Richard Di Natale (Victoria, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Pursuant to contingent notice, I move:

That so much of the standing orders be suspended as would prevent Senator Di Natale moving a motion to provide for the consideration of a matter, namely a motion relating to the Australia-US alliance.

Once again I stand here in the circus that has become the Senate, one of the lone voices in this chamber urging the coalition and the Labor Party to acknowledge that we have serious issues in front of us, and one of the most serious issues is the critical issue that faces our nation right now, and that is the danger that is posed by the US alliance.

I said in this chamber last year, during the US presidential election campaign—where President Trump referred to Mexicans as rapists, goaded China into a war over the South China Sea, mocked people with disabilities and went around boasting about abusing women—that this was a man whose judgement could not be trusted and that, if we put our faith in the US, we were compromising our own security. I said at the time that, no matter how tempered this man might be by his advisers—indeed, by the bureaucrats that surround him—this was a man who was unfit to be President and had the potential to lead Australia down a very, very dangerous path.

Sadly, it has come to pass, and the time is right for this chamber to at least have a debate on the future of the US alliance. Over the last 2½ weeks, we have seen that, rather than be tempered by those around him, he has ramped up his rhetoric. He has surrounded himself with key advisers who live in a world of fantasy and believe in a global war between the Judeo-Christian West and jihadist Islamic fascism. This is the world that Donald Trump now occupies, and this is the world that Australia is being drawn into. From the moment of his inauguration, he has sought to divide people—to use fear and division to turn people against each other. This is a man who is unleashing a wave of Islamophobia right across the world, and Australia is not immune to his hatred. We are talking about someone who, in the first few days of office, has suggested that the US send Army troops over the southern border, into Mexico, and whose administration has dangerously upped its rhetoric against China, again goading China further into conflict over the South China Sea. He has done much more. He has gagged scientists in the Environmental Protection Agency because he does not like what they have to say—what the science says on global warming. The list goes on and on and on. The bottom line is that a Trump presidency has dangerous consequences in Australia, and they are especially dangerous because we have in the US alliance a one-way relationship with that nation that is a millstone around our neck and endangers the lives of Australian people and people right across the world.

Again you have to ask yourself: what has our Prime Minister done? The coalition, and indeed the Labor Party, have sat on the sidelines, but particularly this Prime Minister, who has so utterly and completely abandoned the values that he once held that he cannot bring himself to do what any other civilised leader has done: to pick up the phone and say, 'You cannot, as somebody who espouses values of democracy and freedom, prevent people from coming to your country on the basis of their race and religion.' Just today we have seen the Speaker of the British parliament refuse to give Donald Trump an audience in that parliament, yet here in Australia it is all the way with Donald Trump.

I look at those opposite. I see the sycophants and the toadies, within both the government and, indeed, the opposition—the doormats over there who are lickspittles and sycophants to the US and refuse to stand up and say, 'This is a relationship that needs to be renegotiated because it is no longer in our national interest.' Now is not the time for appeasement. Now is the time for this country to take a stand. The Greens have long argued, well before the election of President Trump, that we need to review the US alliance, but there has been no more important time to do it than since the election of this dangerous, unhinged, divisive and hateful President. It is time we had this debate in this parliament.

Matthew Canavan (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Minister for Resources and Northern Australia) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Well, it is the first day back at school, and we already have the people down the back of the room disrupting class, as they always do. It did not take them very long. For the first item of business, they decided, 'We don't need to discuss the important issues that face our country and the people here in our nation—the issues that they are concerned about.' People are concerned about their jobs in Gladstone; they are facing losses because of high electricity prices. People just want to be able to look after their families and run their businesses. We are not debating these issues, because the Greens want to distract attention from our nation's parliament and discuss another country's issues and problems. Well, Senator Di Natale, we have been elected to the Australian parliament. We have been elected by our various states to look after their interests in the furtherance of the goals and objectives of the Commonwealth of Australia, not the United States of America, and I take my job pretty seriously. We are put here to look after the people in this country and to further their interests, not to be distracted by different issues that are happening on the other side of the planet, in another country.

