Bringing down the Turnbull government | Four Corners

Liberal Party elders have condemned Tony Abbott's role in bringing down the Turnbull government, saying the former prime minister's behaviour has been "lamentable".

Conservative supporters of Mr Abbott have also told Four Corners that he had "unfinished business" and he actively contributed to the volatile climate in today's Liberal Party.

Former foreign affairs minister Alexander Downer said the party has been wracked by bitterness since Malcolm Turnbull rolled Mr Abbott as prime minister.

"That in turn can lead to acts of attempted revenge," he said.

[NxDoyle]

If only they were this passionate when it came to serving the people who elected them.

[KarrasAlexandros]

Absolutely disappointing how they treated a prime minister who actually tried to change our energy policies without a significant cost and guarantees that these changes will only be made if prices won’t rise and jobs won’t be lost
The liberal party lost its chance, I hope there is a better alternative in the next election

[theoutsider]

I agree with the guy who said Australia is a country without a vision...we're a bit too laid back and enjoy that fact a bit too much...myself included :L

[chessman]

Love the way Joyce puts his foot in his mouth "can never trust a politician" that's probably why people across Auz have a serious dislike for him

[dupeyou]

Props for having the balls to leave the comment section open, unlike many other outlets.

[johnpaterson]

The difference between the ousting of Abbott and the ousting of Turnbull is that when Turnbull was ousted, the Liberal Party lost 5 points in the Newspoll, but when Abbott was ousted, the Liberal Party gained 5 points in the Newspoll.

[crypticTV]

10:30 30 news polls
11:00 Tony Abbott
13:15 Turnbull enters
16;49 "assassinated Abbott"
17:10 2nd problem
18:52 Abbott not team player
19:49 Same sex marriage
30:10 opinion poll obsession
31:40 3rd mistake - leadership contest
40:13 ScoMo backstabs
42:54 challenge again
44:00 Betrayal
46:22 House adjourned
47:05 Turnbull fights back
47:58 "form of madness"
49:00
53:00 ScoMo underdog wins
53:23 Turnbull gone
54:20
55:30 John Howard last full term
56:00 Fam
56:05 Country without vision

[willstorm]

When Joyce said "if you don't play the dark arts of politics you won't survive in government" all while saying I'm telling the truth here which makes you think telling the truth is a rarity in Canberra. While this may be a reality its one of the reasons why the voters are sick of knife in the back politics with a feeling like they pay very little attention to the jobs they were elected to do. They change seats and very few things ever get better for the voters.

[ozman]

When a political party is in turmoil which both major parties have been for too long, i truly believe that when a leader is dumped, there should be a snap election rather than a fill in. Let the people choose who governs. 7 PM, s in 11 years and only 2 voted in. What a disgrace.

[asdasdasdasd]

27:55 - 28:25
Never has a more honest answer ever been given by a politician

[dpf]

I'm watching from abroad and I must say that ABC News consistently produces excellent documentaries. Amazing that they were able to put this together in such a short timeframe.

[nicholasstewart]

Barnaby’s circular logic at it again “By its very nature, Parliament (sic) has a nefarious aspect. And to deny that is to lie, which is not trustworthy.”
I think the current public sentiment is that the ‘nefariousness’ that Barnaby sees as necessary to the job is why the public sees politicians as being untrustworthy.

[Ace_Larrakin_Productions]

Can I commend both the Four Corners team specifically and the ABC more generally for this special program and all their excellent coverage of the #LibSpill.  Really excellent work guys, so thank you.

[davidedwards]

There was a federal election for all 25 million Australian voters. The result was the Liberal party was elected. The party that was elected was led by Malcolm Turnbull. Now, 85 politicians have had their own private vote and decided that Scott Morrison should be the party leader. NOW, my question is, does the Liberal party still have the right to run the country? After all, it isn't the team that was elected. This gives the idea that perhaps a party could have someone who the people love and will vote for, but once in power, dump them for whoever the party wants to run things, and stuff what the people want.

[nicklennaerts]

"August and Spring is on the way"... that's when you know you're not in the northern hemisphere

[tylersmalebox]

..another PM we the public DIDN'T vote for ....our govt just keeps on treating the people with utter disdain.... it's just not right.

[brinjoness]

Barnaby managed to get a full sentence out without lying. You certainly wouldn't trust him with your daughter.

[Ozipeter]

“Mathias, at a time when strength and loyalty were called for, you were weak and treacherous. You should be ashamed of yourself, and I well understand how disappointed your wife is in your conduct, ” (Malcolm Turnbull text to Mathias Cormann

[rolandbraun]

Excellent Four Corners podcast on the anatomy of a political coup that will now strengthen the ambitions of the Labor party at the next Federal election . Turnbull's biggest mistake was to appease the conservative wing at the expense of his own beliefs and the moderate wing that supported him .The huge tax breaks proposed by Turnbull for banks and corporations initiated the loss of confidence in the electorate and the defeat of the tax bill at the Senate level reinforced the moves for his removal .A revengeful Abbot and a highly ambitious Dutton played all the moves in this Chess game but still lost to the moderates when Scott Morrison got the nod as the new Prime Minister !! Who is waiting for Chapter two of this never ending saga ?

[beagle]

I am curious a week before this happened I heard about an email between News Ltd & Kerry Stokes, , saying that Turnbull must go . Am I imagining this. I am 99 percent sure I am right. Turnbull had made fun of Trump which clearly upset those at Sky News.