gillard is trashing the alp

Whatever the outcome of this election one thing is clear: Gillard has changed the ALP brand permanently. The Coalition will be able to say that a vote for the Greens is a vote for the ALP and vice-versa. This may or may not play out well for the ALP-Greens. The lack of formal acknowledgment of an Alliance/Coalition - call it what you will, before the election is a future electoral risk.

Gillard appears to have ceded far too much influence to the Greens for the sake of one lower house seat than is prudent. A weekly meeting with the PM on policy to be attended not only by Adam Brandt, but also Bob Brown....hey what is Bob Brown doing in those meetings?....he is in the Senate..so what about the potential for conflict of interest on Browns part, being in control of the balance of power in the Senate, and also privy to lower house policy formulation????..

One other factor to consider: A large number of people probably voted green in the senate to be a check of the lower house; however now with Brown being involved in lower house policy formulation, the senator is not only in control of the Green rubber stamp, he has immense power, and nothing to check him.Who guards the guard?.

All of these issues I am sure Gillard is aware of, but her lust for power outweighs governmental prudence. She is not only trashing the checks and balances in parliament in her frenzy to retain power, she is also trashing the integrity of the ALP brand. All up the ALP will come out weaker and permanently damaged via this green alliance.

The ALP, by having a generation of pollies brought up on the creed of whatever it takes will find that the phrase does not preclude the parasites it spawned, turning and feeding on the host ALP brand itself, ultimately leaving only a shell