So until then those funds have been frozen and so
it is going to be the Brad Batton says he
wanted a line to be drawn in the sand for
the Liberal Party to move on from this, but it

(13:21):
seems that it is far from this, Peter, and it
is still going to be an ongoing issue for the
Liberal Party.

Speaker 2 (13:28):
Goodness being well over there, Georgie, I'm sure you'll keep
us across it, gentlemen. Now my panel broadcast to Carolee
Catsumbanos and from the Women's Forum Australia, Sephanie Bastian. We'll
get into some other issues, but i'll pick this one up,
this Perzuto demon Court matter with you, Stephanie, because I
know you're familiar with the Party. I know you're familiar
with the party sort of organizational structures. What George is

(13:50):
just revealed there is a member of the Admin committee,
So the same group that approved this loan who has
now broken ranks and taken the party to court to
event the passing through are the one point five million dollars.
It's obviously been stagehard that hearing what I know from
members of the same committee that I have spoken to,

(14:11):
there are a number of factors out of the decision
that they are concerned about. There was no term given
for the loan. There was no interest rate given for
the loan. They were not provided with any documentation as
to how much would be paid back on a monthly
or yearly basis by John Pizzuto. There was no information
provided that no paperwork given to them about a process

(14:34):
should he ever default on the loan. And I think
you and I both know there's a lot of party
anger out there. I will say that this court action
has nothing at all to do with more redeeming. This
has been taken by executives in the party. Brad Batton
wants it over. I know Jeff Kennett wants it all
to go away, but Stephanie, do you think it will?

Speaker 10 (14:58):
I think this has a little way to go yet.
A big part of the problem is that most party
members or many do not see this as an honest mistake.
They can see that this is a matter that has
blown out of proportion because it was contrived. Purseuito wrote
Mora Deeming's resignation letter before he'd even met with her
to discuss the rally. Conversations that were airing court between

(15:20):
his starvers revealed that they knew that they were getting
the story in the facts wrong. Had this been an
honest mistake, I think it would have been stopped in
its tracks much earlier.

Speaker 2 (15:29):
It probably would have settled.

Speaker 10 (15:31):
John Bursudo pursued this all the way through and now
he's expecting party members to pick up an eye watering bill.

Speaker 2 (15:39):
It's absolutely absurd.

Speaker 10 (15:40):
So there's no wonder. There's a lot of anger and
frustration out of there.

Speaker 2 (15:46):
Caroly, there's love of anger with Victorians. Put the politics
of the party to one side. Victorias and it's desperate
for the Liberals to grow up and be a decent
opposition and to start taking on a government. I'm speaking
to a farm a bit later in the show his
face now with these huge transmission finds. They just want
there to be a viable opposition to what they regard
as a very bad government.

Speaker 5 (16:07):
Look definitely good evening, Peter and also Stephanie. The problem
is that the longer the John pursuito matter goes around,
doesn't matter how nice the gentleman is, the longer it
detracts from November twenty twenty six. We saw today that
their suburban rail loop, that things are blowing out even further.
There should be an easy win for the Liberals to
be able to capitalize and really get on top of

(16:28):
and every day that this hangs around, it's one more
day that it's in the media and the policies aren't
able to able to get out because Victorians actually do
want to vote for the Liberal Party, but they want
to see a cohesiveness. They don't need former premiers injecting
themselves into conversations and.

Speaker 2 (16:45):
Everything like that.

Speaker 5 (16:46):
And it's really desperate because this is the best time
ever that the Liberals have got to be able to
take government. But this is just hanging over everybody's head
and it's an absolute mess and you can't blame you
can't blame a lot of the Liberals for being angry.
They've got every right because at the end of the day,
party members money is there to fight the Labor Party

(17:06):
to be able to get a good Liberal government back
into Victoria.

Speaker 2 (17:09):
All right, let's just talk about bad governments. Most of
them at a state level are of course labor governments.
So we've got a federal labor government in Canberra. Revelations
today that the combined net debt this is the federal,
state and territory government across Australia, is set to hit
one point to trillion dollars over the next financial year.
That's a lift of some thirteen percent. The Treasurer Carally said,

(17:34):
you know, the budget's not sustainable. But when he talks
about making it sustainable, he's talking about more taxes and
tax increases. He's not talking about coming to grips with spending.
And I think the problem here probably I'll even have
to include the Tasmanian Liberals here because they've increased their
debt burden. I mean, governments have got to live within
their means.

Speaker 5 (17:55):
Well, not only that they've got to live within their means,
but they've also got to stop offering all this free stuff.

