The implosion of Kevin07

When I first saw the member for Griffith on a primetime morning breakfast show I don’t recall any earth moving experience that made me awestruck by his every word. In fact I thought quite the opposite; just another politician trying to raise his profile by engaging in some friendly jousting with his opposite number in parliament sitting under the glare of studio lights across an imposing bench.

But in reality how does anyone rise from obscurity to mega celebrity in the blink of an eyelid. If I was to say the name Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta and throw in the birth date of March 28, 1986, would that ring a bell? Surely a long exotic name like that would instantaneously trigger your memory and bring forth an image of a singer or actor or even a famous fashion designer.

If that name doesn’t ring your bell - and yes she is a singer, actor and fashion stylist - then maybe the name Lady Gaga would certainly give immediate name recognition.

So what are the similarities between former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Lady Gaga? The most notable one would unquestionably be their ability to reinvent themselves: for people who aren’t gifted with any redeeming physical attributes, they have certainly made the most of some tinkering around the edges.

Lady Gaga changed from a brunette classical musician to a raunchy “don’t let your teenage daughter watch her video clips” blonde international superstar.

Kevin Rudd didn’t have to change his blonde hair to brunette but he made great use of the primetime morning show to creep up on, and win over, a significant number of that channel’s unsuspecting audience.

For the son of a dairy farmer who joined the Australian Labor Party at the age of 15 and demonstrated his intellectual capability by being named dux of Nambour State High School in 1974, Kevin Rudd certainly had his eye on the big prize a long way from the finish line.

I didn’t know it until recently that we had two things in common: he went to the same private boarding school as myself, Marist Brothers College, Ashgrove in Brisbane and we both worked for the Department of Foreign Affairs. It would appear he had two years head start on me and I don’t recall bumping into him in the crowed corridors at boarding school or in the hallowed surrounds of the Department of Foreign Affairs. Although I did bump into him in at a Parliament House function for the 2020 gathering a couple of years ago.

But as his strategically stage-managed morning show appearance continued, most probably unnoticed by others within his party - thinking he was off doing a good PR exercise for the party and keeping away from important cabinet decision making - he inadvertently grew on the millions of TV viewers who warmed to his relaxed manner. I could imagine all the older viewers who watched him doing his thing thinking he would be just the man they’d like their unmarried-30-something-daughters to settle down with and raise a family.

It became apparent around that period in Rudd’s rise in popularity, just as events of recent weeks played out, that the ALP would remain in opposition if they didn’t find a replacement for their affable leader Kim Beazley, who had already challenged and lost to the all-conquering right wing master tactician John Howard. When the party apparatchik did an internal poll to see which member had the highest public appeal, up stepped Kevin Rudd - from staid mono-toned TV raconteur to the darling of millions who had warmed to his conservatism and sense of humour - to the podium for further tribute.

Did I say “sense of humour” - well yes, Kevin Rudd impressed us all with his ability to laugh at himself on primetime television.

With the rise and rise of the ANU arts graduate in Asian studies now firmly ensconced in The Lodge, Rudd slowly fell back into his old habits. The other side of Kevin Rudd, that of the control freak and bully, that wasn’t well known to the public - although spasmodic media despatches made their way to the social commentary pages - became more of the norm behind the scenes.

Sure, we got snippets of his tirade on an oversees VIP flight when he abused an innocent flight attendant over the quality of her service; and we heard of the high turnover of his burnt out staffers who were forced to work inordinately long hours on their master’s grand plan for Australia.

Christopher Pearson, writing under the heading “Cabinet Found Government A Puzzle” (The Weekend Australian, July 2-3) highlighted Laura Tingle’s report from the Australian Financial Review several months earlier on the Strategic Priorities and Budget Committee (SPBC), or gang of four, when she said: “When ministers arrive for federal cabinet meetings, they find a folder waiting in their spots which they can look at but not take out of the room. Inside are decisions already taken by the cabinet’s expenditure review committee and ultimate power in the Rudd government, the Strategic Priorities and Budget Committee.”

The SPBC was comprised of Kevin Rudd, his deputy Julia Gillard, Treasurer Wayne Swan and Finance Minister Lindsay Tanner - or the camarilla (Spanish term for Kitchen cabinet) as Christopher Pearson called them.

Good old Kevin07 was at his controlling best, working with a few, and excluding cabinet consensus: a sure recipe for disaster. All you budding office managers or business entrepreneurs out there, take note, menacing behaviour in the workplace is fraught with danger and is a sure pathway to imminent failure.

Even when the polls started their downward slide, especially after the back flip on the Emissions Trading Scheme and his bolshie position on the Mining Super Profits Tax, Kevin07 couldn’t possibly have foreseen the tsunami-like wave of opposition from voters and his own party that was about to wallop him out of his dream . How could he have seen it coming - with record polling only months earlier - there was no way his deck of cards could collapse before his very eyes.

When the polls continued to represent a bumbling Prime Minister who was rapidly sliding out of favour his colleagues acted swiftly, more out of fear of losing their own electorate standing than to follow blindly their leader who couldn’t see the forest for the trees.

When Julia Gillard announced she was contesting the ALP leadership on June 23 Kevin Rudd made one of his better speeches about what he would do if he won back party support. The level of passion displayed before a packed media gallery by Kevin07 on that bleak Canberra evening was sadly a little too late to win back his colleagues confidence and millions of adoring fans’ respect gained from his weekly appearance on their morning primetime show.

I left for work late the following morning, pleased that Kevin07 pulled out of the contest due to take place at 9am. The television commentators were getting inside information from party members that it was going to be a bloodbath for Kevin Rudd inside the party room. I’m just glad he did the honourable thing and stepped down graciously.

So what do we learn from the reinvention of a leader or superstar?

Perhaps superstars like Lady Gaga just take the knocks from critics on the chin and rise up with a newer and more raunchier film clip to out-shock her loyal band of followers. It seems to be working wonders for her as Poker Face, Paparazzi and now Alejandro, which has received scathing criticism from the Catholic Church, have all, in turn, increased her profile and bank balance.

By June 23 Kevin Rudd had exhausted all his tricks and image makeovers and what was left bare was the façade-free real Kevin Rudd, no longer Kevin07, but a top public office operative and controller who grew from a nerd at school to a bully boy in the big world of politics.

Oh - I almost forgot - he did say sorry to the Stolen Generation, but it’s a pity he didn’t follow up the apology with culturally appropriate policies that were adequately resourced and implemented by Indigenous people.

Let’s wait and see if our new Prime Minister, Julie Gillard, is genuinely committed to Indigenous affairs or whether we’ll see our mob consigned to the fringes of politics once again while the new PM chases yet another public makeover.

I honestly couldn’t see Julie Gillard in one of Lady Gaga’s cheeky outfits. But you never know what she might do if the polls take a turn for the worse!