Legacy media and Auspol election pundits are in a feeding frenzy after former LNP maverick, George Christensen told the Courier Mail he was joining One Nation.
A Courier-Mail exclusive from Madura McCormack explained, ‘Christensen will contest the 2022 election as a One Nation candidate.’
One Nation is set to announce where, and how, sometime today.
This isn’t a complete about-face.
Not completely removing himself from the Canberra bubble, Christensen was aiming to move back into journalism, with a focus on Theo-politics, after retiring.
Disenchanted with how far the LNP has moved away from its conservative roots, joining One Nation is a natural fit for the popular representative for the Dawson electorate.
He told the Courier-Mail:
“The more I queried One Nation’s policies and looked at their constitution, their core beliefs, the things that Pauline has been campaigning on recently, just about everything aligned with my views.”
Christensen then added, “I should have joined One Nation long ago.”
To this, he added, “bizarrely, the question really didn’t float into my mind as to why am I doing this, the question that floated into my mind was, ‘why hadn’t I done this a long time ago?”
News.com.au political editor, Samantha Maiden labelled Christensen’s decision the ‘ultimate reverse ferret move’ commenting that he’d thrown the LNP a ‘curve ball.’
Maiden said, One Nation has been ‘pursuing the veteran MP since late last year.’
Maiden quoted, One Nation’s leader Pauline Hanson who acknowledged Christensen’s family reasons for moving on from the political playground, stating:
“I know it’s a sacrifice to him and his family … but I’m not going to apologise because I want good people standing beside me that are going to deliver for the Australian people.”
The ABC credited the former representative’s ‘firebrand’ style for his popularity.
They described the Dawson representative as having ‘caused a number of headaches for Prime Minister Scott Morrison.’
Among these are Christensen’s prominent, and celebrated, criticisms of, and actions against: vaccine mandates, Leftist LGBTQ+ militancy, climate change catastrophising, increasing interference from World Economic Forum plants within Australian politics, and the Communist Chinese Party’s continued belligerence towards the Australian people.
All of which are key concerns shared by a growing number of Australians.
Based on the ABC’s recount, Christensen is in a good position, with solid support. He won the 2019 election with ‘a massive 11.3 per cent swing toward him – something Coalition members put down to his personal brand in North Queensland.’
Christensen’s former Queensland LNP brother-at-arms, Matt Canavan told Nine News, that he thought Christesen’s decision raised questions, calling it, “cowardly; [he’s] shirking from a fight.”
Canavan added, “it’s desertion […] you don’t go off and speak to a minor party.”
Wildly damned as a “backflip” from a “rogue” “turncoat,” Christensen’s decision to hold the line will be widely celebrated.
The veteran conservative joining One Nation is music to the ears of thousands, if not millions of Australians who refuse to vote “woke.”
Christensen joins 151 candidates, making One Nation one big headache for Labor, and the Liberal-National Coalition – the two major parties desperate to either win or hold the balance of power.