Speaker 2 (17:59):
To everybody.

Speaker 5 (17:59):
We've had, you know, the wave of the hextebts, we've
had the NDIS, which is completely out of control. We
are now right at the bottom of the pecking order.
We've seen that NATO the countries have agreed to the
five percent defense spending. We can't even give a timeline
on increasing our budget to even the two point three
It needs to be right up to three percent. The
optics are very very you know, they're very clear for everybody,

(18:22):
and we are not good at managing this money. And
it just shows the resolve of federal labor and state
labor governments. They're happy to spend like drunken sailors. Australians
are going to get very poor, very quickly, but they're
not actually doing the right levers to get this debt
under control.

Speaker 2 (18:38):
Stephanie. The streets sweepers Sean Turner, who says, you know,
I don't mind a bit of a welcomed country or
an acknowledgment of country, but it shouldn't be when we
sit down and talk about the schedule of what streets
need to be cleaned next week in the Duraban Council area.
And his point that if we're going to thank anyone
or acknowledge anyone. Let's acknowledge that the people have kept
us safe. Where our country's uniform. As I said, I'll

(19:00):
tell you what we need to get this bloke a
seat in parliament.

Speaker 10 (19:06):
Absolutely and well done for him for challenging it. I
think for too long these activists who have held these
positions within councils and bureaucracies have felt that they've had
such a moral high ground in our culture that they
have been above the law, and now they're facing the
consequences for their actions. I think that we need to
have more court actions when people are wronged in this way.

(19:27):
Just this week Billboard Chris, who has moved on from
the Brisbane Council with Police Force and fined for speaking
out about children being harmed by puberty blockers. He challenged
the way that he was treated and he's fine it
was likewise overturned. So I think that people are sick
of being trampled on by activists. I think they want

(19:47):
to have they want to have the freedom to their
views and opinions without their employment being at risk. And
I hope that we see more legal action like this
to push back.

Speaker 2 (19:58):
I'll play a comments she made in relation to quotas.
But before I do, Susan Lee had something to say
at the start of her speech yesterday at the Press Club.
Let's listen.

Speaker 7 (20:09):
I'd like to begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of
the land on which we meet today.

Speaker 2 (20:17):
Yes, so I want to play that because I want
people to miss it. It was a bit perturbed to
see that happen. Let's get into her quota comments, because
they've come back today and have been picked up and
run with by a range of people in the party.
Let's remind ourselves of what she said.

Speaker 7 (20:34):
People say the word quota is. What I think to
myself is, come on, it's time to get serious about
women in the Liberal Party. You can describe it how
you want, in terms of mandatory, voluntary, state divisions, whatever.
I want to work proactively, passionately with our state divisions
to achieve more women in the Liberal Party. What we

(20:54):
have now is completely unacceptable.

Speaker 2 (21:00):
Worried me here, Caroll, She says, I'm agnostic. I really
don't care about whether we have quotas or we don't
have quotas. Now, I reckon, she's the first Liberal female
I've ever come across who doesn't care about quotas. I
mean they either absolutely want them or like me, are
violently opposed. But I've hardly met anyone who sits on
the fence. And if that's the position of the Liberal
leader that again says, you know, leadership is about making

(21:22):
a tough call on these things and standing for something,
what did you think, Yeah.

Speaker 5 (21:26):
Peter, I'm also I'm not for quotas either. I mean,
the one thing we want is we need good men
and good women to join the Liberal Party of Australia,
whether that's federal or whether that's state.

Speaker 2 (21:36):
At the moment, the.

Speaker 5 (21:37):
Liberal Party is not an attractive proposition for many people.
You could also look at it the other way that
there are a lot of good women that were there
that eight weeks ago, that did all the groundwork and
are now disappeared from view. So there's always a price
to pay. The other thing is it's not good. You
do want a leader to make the tough decisions to
say I believe in this. You look at what Trump's done,

(21:58):
he believes in it. You have to be prepared for
people to actually push back against you. But it's not
good to say, well, the state party can do this,
and if they want to do this that is not
good at all. So I would just say I think
it's disappointing.

Speaker 2 (22:11):
It's disappointing.

Speaker 5 (22:12):
We need good men and good women candidates, not quotas.

Speaker 2 (22:16):
What are your record, stephany.

Speaker 5 (22:20):
Lock.

