‘As useful as a sunroof in a submarine': Penny Wong's shocking foreign affairs performance
'He's about to have his fourth visit with the Chinese leader,' Mr Hadley told Sky News host Sharri Markson.
'It all started with Penny Wong … as useful as a sunroof in a submarine.
'Penny tried to deal with the Americans, and after her views on Gaza and the rest of it, and putting herself at odds with the Americans over a whole range of things, and now this oration over the course of the weekend.'
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The Advertiser
an hour ago
- The Advertiser
Call to axe 'nuisance' levies as US tariffs wreak havoc
Australia has been urged to push for free markets, avoid a trade war and reduce its own "nuisance" levies as the world braces for the resumption of US tariffs. While President Donald Trump's tariffs are unlikely to have a significant direct impact on Australia when he lifts a pause on reciprocal levies on August 1, the uncertainty they create could wreak havoc on living standards across the globe. Were it not for that, modelling from the Productivity Commission has found Australia could receive some benefits from US tariffs. But the federal government's independent research and advisory body has recommended Australia mitigate impacts by committing to free trade agreements, reducing some of its own tariffs and working towards open markets - offering much-needed certainty for exporters. Any retaliatory tariffs could escalate into a broader trade war, potentially exacerbating uncertainty, which the commission warned would bring "serious consequences". In 2025, economic uncertainty in Australia and across the world reached its highest level since the COVID-19 pandemic. The speed, frequency and varying scope of Mr Trump's tariffs created an environment where world trade could be transformed at any time and without warning, creating uncertainty that could slow economic activity, household consumption and investment. Of the scenarios modelled by the commission, Australia would do better under a "Liberation Day" situation where - much like the real event - Australia's exports face only the baseline tariff of 10 per cent while other countries' goods are hit with higher rates. Since Australian items are impacted by a lower rate, they would be comparatively cheaper, meaning American consumers would shift demand to Australia. Lower US demand for other countries' imports would decrease their price, reducing the cost of import inputs used in Australian production. The US tariffs would also likely lead capital to flow out of America and high-tariffed countries, benefiting other economies like Australia. This means Liberation Day tariffs, alongside Mr Trump's levies on steel and aluminium, could lead to a 0.37 per cent increase in Australia's real gross domestic product and a 30.9 per cent increase in US demand for Australian exports. While it is unclear whether Australia could negotiate a tariff exemption, the government could take things into its own hands by removing more of its own "nuisance" levies. It has already abolished almost 500 of these tariffs, which impose high costs on businesses and generate little revenue, but the commission identified another 315 that could be urgently removed. "Australia is best served by continuing to advocate for free and fair trade - and that's exactly what we've done," Treasurer Jim Chalmers said in response to the report. Australia has been urged to push for free markets, avoid a trade war and reduce its own "nuisance" levies as the world braces for the resumption of US tariffs. While President Donald Trump's tariffs are unlikely to have a significant direct impact on Australia when he lifts a pause on reciprocal levies on August 1, the uncertainty they create could wreak havoc on living standards across the globe. Were it not for that, modelling from the Productivity Commission has found Australia could receive some benefits from US tariffs. But the federal government's independent research and advisory body has recommended Australia mitigate impacts by committing to free trade agreements, reducing some of its own tariffs and working towards open markets - offering much-needed certainty for exporters. Any retaliatory tariffs could escalate into a broader trade war, potentially exacerbating uncertainty, which the commission warned would bring "serious consequences". In 2025, economic uncertainty in Australia and across the world reached its highest level since the COVID-19 pandemic. The speed, frequency and varying scope of Mr Trump's tariffs created an environment where world trade could be transformed at any time and without warning, creating uncertainty that could slow economic activity, household consumption and investment. Of the scenarios modelled by the commission, Australia would do better under a "Liberation Day" situation where - much like the real event - Australia's exports face only the baseline tariff of 10 per cent while other countries' goods are hit with higher rates. Since Australian items are impacted by a lower rate, they would be comparatively cheaper, meaning American consumers would shift demand to Australia. Lower US demand for other countries' imports would decrease their price, reducing the cost of import inputs used in Australian production. The US tariffs would also likely lead capital to flow out of America and high-tariffed countries, benefiting other economies like Australia. This means Liberation Day tariffs, alongside Mr Trump's levies on steel and aluminium, could lead to a 0.37 per cent increase in Australia's real gross domestic product and a 30.9 per cent increase in US demand for Australian exports. While it is unclear whether Australia could negotiate a tariff exemption, the government could take things into its own hands by removing more of its own "nuisance" levies. It has already abolished almost 500 of these