Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s low-key cabinet reshuffle has bumped up Andrew Hastie, and Amanda Stoker into frontbench assistant ministerial positions.
Hastie finds himself in defence, a role well suited to the former SAS veteran. Stoker landed the role of Assistant Minister to the Attorney General.
The two conservatives are part of what the Sydney Morning Herald called a ‘boring’ attempt by the Prime Minister to avoid ‘spooking the horses.’
Joining them in the reshuffle, which sees promotion and portfolio expansion, is Jane Hume, Alan Tudge, Ben Morton, Greg Hunt, and Dan Tehan.
The SMH added that Tehan, ‘a former diplomat, taking over as Trade Minister’, is the most significant.
Tehan brings with him notable skills and experience, from which he’ll presumably bring face-to-face with the CCP’s Chi-comm “wolf warrior diplomacy” and their anti-Australian, punitive “trade war” brought on by Australia’s flat-out “no” to the CCP’s “do as we say, or else.”
As pointed out by Eternity News’ John Sandeman in an extensive run-down, Hastie and Stoker are both committed Christians, and neither come from a privileged inner-city or affluent upper-suburban context.
Hastie is the son of a Pastor, and Stoker, the daughter of a plumber, has been a firm advocate of freedom of religion.
Scott Morrison has ticked two of the boxes in what is an LNP frontbench dream team.
These two new appointments are a refreshing move from a Prime Minister whose apparent squeamish unwillingness to challenge the arrogance of power wielded about by Labor’s Unionised Socialist Premiers under COVID-19 has brought a shadow over his leadership.
These appointments are a good call.
We have Dutton, now Tehan, Stoker and Hastie.
All we need is Christensen, Kelly, Molan, Abetz, and Chandler.
Contrary to the SMH, Morrison’s cabinet reshuffle isn’t boring, it’s bloody-well long overdue!