Speaker 10 (22:20):
I think that she should be taking proactive steps to
bring in extra training for women. I think quite often
I'm very sympathetic to the arguments around the fact that
quite often women have their careers and raise their families,
and then when it comes to running for a seat,
they haven't done a lot of the leg work that
say men who often get pre selected do, such as
state directors and staffers or who've worked in liberal aligned

(22:41):
think tanks. I think the Liberal Party should get serious
about having proper formalized training for women how to deal
with the media, how to develop policy, because quite often
women come to politics caring deeply about issues. So rather
than quotas, alongside with developing good policy that voters actually
want to vote for, I'd say, bring in some extra
training and development for women.

Speaker 2 (23:05):
I might as well, lad I added this last night.
She was the shadow Minister for Women and the Deputy Leader,
and she sacked a number of women out of her ministry.
So you want to walk the walk, you've got to
talk the talk as well. All right, thank you to
you both. Let's go down to the realities of life
in Israel after what's been an extraordinary few weeks under
the threat of missile attack, and of course this ceasefire

(23:26):
will be pretty tenuous. David Early grew up in the
suburban in suburban Melbourne, but moved to Israel in the
mid nineteen nineties. He now lives in a district about
ten kilometers east of Tel Aviv, and he has, of course,
like so many, been under direct fire ever since Iran
launched those retaliatory attacks. I'm pleased to say, he joins me. Now, David,

(23:49):
I'm delighted to have you on the program. I'm delighted
that we are in a ceasefire period. If you need
to run though of the sirens sound, we will absolutely
un to stare. But is life returning to some sense
of normality for you?

Speaker 11 (24:06):
First of all, Peter, thank you very much for having
me on, and thank you for amazing work that you've
done through Asiland. From Australia in general, there truly a
breath of fresh air and this Australia is lucky to
have you.

Speaker 4 (24:16):
That's what I think. There's now been a couple of
days of sea.

Speaker 11 (24:19):
As far as walking yesterday in the street to Senorogan,
I was going to get stuff from the shops and.

Speaker 4 (24:25):
That, and I thought to myself, Wow, this is really strange.

Speaker 11 (24:28):
The sun is shining and I don't have to worry
if I've got to run into a building into someone
else's shelter, or if there's going to be an alarm,
or I've got to scoop up grandchildren and run downstairs
into the shelter. Our shelter is underneath our buildings. I've
merged into the ground as opposed to some people have
saved in the more modern buildings. So yeah, there is

(24:48):
a certain amalacy which is returning. Going to sleep at
night is still a challenge because you think to yourself, wow,
is it's really you know, am I going to be
working at night with another siren?

Speaker 4 (24:57):
Or can I actually go to sleep? Now?

Speaker 11 (24:58):
You still wake up in the middle of lin Well,
there might be a star and I better sort of
preempted and get ready. I actually put pajamas on last
night for the first time because I thought, well, here,
I'm not going to have to run down to the shelter,
and I can present myself in bed and not for
other people, other neighbors.

Speaker 2 (25:17):
I'll ask you about the reaction to the events of
the last couple of days in the US President. But
you mentioned your grandchildren there. I mean, I cannot fathom
what it would be like to have to scoop up
children in the middle of the night, literally run for
your lives. How they coped being underground for hours and
hours on the end in the last few weeks.

Speaker 11 (25:41):
Children actually incredibly resilient, I think. I mean, I've got
nine children and just had number twenty eight grandchildren, so
I sort of know children to be there. They're fairly resilient.
And if you tell them what it is, this is
what it is, and this is what you've got to
do when it comes to the crunch, they do it.
The little three year old, her father was working in

(26:03):
Jerusalem on certain matters, and so my daughter and her
two little kids three years old and ten weeks ago.
I was saying, you know, at our place as soon
as the siren when she jumped into my arms and
just clung onto me and just came down with me
and sat on my lap, you know, for the duration
at the siren, you tell them what it is. This
is what it is.

Speaker 4 (26:22):
Afterwards they sort.

Speaker 11 (26:23):
Of played it out and actually I can see you've
got a clip now of them playing sirens when they
got me to fire a noise and then run into
the little bunker that they built themselves and giggled the way,
laughed away and that.

Speaker 4 (26:34):
You know, the kids are resilient. They turned things into games.

Speaker 11 (26:37):
I don't know what they think afterwards, and they certainly
were happy when they went home, and you know, I thought, well,
this is now finished. We hope it's finished. We don't
know what's going to happen. We don't know if this
as far as going to last. We don't know if
we just don't know. We don't know if the hooties
are going to attack again. They've gone quite there's been
no detail on that whatsoever. So yeah, it's scary for

(26:58):
the kids. And you you.