tariffs, which impose high costs on businesses and generate little revenue, but the commission identified another 315 that could be urgently removed. "Australia is best served by continuing to advocate for free and fair trade - and that's exactly what we've done," Treasurer Jim Chalmers said in response to the report. Australia has been urged to push for free markets, avoid a trade war and reduce its own "nuisance" levies as the world braces for the resumption of US tariffs. While President Donald Trump's tariffs are unlikely to have a significant direct impact on Australia when he lifts a pause on reciprocal levies on August 1, the uncertainty they create could wreak havoc on living standards across the globe. Were it not for that, modelling from the Productivity Commission has found Australia could receive some benefits from US tariffs. But the federal government's independent research and advisory body has recommended Australia mitigate impacts by committing to free trade agreements, reducing some of its own tariffs and working towards open markets - offering much-needed certainty for exporters. Any retaliatory tariffs could escalate into a broader trade war, potentially exacerbating uncertainty, which the commission warned would bring "serious consequences". In 2025, economic uncertainty in Australia and across the world reached its highest level since the COVID-19 pandemic. The speed, frequency and varying scope of Mr Trump's tariffs created an environment where world trade could be transformed at any time and without warning, creating uncertainty that could slow economic activity, household consumption and investment. Of the scenarios modelled by the commission, Australia would do better under a "Liberation Day" situation where - much like the real event - Australia's exports face only the baseline tariff of 10 per cent while other countries' goods are hit with higher rates. Since Australian items are impacted by a lower rate, they would be comparatively cheaper, meaning American consumers would shift demand to Australia. Lower US demand for other countries' imports would decrease their price, reducing the cost of import inputs used in Australian production. The US tariffs would also likely lead capital to flow out of America and high-tariffed countries, benefiting other economies like Australia. This means Liberation Day tariffs, alongside Mr Trump's levies on steel and aluminium, could lead to a 0.37 per cent increase in Australia's real gross domestic product and a 30.9 per cent increase in US demand for Australian exports. While it is unclear whether Australia could negotiate a tariff exemption, the government could take things into its own hands by removing more of its own "nuisance" levies. It has already abolished almost 500 of these tariffs, which impose high costs on businesses and generate little revenue, but the commission identified another 315 that could be urgently removed. "Australia is best served by continuing to advocate for free and fair trade - and that's exactly what we've done," Treasurer Jim Chalmers said in response to the report. Australia has been urged to push for free markets, avoid a trade war and reduce its own "nuisance" levies as the world braces for the resumption of US tariffs. While President Donald Trump's tariffs are unlikely to have a significant direct impact on Australia when he lifts a pause on reciprocal levies on August 1, the uncertainty they create could wreak havoc on living standards across the globe. Were it not for that, modelling from the Productivity Commission has found Australia could receive some benefits from US tariffs. But the federal government's independent research and advisory body has recommended Australia mitigate impacts by committing to free trade agreements, reducing some of its own tariffs and working towards open markets - offering much-needed certainty for exporters. Any retaliatory tariffs could escalate into a broader trade war, potentially exacerbating uncertainty, which the commission warned would bring "serious consequences". In 2025, economic uncertainty in Australia and across the world reached its highest level since the COVID-19 pandemic. The speed, frequency and varying scope of Mr Trump's tariffs created an environment where world trade could be transformed at any time and without warning, creating uncertainty that could slow economic activity, household consumption and investment. Of the scenarios modelled by the commission, Australia would do better under a "Liberation Day" situation where - much like the real event - Australia's exports face only the baseline tariff of 10 per cent while other countries' goods are hit with higher rates. Since Australian items are impacted by a lower rate, they would be comparatively cheaper, meaning American consumers would shift demand to Australia. Lower US demand for other countries' imports would decrease their price, reducing the cost of import inputs used in Australian production. The US tariffs would also likely lead capital to flow out of America and high-tariffed countries, benefiting other economies like Australia. This means Liberation Day tariffs, alongside Mr Trump's levies on steel and aluminium, could lead to a 0.37 per cent increase in Australia's real gross domestic product and a 30.9 per cent increase in US demand for Australian exports. While it is unclear whether Australia could negotiate a tariff exemption, the government could take things into its own hands by removing more of its own "nuisance" levies. It has already abolished almost 500 of these tariffs, which impose high costs on businesses and generate little revenue, but the commission identified another 315 that could be urgently removed. "Australia is best served by continuing to advocate for free and fair trade - and that's exactly what we've done," Treasurer Jim Chalmers said in response to the report.
