Gillard has now been PM for 3 months, and we have yet to see anything approaching a overriding theme or well thought out policy agenda; and of course "all bets are off" re: election promises
Almost everything she has done has been based on short-term expediency and a short term political quick-fix.
I believe she does not have the policy-smarts that she leads people to think she has, and that journos and others conflate and confuse her undoubted skills in positioning herself for short-term political advantage, with genuine intellectual/policy grunt.
I used to think this was a real weakness in Gillard, but it is probably based on a misunderstanding of her real agenda: the maintenance of power. The appearance of well-constructed policy development is only of real use in her quest to maintain power, not vice-versa.
In fact I think Gillard is deliberately an empty vessel looking for a policies to spin. This explains her numerous backflips on the carbon tax, junking commitments to cities in favour of regional Australia, and "all bets are off" re: election promises etc. The first two assist in shoring up her power base with the greens and independents, and give her a partial policy narrative into she can spin.
I think Gillard will implement as little as possible, while generating activity that goes nowhere, or is held off until after the next election.