Speaker 4 (27:01):
Just dealt with him. You do what you do kids things.

Speaker 11 (27:03):
You become a kid yourself at some level, and you
look after them.

Speaker 2 (27:08):
We have a mutual friend, which is how you came
to my attention. And I know about baby number twenty eight.
We'll get to that one in a moment, because I
think that's an extraordinary story. But give me your take
on our prime minister's language, the Australian Prime minister's language
around this conflict. And let's go back pretty much from
October seven and beyond, how you see our prime minister

(27:31):
handling things. And I want you to contrast it to
the events of Sunday where we saw you know, the
shokun or might of the United States play out as
it did. Start first with mister Albin Easy.

Speaker 11 (27:45):
I don't want to be rude, and I'm sort of
an expatch and I keep very very close tized with
the strain and I listen to what's going on their family.
Then I'm in touch every single day with lots of
people in various family and friends. I feel that I
can make some level of comment. Mister Albanize, in my mind,
is disappointment. He has not given Israel in the backing

(28:08):
that it needs us as a very close friend of Israel,
and he's not given the Jewish community the backing that
it needs just and I use the word very very carefully,
he's a disappointment.

Speaker 4 (28:19):
He's not there.

Speaker 11 (28:19):
He has not been there as a friend, his party
has not been there as a friend. His foreign minister
has not been there as a friend. And then the
Jewish person they had in the ministry that sat they moved.
So that says a lot, doesn't it. It took him
twenty four hours to come out in favor of the bombing.

(28:40):
That's probably because he was upset he didn't get his invitation.
And then when mister Trump used his poetic language, you know,
he took him twenty.

Speaker 4 (28:47):
Four minutes to respond. I'll tell you a little story.

Speaker 11 (28:50):
If I went yesterday to help a friend in English
speaking Lloyd needed someone.

Speaker 4 (28:56):
Who was in speaking to witness they will.

Speaker 11 (28:59):
So I went across the road to help him, and
the guy sitting there was in ISRAELI spoke Hebrew and
he saw us speak English. She said, well you're from
I said, well, I'm as from across the road. He said, no,
where are you from? I said, well, I'm from Australia.
He looks at me with butter utter.

Speaker 4 (29:13):
Horror or surprise. He says, what happened to you guys?

Speaker 11 (29:19):
He said, you guys used to be so pro is Well,
you guys were very very close friends.

Speaker 4 (29:24):
I used to have a lot of dealings with Australia.

Speaker 11 (29:25):
He said, I used, you know, business whatever he said,
I used to actually be friends with the next police
chief commissioner. I don't know the man's name, and he
couldn't remember. He said it was of Italian descent. That
might mean something to somebody, and he said, this guy
used to say how much we love you and how
much we we're there for you, and we feel for you,
we know what's going on and we share common values.

Speaker 4 (29:44):
I think it's all evaporated with mister Albanis, and I think.

Speaker 11 (29:47):
It's very very sad the people here don't understand what's
going on in Australia, the anti Semitism, the feeling of
sort betrayal, that they're not there for us, which was
like one country that really supported these There are a
lot of common values. There's you know very much, she'll
be right made and they'll very much the outdoor experience,

(30:09):
the sport experiences, a lot of a lot of very
common values, freedom, democracy, just just things that people.

Speaker 4 (30:19):
Like to do, you know, blue skies, you could even
put it that way.

Speaker 11 (30:23):
And they feel a lot of people here feel that
Australia has for some reason betrayed them, has sort of
left them, and they cannot understand the changing attitude there.

Speaker 4 (30:34):
So that's I think many Australians think about that.

Speaker 2 (30:40):
Sorry, there's many Australia. I hate to say this, David,
there's many Australians who are similarly confused about where our
country stands on Israel anymore and disappointed, as I'm sure
you are. Just quickly, I'm almost out of time. I've
got to ask you about this baby because grandchild number
twenty eight, but born in extraordinary circums chances take us

(31:00):
through what happened.

Speaker 11 (31:02):
Well, my daughters, this thoughts particularly COT's got two children,
a girl four and a girl too, and she's just
had a third, which is this little boy you can
see on the screen now. And she went into labor
on Friday night, and they drove to the hospital in Jerusalem.

Speaker 4 (31:19):
Thinking well, that would possibly a bit little bit better
than other places.