The matters that face the United States of America are matters for them. Yes, we have a long, strong and enduring relationship with the United States of America, but that relationship should be strong enough and mature enough to be able to respect the democratic results of an election that they have had recently. We might not agree with that election. We might not agree with who has been elected, but that is a matter for them. If you want to be involved in American politics, do not be elected to the Australian parliament. Do something else with your life. If that is your desire in life, you can go and get a job at the United States Studies Centre in the University of Sydney, Senator Di Natale. Go do that with your life rather than be here, because when you are here you should turn up to work and do your job, not someone else's job, and our job is to look after the interests of Australians. For me, it is to look after the interests of Queenslanders in particular.

I must say that, while I have been at home a lot over the last couple of months, and it has been nice to be at home a little bit more often, people around where I am are not all that concerned or worried about what is happening in America; they are worried about what is happening here in this country. People in Central Queensland, where I am from, want us to focus on delivering for them. They want us to focus on ensuring that they have a stronger economy in Central Queensland. They want us to focus on getting things moving so that small businesses can stay alive. They want us to focus on allowing people to have a job so that their kids can have a job and they can pay their kids' school fees as they all go back to school this year. My son is starting high school—that takes more money, right? You need a job to do that. You need an income, and that is something the Greens completely ignore. They think we have the luxury in this country of going off on flights of fancy to have philosophical debates about the presidency of another country and about the laws of another country when, in fact, we have enough issues right here right now to be debating in this place, and we should focus on them.

I am here because I am waiting to be able to move a bill and put forward a bill on the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act. Yes, for some, it might put you to sleep, but it is actually really important to develop our gas resources off the North West Shelf in Western Australia, and this bill is very important in allowing that to happen. But, because of the behaviour of the Greens—because of their distractions—we are not allowed to debate the development of our country and development of our resources. Instead, we are distracted here talking about a suspension of standing orders which has nothing to do with our country and which will not improve the lot of one person in this country. Instead, we are being distracted by a philosophical debate that serves the Greens' interests, not our nation's interests.

The government will be opposing the suspension of standing orders because we want to get back to the business of this nation. We want to get back to helping Australians improve their lives, and we are not going to be distracted by the tactics of the Greens which, unfortunately, have started off on this very first day of parliament. I hope it is not a sign of how they will conduct themselves throughout this year—I am not holding my breath though. Let's get back to the business that people have put us here for and focus on their lives, not the distractions that might suit us from time to time.

Malcolm Roberts (Queensland, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As a servant to the people of Queensland and Australia, I want to comment on Senator Di Natale's motion. But first, I want to echo Senator Canavan's comments, because it is our duty to work for the people of our state and our country. I want to compliment Senator Canavan for having the courage to reverse Liberal Party policy with regard to the use of coal. That policy shows that the climate change fraud is unravelling. In the United States, we see whistleblowers now coming out and proclaiming that the very material that the ALP and the Greens are basing their campaigns on is shown to be completely corrupt. Donald Trump, as President of the United States, is reinserting freedom into his country. We welcome whistleblowers, and we welcome his challenge to the political class that continues to ignore the people. We have seen it in the presidential elections in America, we have seen it in Britain's exit from the EU and we have seen it in our own changes in this country. The political class is ignoring the people, and Senator Di Natale is continuing to show his arrogance to the people of this country.

The President of the United States was elected by the people in accordance with the constitution of the United States—the world's largest democracy. In his oath of office, he said that his No. 1 duty is to uphold the constitution of that democracy—that great democracy, that wonderful democracy and that birthplace of freedom. The Greens have a tragic history of destroying and undermining our Constitution. The Constitution is our senior governing document. Are the Greens afraid of freedom or are they arrogant? Are they afraid of the people or arrogant towards the people?

