With Robert Ray's Senate vacancy set to be resolved as early as Wednesday, it is clear that former Senator Jacinta Collins has emerged as favourite over former ALP assistant national secretary David Feeney.
Even six weeks in the Senate is considered worth at least a half-hearted argument in the Labor party and it will be one of the two Senators-Elect who will be picked notwithstanding our efforts to insist that the position be drawn randomly from the ranks of ALP members Lotto-style (of course you wouldn't be allowed to include the much scorned victims of ALP membership apartheid, known as members of the wasteland "Central branch") and anyone else who might be interested from the general community, town criers and such.
On the subject of town criers, well worth seeing this week was the form of the Gippsland federal by-election candidates. You had the Liberal Rohan Fitzgerald looking very nervous and not quite up to it, the Nats Darren Chester looking much slicker, buttoned-down and on-message but possibly a bit too much like a politician and then the town crier fast-tracked ALP candidate Darren McCubbin who looked authentic, relaxed, seemed to have clever banter down to a fine art and was, frankly, just very impressive. Have a look for yourself, but clearly the Left's angry man of Morwell, Brendan Jenkins had his head firmly up his bum when criticising Labor's choice, McCubbin is surprisingly good talent even if he's not likely to win. Check out the 7.30 Report to see what I mean.
TWO INTERESTED PARTIES BUT ONLY ONE INVITE
Back to the Senate, the OC understands that both Collins and Feeney had expressed interest in the vacancy when told by Robert that he was going early, although Collins' interest was perhaps slightly more enthusiastically expressed.
Some tell the OC that they think Feeney would have stayed in Melbourne if he thought he had the support and if Jacinta didn't want it. But like a gentleman, he proceeded with dignity to the international departure lounge and left it to others to resolve.
It's a strange little contest, it wouldn't rise to the level of a fight as such because no one thinks it's worth fighting over. More a balancing of the scales to assess which person is the most interested and desiring of the six-week stint.
Collins' supporters, from the patriotic shop assistants' union but much broader than that too these days, say that her seniority having done ten years in the Senate already, her higher place on the ALP Senate ticket and her presence in the country right now should seal it in her favour. The OC understands that she will definitely be nominating for the position and at this point the same cannot be said with any certainty about Feeney.
Feeney's supporters, centred on the HSU union and ironically perhaps the NUW, say that as Collins has been there before that the opportunity to serve a month a half prior to July 1st would be largely wasted on her. Better to give it to the new guy, so he can quickly learn the ropes and be ready to go when his Senate term commences, they say. It's a persuasive argument, we think.
Appointing him would also challenge Feeney's assumptions that some former friends and allies are out to get him, which we suspect they're not and I suspect he realises they might not be either but wants to be 100% sure and to 100% punish them to ensure no further perceived transgressions occur again. He is perhaps a perfectly loyal friend but an absurdly tough foe. He's going to be quite the star in Canberra whenever he arrives. It's a bit like waiting for the Number One draft pick to play his first game. The anticipation is tremendous.
A GOOD PROBLEM TO HAVE
The Victorian Labor Right has its problems on occasion (its inability to choose a faction secretary turned the feared outfit into the butt of jokes) but it is truly blessed to have two people of integrity, political skill and wisdom to choose from. Both are new arrivals to the Senate but have rich experience. In Jacinta's case, she's been there before serving from 1995 to 2005 and would most probably have been a minister in this government had Family First and the Latham Factor not bumped her out of the Senate at the election before last. Indeed she was helped get there originally with David Feeney's support, as the OC recalls. In Feeney's case, he's been a factional operative for nearly two decades (despite not yet being forty!) and is one of the shrewdest political judges of our time.
A good problem to have indeed.
At this stage, it looks like Jacinta will get the nod with Feeney understandably reluctant to interrupt a long-planned break overseas with his wife Liberty unless he absolutely had to do so. Jacinta's enthusiasm to begin and resume where she left off in 2005 will most probably be the determining factor as the matter is resolved in the new few days.
Game on.
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