Running true to form, the article exposing the treachery of Joe Hockey in betraying his Prime Minister is displayed by von Onselen as somehow Tony Abbott’s fault. The headline writer gets it sort of right, but there is more to the story than this: How Joe Hockey added an $80bn insult to Abbott’s injuries. Let him van Onselen tell the story:

[Hockey] insisted on the $80 billion of cuts to health and education funding beyond the forward estimates being included in the budget, in those terms. They didn’t need to be; in fact, standard practice would mean such long-term forward projections (well out beyond 2020) never would be ­included.

Abbott, showing political common sense, a commodity utterly absent in his Treasurer, was adamant that these projected cuts not be included. “The PMO insisted,” writes van Onselen, “the $80bn in cuts come out of the document”. Why invite trouble when dealing with the Senate was already likely to be difficult.

But team Hockey reinserted it without PMO approval or even awareness, [which] shows Abbott and his office were aware of the political challenge such sizeable cuts would represent, all the more so in the context of Abbott’s promise that there would be no cuts to health and education in the SBS interview — the areas targeted for an $80bn haircut.

Yes, they were aware of the political challenge, due to the likes of columnists like van Onselen who under no circumstances would have said a positive word on Abbott’s behalf when it might have been some use in getting a budget passed. Who knows where Joe took advice at that stage, from whichever treacherous scum there might also have been among Liberals in cabinet. But at least, if it could be said that Joe’s judgement was vindicated then at least there would be that. Back to van Onselen:

Hockey’s standing in the electorate sank after the first budget, ending his hopes of one day leading the Liberal Party. Talk of Hockey as a future leader was quickly replaced by calls for him to be sacked as treasurer. The mutual self-interest of survival helped Hockey and Abbott overcome the colossal mistake [!!!] in that first budget. But distrust between the off­ices never went away, and Credlin in particular never trusted Hockey or his staff again.

She never trusted Hockey again! What a terrible woman no longer to trust such a duplicitous lying deceiving rat ever again. You may be sure that no one ever trusted Hockey again. Meanwhile, van Onselen cannot bring himself to state that obvious, that Abbott had been dudded in such a way at such a time by someone he had put into a position of trust. It is one of the most disgusting stories I have ever come across, and the fact that Hockey allowed this story to reach the light of day shows what a political imbecile he is and obviously always had been.