A poll recently showed that the number of people in Australia supporting a ban on Islamic immigration is close to half the population. A poll last year by a left-leaning organisation showed that 34 per cent of Greens voters support a ban on Islamic immigration. What was the Greens' response to that? They said, 'We haven't done enough to educate them.' They did not say, 'We better go out and listen.' They said, 'We haven't done enough talking.' Instead of speaking to sell, the Greens need to listen to learn. I will say it again: instead of speaking to sell, the Greens need to listen to learn. They talk about a President being unhinged. Well, he has acted faster than any President in recent history. He has done what he has promised, and he has fulfilled his promises. He even started before he was inaugurated. He is now working at the speed of business instead of working at the speed of the political class. That, according to the Greens, is unhinged. Maybe the Greens cannot accept a politician keeping his promises?

As I see it, the President of the United States has three fundamental duties: to protect life, to protect property and to protect freedom. There is nothing more fundamental, and Donald Trump as President of the United States is serving notice on the world that the political class's days are ending. This raises the question: are the Greens worried about freedom coming back in parliaments and congresses around the world? I ask that because I support the President of the United States restoring freedom.

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The opposition will not be supporting the suspension of standing orders this afternoon, and we will not support the stunt by the Greens political party today. To come in here with five minutes notice, really, to senators and without any motion before us to debate something as fundamental to Australia's past, present and future as the US-Australia alliance I think demonstrates a lack of seriousness from the Greens. There are other mechanisms in this chamber available to senators to pursue this in a serious way. For example, there are opportunities through matters of public importance and there are opportunities through general business. If we take the MPI as an example, which the Greens were successful in winning today, it could have been used—a full 60 minutes—to have the discussion that Senator Di Natale seeks to have at this point in time.

I do not doubt the seriousness of the issues that the Greens are seeking to raise in this chamber, nor the importance of the Senate debating or having a view on those issues. But our concern comes from this grandstanding approach that is being utilised by the Greens in this instance this afternoon. I think it takes away from what I genuinely believe is the seriousness of some of the issues raised by Trump's administration in the past two weeks or so.

I will just make a couple of comments about the US-Australia relationship. It is one that has endured over many decades and under governments from both major parties in both countries, and it will continue to do so. The Australian and US relationship is about values, ideals and interests, not personalities. It includes values such as democracy, freedom and justice. Australia's relationship with the United States is fundamentally important to our foreign and security policy and for our economic prosperity. A strong bilateral relationship and continued US international engagement are in Australia's interests. US engagement has been a powerful force for international stability, security and prosperity, including in the Asia-Pacific region.

America is one of Australia's closest friends and staunchest allies and this relationship has been one of the central pillars of Australian foreign policy since the end of the Second World War and will continue to remain so. Contrary to some of the disparaging comments aimed at the Labor Party by Senator Di Natale in his comments, this will not prevent us from speaking frankly with a friend and ally when we disagree. Labor have disagreed with American policy in the past without undermining the alliance—and Iraq is a recent example of this. We have made clear that we will speak out when policies are introduced that we do not think are in Australia's best interests. We have done so already and we will continue to do so.

However, we do not agree with this mechanism being utilised by the Greens today. It is much more about trying to get a headline than it is about genuinely discussing and responding to some of the issues that have been raised by the ascendancy of President Trump in the United States. We welcome debate on that. We welcome discussion on that. I foreshadow a motion that Senator Wong will be giving notice of today and moving tomorrow precisely to respond to some of those issues—for example and particularly around Australia's non-discriminatory immigration policy and our belief that it is a core responsibility of being a good global citizen to use appropriate diplomatic channels to encourage other countries to take the same approach. That is a serious way of getting the Senate to pass a view on some of the issues that have been raised, as opposed to coming in here without any notice and without even having before us the motion being sought to be debated.

Scott Ludlam (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This is only one of a handful of times that the Greens have moved a suspension motion in this way. It is not something that we do lightly. I take Senator Gallagher's comment, but if this is not the place and time for debate then I ask her to name it. When is it? Let's have the debate.

