Topics: US election; Australia-US relationship;
08:45AM AEDT
7 November 2024
Justin Smith: Simon Birmingham is Shadow Foreign Minister and Liberal Senator for South Australia. Senator, thank you for your time.
Simon Birmingham: Good morning, Justin, great to be with you.
Justin Smith: Thank you. What was your reaction to the result?
Simon Birmingham: Well, Justin, I guess my reaction is one of the need to get down to business. And there is a big task ahead for right now, the Albanese government. Clearly, I hope that changes early next year at the Australian election. But to get down to the business of being able to work with this second Trump administration just as effectively and successfully as the previous Coalition government in Australia, worked with the first Trump administration.
Justin Smith: I’m going to start off, I know this might elicit a political answer, but can Kevin Rudd stay on as the ambassador to the United States?
Simon Birmingham: Justin, I wish Kevin Rudd, nothing but success because it’s in Australia’s best interests for him to succeed. But of course, it’s up to Kevin Rudd and Anthony Albanese who put him there to ensure that they have confidence he is getting the access and having the influence that Australia needs him to have. And ultimately, if he’s not getting that access and not having that influence, well then of course Australia’s best interests need to be put first.
Justin Smith: Can the AUKUS deal survive with Donald Trump?
Simon Birmingham: The AUKUS deal can survive and thrive under Donald Trump. No other American ally and partner is investing in the same way that Australia is, in building complementary military capabilities and complementary defence industrial capabilities like Australia is under AUKUS. Australia is ensuring that together, the Australia-US alliance will have more submarine capability, will have more shipyards able to build and service and operate those submarines, and at present we’re even investing in US shipyards to be in a position to ensure that they can scale up production so that we can have early access to the Virginia class submarines. There’s a really strong story to tell there, and it’s important that that is told and understood by President Trump and his administration at the earliest opportunity.
Justin Smith: Senator, I was talking to Dennis Richardson, and I put these questions to him that there’s a lot of fear about what the world will look like now. And I read him some texts from our listeners, and a couple more says Trump will destroy Gaza and Ukraine. Trump’s election win hurts women. I mean, what do you say to people that are that are feeling fear today?
Simon Birmingham: Donald Trump has less conventional policies than people are used to and makes much bolder pronouncements than people are used to. But I do agree with the phrase Kevin Rudd used a few months back at the Republican National Convention when he urged people to a degree to take a chill pill. We shouldn’t catastrophise this and we shouldn’t talk ourselves into the worst. We worked effectively as a country with the first Trump administration. We can and should do so again. There are important principles we should hold by. We should absolutely argue strongly and firmly Australia’s case and Australia’s national interest, as indeed Malcolm Turnbull and Scott Morrison successfully did with Donald Trump. And that’s important for us. But ultimately, what we want from Donald Trump are also some of the types of breakthroughs that we saw. For example, in the Middle East, his work on the Abraham Accords saw countries like the United Arab Emirates normalise their diplomatic relations with Israel. And those things have stood even through the Gaza conflict at present, that previously effectively enemy countries that didn’t have diplomatic ties have managed to sustain them even in this very difficult time. And that happened due to some of the work from the first Trump administration. So, it’s more of those types of outcomes that we should be trying to work and help that that government to achieve.
Justin Smith: I appreciate the considered answers very much but putting diplomacy just to one side for a moment and let’s talk some knockdown, drag out politics. [Laughs] As a member of the Liberal Party, as a member of the Liberal Party, you’re watching America move to the right. You’ve got an election coming up not too far away. What does that tell you that you need to do?
Simon Birmingham: [Laughs] Justin, I mean, the strategists will talk about the campaign, but the one big…one big takeout I can see..
Justin Smith: Oh, come on. [Laughs]
Simon Birmingham: Uh, I’m going to answer your question, fear not it’s not all diplomacy. The one the one big takeout I have is that if you listen to what came up again and again in Donald Trump’s comments, it was the cost of living that Americans felt worse off. After a surge in inflation and strong inflationary environment today than they were four years ago. And clearly that message translates very strongly to Australia. Doesn’t matter who you talk to really. Australians have felt the pressure of inflation, which when the Albanese government was elected, was lower than many comparable economies around the world. And after three Labor budgets, it’s now higher in Australia than many places around the world.
Justin Smith: As a seasoned political player, though, you know, you look at the United States and the campaign and on both sides, we had Joe Biden calling Trump supporters garbage. We had Trump calling people, calling Kamala Harris stupid, you know, immigrants eating cats and dogs and the whole bit. There was a on both sides, there seemed to be a level of nastiness. Is this something you’d hate to see creep into Australia?
Simon Birmingham: It is. Justin. You know, I think parts of it certainly are unedifying and I’m the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate. And before the last election, I was the leader of the government in the Senate. You know, you only get things done in the Australian Senate if you can work across the aisle. Sometimes you get crossbencher agreements, but oftentimes you also have to actually deal with your opposition counterparts. And so we should have fierce debates in Australia. We’re going to have one when it comes to the best pathway to achieve net zero and secure our industrial and economic future in Australia at the next election. Peter Dutton’s taking forward a policy in relation to zero emissions nuclear energy that nobody’s been brave enough to do so before. So, we’ve got a real serious policy contest that will be had in Australia at the next election, and I hope it’s fought over those power bills, those cost-of-living issues and the associated policies, not the personalities of anybody.
Justin Smith: Oh, we’ll have plenty of time to nut those things out in the lead up. But I thank you very much for your time, Senator. I know you’re busy.
Simon Birmingham: Thanks, Justin. My pleasure.
[ENDS]