Sydney Morning Herald
2 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
America's once kitschy obsession with Trump is no longer funny
Last week, after flying home to America for the first time since Donald Trump's re-election, I made the familiar five-hour drive north from San Francisco to Lake Almanor. This part of California is one of the most MAGA-friendly counties in the state. In 2024, Trump won the seat by nearly 17 points. I've been coming to this part of the West Coast for years, joining my best friend and her family to celebrate the Fourth of July – a weekend full of delightfully kitsch Americana. There's the annual golf cart parade bedecked with American flags and sparkles, a rodeo, a fireworks show on the lake. I grew up in a similar town in South Carolina, where the Fourth of July was an annual event replete with family traditions: the dessert pies the mothers baked, the meats the fathers barbecued, the brand of fireworks the kids were sent off to buy at the nearest petrol station. In American mythology, this has always been a day when everyone could celebrate something that felt unifying: the idea of being American. Even in its darkest moments, this was still a country in which progress was deemed possible, one where those who demanded justice would one day be able to bend the arc toward a better place. But this year felt markedly different. On the same day that Americans celebrated our nation's independence, Trump signed into law a budget mega-bill that will axe critical healthcare and food support for the poorest people living in the wealthiest country on earth, while delivering further tax cuts to the richest. Loading In Lake Almanor, hundreds of golf carts taking part in the annual parade are adorned with inflatable Trump statues, or have MAGA flags flying in place of American ones. It's a topic that comes up many times over the course of the weekend; the shame of seeing the American flag being lost as a symbol of equality or of our nation's ideals, to now seemingly signal a border around those signed onto Trump's grievance-filled vision of a country. The once seemingly kitschy – and in some cases sycophantic – obsession much of America has with Trump is no longer funny. The painful irony of this adoration is that Trump's latest bill will result in lives being lost in communities just like Lake Almanor. It's estimated that between 11 and 18 million Americans will lose their health insurance as a result of the new bill, meaning either their healthcare bills become so high they go bankrupt, or they die because they're unable to access essential services. Taxes that directly help fund rural hospitals in regions like this are also set to be lowered, while as much as $US3 trillion will be added to the national debt. Though Republicans are attempting to sell the brilliance of the so-called 'big, beautiful' bill, they know it is deeply unpopular. Days before its final passage, polling showed that just 29 per cent of Americans supported the bill.
The Age
2 hours ago
- The Age
America's once kitschy obsession with Trump is no longer funny
Last week, after flying home to America for the first time since Donald Trump's re-election, I made the familiar five-hour drive north from San Francisco to Lake Almanor. This part of California is one of the most MAGA-friendly counties in the state. In 2024, Trump won the seat by nearly 17 points. I've been coming to this part of the West Coast for years, joining my best friend and her family to celebrate the Fourth of July – a weekend full of delightfully kitsch Americana. There's the annual golf cart parade bedecked with American flags and sparkles, a rodeo, a fireworks show on the lake. I grew up in a similar town in South Carolina, where the Fourth of July was an annual event replete with family traditions: the dessert pies the mothers baked, the meats the fathers barbecued, the brand of fireworks the kids were sent off to buy at the nearest petrol station. In American mythology, this has always been a day when everyone could celebrate something that felt unifying: the idea of being American. Even in its darkest moments, this was still a country in which progress was deemed possible, one where those who demanded justice would one day be able to bend the arc toward a better place. But this year felt markedly different. On the same day that Americans celebrated our nation's independence, Trump signed into law a budget mega-bill that will axe critical healthcare and food support for the poorest people living in the wealthiest country on earth, while delivering further tax cuts to the richest. Loading In Lake Almanor, hundreds of golf carts taking part in the annual parade are adorned with inflatable Trump statues, or have MAGA flags flying in place of American ones. It's a topic that comes up many times over the course of the weekend; the shame of seeing the American flag being lost as a symbol of equality or of our nation's ideals, to now seemingly signal a border around those signed onto Trump's grievance-filled vision of a country. The once seemingly kitschy – and in some cases sycophantic – obsession much of America has with Trump is no longer funny. The painful irony of this adoration is that Trump's latest bill will result in lives being lost in communities just like Lake Almanor. It's estimated that between 11 and 18 million Americans will lose their health insurance as a result of the new bill, meaning either their healthcare bills become so high they go bankrupt, or they die because they're unable to access essential services. Taxes that directly help fund rural hospitals in regions like this are also set to be lowered, while as much as $US3 trillion will be added to the national debt. Though Republicans are attempting to sell the brilliance of the so-called 'big, beautiful' bill, they know it is deeply unpopular. Days before its final passage, polling showed that just 29 per cent of Americans supported the bill.