Speaker 11 (31:23):
The Mount Scopus Hospital if anybody's been where Male Scopus
is in Jerusalem, and it's certainly a leading hospital. The
hospital has set up an entire underground basement bomb shelter
facility that could not be damaged by bombs. And in
the middle here she is, you know, in labor. I

(31:44):
mean I don't have to pay. That's like to everybody,
I presume. And all of a sudden the sirens go
on the telephones and everything, and you know, our phones
are happy to be hijacked by the government, so you
get this sort of sound on your phone, and then
you find start ringing, and then the sirens start going.

Speaker 4 (31:59):
And then the missus falling in.

Speaker 11 (32:00):
Here she is in the neighbor and poor thing in
the end of the day because the baby was in
a bit of stress, ended up meeting.

Speaker 4 (32:06):
So she is with the with whatever an aesthetic they
can give.

Speaker 11 (32:10):
Doctors running around like crazy, and then more people coming
in because of what happens in everything. And here they
are delivering this little baby boy, which thank god, it's
very healthy and very happy. We've met him already and
she's recovering. Let's just say that he will have a
story for his grandchildren, perhaps your grandchildren.

Speaker 4 (32:27):
We done him one days.

Speaker 2 (32:28):
Code and I hope he tells the story from us
safe and independent Israel too. David, thank you and the
very best to you and your family. Stay safe. There
you go. That baby was born by caesarean in a
bomb shelter. Just extraordinary. The break. Are we absolutely sure
that Iran's nuclear capability is decimated. Class a former Australian

(32:51):
Army brigadier and what he thinks our defense spending should
be and what we should spend our money on. Welcome
back to the come. Private property rights being eroded in
Victoria as farmers have no choice but to let transmission
companies on their properties or face thousands and thousands of
dollars in fines. But first, last night, Donald Trump reiterated

(33:15):
the success of the strikes on Iran.

Speaker 4 (33:20):
I believe it was total obliteration.

Speaker 1 (33:22):
I believe they didn't have a chance to get anything
out because we acted fast.

Speaker 12 (33:26):
If it would have taken two weeks, maybe, but it's
very hard to remove that kind of material that ended
the war.

Speaker 2 (33:34):
And those comments were today backed up by the CIA
confirming it has obtained credible intelligence that the strike severely
damaged Iran's nuclear program. Joining me now a former Army
Director General, retired brigadier in Langford and thank you for
your time. We're expecting to hear more from Pete Hegseth tonight.
But how likely is it now with his additional information

(33:55):
from the CIA, that the President's comments at NATO that
the strikes have obliterated the nuclear capacity of Iran. How
likely is it to be true?

Speaker 12 (34:06):
Thanks Peter, I think in the context of President Trump's comment,
it is fair to say that there has been significant
structural damage to those key facilities and more specifically the
centrifuges that look to weaponize that material to deliver the
Iranians their much anticipated nuclear deterrent. There is no doubt

(34:26):
that the delivery of several of those thirteen thousand kilo
massive audiance penetrators and their thermobaric effects into those facilities
would have caused significant damage both to those critical systems,
but also to thinking beyond those facilities themselves. I think
it's important to couch President Trump's answer to also recognize

(34:49):
the other work that Israel has undertaken really since twenty
ten to dismantle and deconstruct Iran's ambitions, and that includes
the targeting of those key scientists and personnel who Israel
have deemed enemy combatants. Also, all the way back to
twenty ten, although never officially acknowledged, Israel conducted a cyber
attack virus tooks next virus onto those facilities. And so

(35:13):
when you look at the historical context of what the
Israelis and the Americas have done to undermine Iran's ambitions.
When you look at the sheer kinetic power of those
ordinance that was delivered Vira b too bomber over those
key facilities, and when you understand the thermobaric and terminal
effects that they deliver. I think it's reasonable based on

(35:33):
the intelligence assessment from the CIA, and what we understand
is coming out of the US Secretary of Defense that
President Trump's statement around destroying those targets is justified.

Speaker 2 (35:46):
Yeah, Look, you're right to remind us about all the
sort the intellectual capital that's been taken out, the leadership
capital of the Iranian regime and not just obviously these
physical assets over some time. So assuming all of that right,
how long would it take if they were determined to
restart the program, how long would it take them to
get back where they were a couple of weeks ago.

Speaker 12 (36:11):
Well, it's a really interesting question, and again certainly the
intelligence community will be really focused on understanding that. Part
of that answer will be whether or not Iran's allies,
to include Russia, the Chinese, and to some extent the
North Koreans, are willing to transfer that technology back into
Iran to give them those key ingredients to recommence that process.

