Agreed.
I thought the Cabinet and party did its best to support Abbott as he began to struggle with the leadership demands of being PM. His Cabinet had been signalling issues to him privately, eg the problem with Credlin directing Cabinet Ministers, and even attending Cabinet meetings in an enforcer role due to Abbott's own lack of gravitas. Of course, Turnbull was watching this unfold and naturally began setting up the steps to one day challenge Abbott.
Abbott ignored the advice and warnings he was getting, again underscoring his real lack of leadership qualities in the PM role. He literally dug his own hole deeper and deeper. He faced the infamous empty chair spill and acknowledged it was a "near death experience" and he accepted the verdict of his party that he was "on his first and final warning" to get across the job of PM and run the Cabinet properly.
For reasons that remain unclear, Abbott ignored this final warning. The rest is history.
Nonetheless, Abbott did have support in the early part of his role as PM. He simply lacked the leadership qualities he was being called on to display.
His decision to remain as a backbencher reinforces Abbott's poor grasp of the special leadership role of being PM. If he understood that, he would have left parliament, as other defeated PMs have done.
He decided to stay and ensure his legacy would be his long proven talent - destruction.