Matthew Canavan (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Minister for Resources and Northern Australia) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Give me a break!

Scott Ludlam (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Canavan appears to have spent the summer in some sort of alternate dimension. For the idea that what has happened in the United States will not have flow-on consequences for Australia, 'absurd' is too gentle a word. This president is not just a problem for the United States and the millions of people who are already rallying in defence of their civil rights, their human rights and the rule of law. This president is a problem for the entire world and particularly for Australia because we are one of the United States government's most subservient allies. Notwithstanding the Iraq example which Senator Gallagher correctly pointed out, under at least the Howard government Australia simply outsourced its foreign policy to the United States government and tore apart the Middle East. So President Trump is a problem for Australia.

This is a president who has said in an offhand way, 'Maybe we should head back into Iraq and take their oil.' That places Australian service personnel in Iraq, Syria and Africa at risk. That kind of incredibly reckless offhand statement places Australians at risk. Australia participate in the Five Eyes surveillance network. We have installations such as the Pine Gap base and are involved in driftnet surveillance right across South-East Asia. We are involved in the targeting of nuclear weapons and in targeting the drone assassination program. Australia run cover in United Nations forums for US foreign policy, including the one-sided conflict between Israel and the people of Palestine. We host a US Marine Corps base in Australia, we host US aircraft bombers in northern Australia and we have facilities such as at Pine Gap and North West Cape. Our foreign and defence policy for decades has been paralysed in subservience to the United States government. The Australian Greens, as Senator Di Natale indicated, have been campaigning against that subservience for as long as we have been a political party.

But maybe now it is starting to dawn on some of those in the Labor Party and maybe we could even dare to hope on some of those in the Liberal Party that these are not normal times. President Trump has surrounded himself with neofascists not at the fringes but at the very heart of his administration. Washington sets Australian foreign policy. Are we happy to be dragged into a war with Iran? Are we happy to be dragged into a war with China in the South China Sea? Will these decisions be made in Canberra in this parliament, or will they be made in Washington, as they were in 2003 when we were given our marching orders for an illegal invasion of Iraq? We still have ADF personnel in that part of the world trying to clean up the hideous mess that Australia created. We have hundreds of service personnel in Afghanistan still trying to hold that region together after it was torn apart by George W Bush.

The little Trumps in this parliament are the ones who we probably need to keep the closest eye on. We heard from one of them not too long ago that there are sympathisers of white supremacy in this parliament, campaigning in the Australian community for white nationalism and white supremacy. These are not normal times. This is not a normal administration. This has to be brought to a head before we are dragged into a war not of Australia's choosing.

If this relationship is so deep and so trustworthy—and I believe in the past that it has been—then now is the time to stand up to our great and powerful ally and tell them, 'Enough is enough,' and for Australia to take its place as a middle power in the community of nations and stand up for the rule of law, human rights and an independent foreign policy. Otherwise we are going to find ourselves dragged into a situation, not of our making, but one in which everyone in this parliament would be deeply complicit.

So, Senator Canavan, I utterly reject the idea that what happened in the United States over the summer recess of this parliament has nothing to do with Australia. For better or worse, how could you possibly bring an opinion like that into this place? I suspect that the vast majority of people who elected you to this place would seriously disagree with that. The Greens believe that we need to draw a line and bring these issues to a head using every means possible in this parliament. We do not apologise for suspending standing orders—these issues need to be brought to a head.