(36:36):
It is true. And if you look at the relationship
between Iran and Russia, for example, in terms of technology
transfers UAV's amendarial systems from Iran into Russia, and then
the quid pro cool, which might be the export of
a centrifuge, for example, out of Russia back into Iran.
I think the time that it will take Iran to
recommence their plan will be largely dependent on how willing

(36:58):
their allies are to system in so doing.

Speaker 2 (37:03):
All right, let's go into Europe and look at the
NATO meeting, because if someone had said to me, gosh,
even four or five years ago, that would get NATO
up to five percent. That's been just a Trump view,
a long hell view of the United States. To get
there Spain to one side last night with an ear
unanimous vote, I think is extraordinary. What do you make

(37:25):
of that spending commitment?

Speaker 12 (37:28):
It absolutely is extraordinary, and I think it's a symptom
of just how much the world has changed and that
we have lived, really since the end of the Cold
War through what many described as a piece of dividend
which is now over and in fact that national security
and the use of war as an instrument in the
international system is very much a feature of twenty twenty
five moving forward, and that reflects a decision by most

(37:50):
of the NATO members to lift their spending in line
with the announcements overnight. President Trump certainly has been the
catalyst to exact that commitment from his NOTO partners. And
there's nothing more that focuses the mind than the war
in Ukraine as it relates to European security and the
reality that their own self reliant self defense is very

(38:12):
much an obligation not only to the Alliance and to
a lesser extent, the US, but actually to their own
civilian populations. As we're reminded back here, the first and
most significant duty of a government is to protect its people.

Speaker 2 (38:26):
Right. I want to ask you about China, but I
want to go back into that defense question, because when
you listen to the federal government now Minister Miles, in particular,
the Minister for Defense, he talks about our quantum of
spending and at best in a decade will be at
two point three to three. We're around two percent. Now.
A lot of that is an accounting trick because it's
a bring forward of money to pay for submarines in

(38:48):
the nearer turn. It's not all the other defense capability.
So I want to get your view on are we
spending enough? And if you were the Minister for Defense,
where would you say the money needs to be spent
right now? What capability are we missing? What do we need?

Speaker 12 (39:04):
Well? I think in the broader public debate, one of
the challenges we have in this country is that the
debate around defense spend is always relative to what we
have either previously spent or what another form of government
has spent, And of course what is absent is the
question around whether the spend is appropriate relative to the threat. Now,
it's one thing to have an investment program that will

(39:26):
deliver important capabilities in the early part of next decade,
and I would applaud that. It's another, however, to make
a diagnosis of the international system and think about what
we might need to get us to the arrival of
those systems. So, what are as I like to call
the fight tonight capabilities that we need to ensure our preparedness,
for example, between twenty twenty five and twenty thirty. And

(39:48):
in relation to that, although much of those government announcements
around increase spending are in the plan budget, they are
in the out of the years, in the back end
of the decade, and I would submit to you that
more needs to be are now so that we can
manage the continuencies and risks that are likely to appear
in our region between now and the arrival of things
like UCAS submarines.

Speaker 2 (40:11):
Just quickly quickly China, I mean, how real is a
threat we hear of twenty twenty seven, we hear a
G zone personal timetable, How real is the China and
Taiwan threat?

Speaker 12 (40:22):
Well, the Chinese political rhetoric is clear Visa v. Taiwan.
Presidentcy has said as much in all of his proclamations
and Party Congress announcements and in other forms of Chinese
state craft. We're seeing what would traditionally constitute hostile acts,
to include what's happening in cider and threats to critical infrastructure,

(40:44):
and indeed what's happening in what many call the gray zone.
So if you're to make a strategic calculus around how
China is talking Visa v. Taiwan, it's ambitions and what
it's actually doing in those non traditional elements of warfare.
I think you'd have to come to a judgment that
the security situation is at risk and therefore Australia needs
to plan accordingly.

Speaker 2 (41:06):
Thank you very much for that. We'll speak again Ian
Langford there, of course, retired brigadier and you can see
how good he is military expert. Or like the break,
furious farmers ready to fight against a proposal that will
allow power companies open access to their land, plus the
whole Daddy Trump thaying foot's taken off, the Maga crowd
love it. We'll get to that in a moment. Welcome back.

