Event title: Labor Staffers: Lessons for the next generation
24july, Melbourne exhibition and convention center.
On the 24th of January I travelled to the CBD to go to a labour staffer’s event. Heard some interesting stories.
Kaila Murnain is quite a veteran of the Labor party. Quite a long and impressive resume, look it up. She told a few stories, two stood out to me:
The first began with her saying “knowledge is power” and “talk to the person nobody else talks to”. Demonstrated her point with an example: There was an MP nobody talked to and nobody wanted to include in the campaign. So she talked to her. And she learned that this women was on a dating website and one of the men who indicated he was interested in her was from the liberal party, in fact, he was a candidate. Furthermore, he was married. So they included her in the campaign and used her to attack the candidate. This story was told as a teaching experience in a meeting intended to educate to be staffers. My favourite bit of the story was when Kaila finishes by saying something like ‘but don’t worry, it was ok, he was a bit of a sleazebag’ (paraphrasing).
The next story was set during a campaign for a marginal seat where a Doctor was facing the distinct possibility of losing. There were two pre polls which indicated the man should campaign in two different places. Unfortunately, there was only one candidate. Luckily the man had a brother. Also a doctor, who lived in Sydney. He had a moustache he grew for 32 years. So, this story goes exactly where you think it does. Kaila flies to Sydney to convince the brother to shave off his moustache and campaign in the area one of the pre polls indicates whilst his brother campaigns in the other one. For the sake of integrity they both introduced themselves as Doctor.last-name. The moral here was to “know your candidate”. The MP, after all, did not volunteer his brother.
Less horrifying was the reflections of the staffers on their position. One of the panel members was asked about the need for a university degree for the position of staffer. From memory it was Corri McKenzie who commented about how privileged and lucky she feels to have been able to wield the influence they do. As such, one should go to university before becoming a staffer so that you can ‘make sure you have something to do with your influence when your chance comes up to use it’.
The point regarding the large amount of influence staffers have was reinforced by the Hon. Tony Burke MP who recalled at least one instance relating to a decision involving the forestry industry in Tasmania that was changed by the insistence of a staffer who spoke to an MP after a meeting on the matter. Funnily enough, he mentioned in the same hour, with no hint of despair, that there are no educational requirements to being a staffer and that he had staffers of both blue and white collar backgrounds who were equally good.
A few thoughts:
It’s concerning how much influence the man who fetches a ministers tea can have. It’s both sad and comforting to see that this man’s awareness of his own inadequacy for the influence that comes with being able to take the role of the king’s barber. Sad because there is no system in place to momentum this influence in a good direction. Comforting, because it means there is at least some motivation, even if only intrinsic, for the man to educate himself before influencing the decision-maker.
When contemplating the first two stories a quote comes to mind:
The ‘law’ being cut down here is the integrity of Australia’s political institutions, and the trustworthiness of politicians and political parties. The ‘devil’ is the other political party. The insane zealot is the staffer and political campaigner who uses tactics as those recited in the first two stories. The man standing against him? absent.
razipilli 