I can remember at the height of the GFC,the countless times Rudd...

I can remember at the height of the GFC,the countless times Rudd was on the TV repeating the sound bite"worst economic crisis of our lifetimes".So rather than trying to instill confidence and assure the public that we were relatively immune.He actually encouraged and added to the fear and lack of confidence.
As for the bank guarantee,the banks were never really in trouble and it is quite possible and probable that until the pollies mentioned it,Most of the general public would have believed that the big 4 were govt guaranteed anyway.So that was yet another move to encourage fear.