(41:33):
I mean there's leftism, and there's lefties, and then there's
absolutely dangerous socialists and that's who the Democrats are just
selected as their nominee for the New York mayoralty. Or
get to that in a moment. But first to revelations
Victorian landowners farmers facing having their properties carved up by
these new transmission lines. We've talked about those before, but
there's legislation now before the Victorian Parliament that if they

(41:55):
don't allow this to happen, if they keep the power
companies off their own land, well they could get whacked
with fines twelve thousand dollars or more. Now they're already
hit by drought and that new emergency services levy brought
in by the Allen government. But now this they're at
breaking point. Joined me now one at such a farmer

(42:15):
from Central Victoria, Glendon Watt Sue's a good friend of
this program. So what do you make of this legislation Glendon,
that turn up in the Parliament last week?

Speaker 13 (42:27):
I think it paints a pretty clear picture of heatter
of where we're at. It doesn't it desperation stinks. They're desperate.
They know they're not getting access. We've got them locked out.
And you know, how can they justify a twelve thousand
dollars fine? Where is that comparable? Trespassing is four thousand
dollars and they're going to slap us with a twelve
thousand dollar fine. You know, it's just it's socialism, as

(42:47):
you just mentioned New York. I feel it's here at
our back door, the Victorian labor government. Where do they stop?
Where do they get off? You know, the emergency services tax.
They're beating us there. They're beating us with this. They're
trying to ram these transmission across our properties. The effects
on our businesses are going to be significant.

Speaker 4 (43:04):
It's terrible.

Speaker 2 (43:07):
When we spoke in January, when I was at at
your farm, I mean everyone was saying to me that
they're trying to softly, softly approached, they were trying to
buy off farmers. Most of your community were hanging tight together.
They were not being bought off, you know, divided your fall,
you know, divided. Sorry, they conquered, so everyone had really
held together. And clearly that's not worked for the government.

(43:30):
So now they're using the big, big stick of finding you.
But given it's your own land, I think most Austraians
would find this completely unacceptable.

Speaker 13 (43:41):
Well I think it is, isn't it, Peter. I think
you've summed it up. It is unacceptable. You know, where's
our basic rights. I'm sure in the Constitution that you
can't just have random people accessing your land. They could
cut a bolt. They can you know, they cut the
padlock and walk through our property at any point.

Speaker 4 (43:55):
If these laws pass.

Speaker 13 (43:56):
And that's not democracy, that's not Australian, that's not how
it should be. You know, what about the methods or
the impacts that they're going to have on our businesses.
It's not just about the fact that this transmission lines
and issue on itself. It's allowing people to come onto
the property that at the wrong time there could be
animal welfare issues that could be their own personal risk.
What about liability if there's an accent or something. We're
going to be reliable for these people entering our property

(44:19):
without our consent. It's just terrible. And as you're right,
you know, we are united and we're going to stay united,
and it's these sorts of policies that make us more united.
It's putting fuel on the fire of how wrong this
whole project is. And the concern that you know, as
you mentioned, they've got we've got drought, we've got impacts
in the Middle East are affecting our input costs. We've
got these new levies and taxes. There's no let up

(44:42):
for the communities in the rural areas. The mental impact
is I'm worried about the effects it's having and going
to have, and it is and you know where do
they get off. They just it's like they've got a
hidden agenda to try and crush farmers, push us out
of our jobs, out of our industry. That something needs
to change with the government. It's just horrendous.

Speaker 2 (45:02):
Yeah, just quickly. I've put it to the Victorian opposition,
what's your position? And you know they bleed it. Does
it expect them to do? What's terrible? Terrible terrible? Is
it he going to pose it in the parliament or
we haven't decided what we're going to do yet, Like, okay,
if you oppose it in the parliament, what happens if
you're elected next year? Are you going to repeal this
legislation if it was to pass? Oh, well, we haven't
decided yet. I mean, if you gods are going to fight,

(45:23):
surely you need the Liberal Party and the National Party
to fight with you.

Speaker 13 (45:27):
One hundred percent. We do absolutely, and you know we's
only so much we can do obviously, and we need
them there to support us. You know, they're meant to
be for rural regions, the small businesses, you know where's there.
They need to take a stand on this. The Labor
government have run much for the last you know what,
fourteen years or something. It's time we need to change
because when I feel it's more and more socialism coming

(45:49):
into things and our right's being stripped. Lily is making
laws to suit themselves when they can't get access. They
just bring in a new law. Why not, Like that's
just horrendous. So the lives in the coalition as time came,
Let the.

