Well I think the problem with Rudd and Gillard was they were never given a chance with the pressures of the 24/7 online news cycle to really get a feel for the job. This is one job that you can't actually train for until you get it which means Abbott is likely to meet the same fate as Rudd and Gillard with many Australians in the 21st century not willing to give our leaders a chance to prove themselves.
Personally I don't think Howard was that great. The only thing he did was bribe Australians with budget handouts to make them vote for him instead of investing that money back in projects that would benefit Australia collectively. The only thing that saved Howard was the Internet and social media was not prominent during his term otherwise he would have been turfed out years earlier.