Nick McKim (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We return to the chamber to start this sitting year with the world as an absolutely frightening place. We have a truly dangerous person in Donald Trump—with a cabal of religious, racist, warmongering, fascist fanatics gathered around him—who now controls the most powerful political office in the world. Just weeks after taking that office, President Trump has shown he is manifestly unfit to govern. His attacks on the rule of law show that the US is in danger of slipping into a state of early-onset fascism, and there is every chance that we are actually witnessing the early stages of a coup in the United States, where power is usurped—

Senator Dastyari interjecting—

You should listen to this, Senator Dastyari, because power is being usurped away from the US Constitution, away from the courts and away from the states and concentrated in the hands of the Trump family in the interests of the Trump business empire and its sycophantic hangers-on who are being appointed every day into positions of power and influence in the Oval Office. It is not now an exaggeration to suggest that armed conflict is a realistic possibility during this term of the Australian government. China is pursuing expansionist policies in the South China Sea. It is beyond obvious that Putin wants to go to war and it is equally beyond obvious that Donald Trump, because of the corrupt relationships between his business and the corrupt capitalist oligarchs in Russia, is going to join Putin in escalating this crisis. These are not hypothetical or academic discussions and they are not, as Senator Canavan has laughingly attempted to argue only moments ago, things that Australia should not take an interest in.

It is a matter of historical record that our refusal to question the US alliance can be measured in the deaths of tens of thousands of Australians and in recent times the death of thousands of Australia's service personnel in places like Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan. Here is the chance for this country, Australia, to act in its national interests and draw a line in the sand.

But I will tell you what: we are not holding our breath over here in the Greens because, unfortunately, there is no chance that the Liberals are going to do that for the simple reason that they are actually political fellow travellers with Mr Trump and the hateful world view that he represents. I ask the Liberals: how can they possibly condemn President Trump for his environmental vandalism when they are basically sitting by and doing nothing to address dangerous climate change? How can they reject his immigration ban and his Islamophobia, when in fact right now, using Australia's money and in Australia's name, we have well over a thousand of the world's most desperate and vulnerable people indefinitely detained in prison camps on Manus Island and Nauru? How can the Liberals honestly condemn Donald Trump's discrimination against LGBTIQ people, while in this country they are still being denied access to the fundamental civil institution of marriage? In fact we have, as usual, political cowardice and the inability to stand up to far-right bullies.

There is no surprise there. Rather than rejecting racism and hate, the Liberal Party is in fact embracing it and putting it in a shiny suit—and none better than the shiny suit worn by Senator Cory Bernardi. I am not going to go into the bitter irony of a proclaimed conservative Christian giving vocal support to someone who brags about sexually assaulting women and grabbing women by the pussy. But it is worth pointing out that the Liberal Party sent him to the US last year and ended up radicalising him even further. To put it another way: you guys sent Senator Bernardi to the US on a taxpayer-funded trip and all you got in return was a stupid red hat—that is all you got in return. Well, we intend to make the Liberal Party wear that hat every single day like a crown of thorns until the Liberal Party has the courage to stand—(Time expired)

Sam Dastyari (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to begin by saying that was a fantastic speech, Senator McKim, especially the end part. On day one can we just try and restrain some of the crazy that has become this chamber. You have Senator Bernardi who is quitting a party that he runs! Who leaves a party that does whatever you want them to do? If you are already running the Liberal Party, you do not leave it. You have Senator di Natale getting up here and pulling on a ridiculous stunt—to have something as significant as looking at the entirety of the Australia-US relationship discussed in the mode of a suspension of standing orders with five minutes notice. The Senate has not been sitting for months. There has been plenty of opportunity to have a proper kind of debate. Frankly, the idea that the relationship between Australia and America is not strong enough to get past different individuals is absurd. Yes, a ban on majority Muslim countries is abhorrent to people. Yes, a lot of what is going on in the United States should and deserves to be called out when we disagree with it because we are their friends and because we are their allies. But the idea that you are going to completely restructure a relationship as part of a ridiculous stunt on the first day of the Senate—maybe it is time for a bit of left renewal. Maybe Senator di Natale believes there are people in his own party who do not think he is left-wing enough and so he takes more and more extreme positions. What I am really upset about in this debate is that I am putting myself in a position where I will be voting with Senator Roberts. That is bad from me and bad to Senator Roberts!

Peter Whish-Wilson (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the motion moved by Senator Di Natale be agreed to.