Speaker 2 (46:03):
Appreciate the spot here on the show any time you
want it, all right, I believe that there will come
back to the issue. I can tell you what. Well,
it's been a big week for the Big Daddy, Donald
Trump back in the United States and making the most
of a big turnout at NATO. Before we go into

(46:24):
nationale going back to country Victoria, my dear dear friend
Mick Ginnings has just been nominated for a Bush Summer
to Straight in an award. Have a look at it
there on the Weekly Times. Terrific blow putting which you
proof on the map there going Mick, what let's get
into international issues though with my panel coach you guard
Michael Danby, both of them here, it's been an extra
it's been an extraordinary week. But it's been an extraordinary

(46:46):
sort of hour by hour, particularly from Sunday. I remember
just watching and all play out and thinking, oh, hell,
here we go. This could be weeks and weeks and
weeks kosher, but please God, we've got to cease fire
that appears to be.

Speaker 14 (47:01):
It certainly has been. Hour by hour there is in
fighting back home.

Speaker 2 (47:05):
You know, will hear warranty?

Speaker 14 (47:06):
Are we going to get sucked into something more drawn
out that hasn't happened? And the CSFRO doesn't look like
it's holding. No boots on the ground, no quagmire, no
nukes for Iran, and looks like we're in a pretty
good place. People didn't think this maybe a week ago,
but I think everybody's coming together now.

Speaker 2 (47:21):
And if we are going to go back to nothing, right,
if the Iranians are left with nothing and no infrastructure,
we've got to keep it there. We've got to keep
our foot. The world has to keep their foot on
their throat.

Speaker 4 (47:31):
Well, I thought.

Speaker 6 (47:32):
Secretary Rubio gave a great explanation of how all of
the different components have been disassembled, and you just can't
go back if you've got four hundred kilograms of fissile material.
And there was a great Israeli general interviewed by a
mainstream woman host of Fox, one of your colleagues, and
she asked him, how is this all going to be enforced?
And he said, those that flew can fly again.

Speaker 2 (47:54):
And the big daddy stuff, I mean that you're an American,
give us a line of one American.

Speaker 14 (48:00):
And then there's Trump. But look, he's riding high. He's
as popular as he's ever been, way more than his
first term, more than Obama and Bush were in some
polls at this point. As presidency just solved their on
Israel thing on the back of controversy, goes to NATO,
gets them to pay five percent. He was trying two
percent last time.

Speaker 2 (48:18):
So he's stopping up.

Speaker 6 (48:20):
And the bowling in America's just come out on the
reaction to the raid. And for the mega isolationists and
for the far left, it's a big problem because it's
got like eighty percent support. Yeah, it's not just a
conservative poland Trafalgar, it's the other ones too.

Speaker 14 (48:34):
And so these people, these creators create these funny videos
and he tweets them from the bulle pulpit of the
United States Presidency, which adds.

Speaker 2 (48:41):
Aer you had no doubt what he thinks, because he
is you know, you know, it's him on.

Speaker 6 (48:46):
The including the B two flying playing the Beach Boys
song Bom No one will get away.

Speaker 2 (48:54):
It's quickly. Someone said to me, Peter, have a look
at this Democrat nominee for the job in New York
as mayor. He makes Sidik Khan in London look like
a right winger. Oh, can you tell me.

Speaker 14 (49:05):
About him as a longtime New Yorker? This one cuts deep.
So he's thirty three years old, came out of nowhere,
has done all sorts of different things, community organizing, advocacy
for foreclosures, a TikTok or, a filmmaker, a rapper. But
the bottom line is he is very socialist his positions,
some would even say communist. Who wants free housing with
no idea of how to play for how he would
pay for it. People shouldn't pay for buses in New

(49:26):
York City that would cost billions of dollars. New York
City has one hundred million dollar deficit. And also there's
another point here about the downstream effects of immigration and
the experiment of multiculturalism, where you have these iconic cities
from London to Calgary to Rotter down to New York
electing mayors. He's not elected yet, but he looks like
he's well on his way to doing that. That I
think is the elephant in the room as well.

Speaker 2 (49:46):
And it changes the time of a country. And of
course we've got a massive Jewish population in New York.
Will Field on the street.

Speaker 6 (49:51):
Well, there's also Mayor Adams is running again. He's got
some charges against him.

Speaker 4 (49:56):
And then there's.

Speaker 6 (49:59):
Kosh Will know he's not better, but the famous Guardian
angel with the red hat who's.

Speaker 2 (50:03):
Running for the Republican.

Speaker 6 (50:04):
He won't, that's true, but it's still what a colorful race.

Speaker 2 (50:08):
Thank you very much. It's been a big week. That's
it for me. I'm not around next week, but I
will be back just topic a week off. Look forward
to seeing you then. Have a lovely weekend.