Barry O'Farrell to resign as NSW Premier

[Power Raid]

I did catch some of Sky News last night. All of a sudden ICAC is "out of control" and "going after the wrong people"

Keep going and clean it all up

That way, our government has the authority to clean up corporate and union corruption

 

[Power Raid]

I believe he always knew about the Grange but was caught offside by the questioning & from then he was in panic mode.

yep, very strange

A $3k gift is not an issue as it is not a gift over and above normal custom for business. I would normally give hill of grace rather than grange to associates (not politicians though) as a thank you for efforts.

but as with our internal policy, all gifts given or received must be logged in the "soft receipts register" for all directors, staff, ASIC and if necessary the ATO can inspect. That way there is nothing to hide and "memory" does not become an issue.

 

[benchwarmer5]

Just looking into his apparent successor Mike Baird
" has a pro-life voting record, voting against embryonic stem research and euthanasia, and does not support gay marriage"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Baird_(politician)

Another backwards liberal flat earther

 

[Ice-Wolf]

Just looking into his apparent successor Mike Baird
" has a pro-life voting record, voting against embryonic stem research and euthanasia, and does not support gay marriage"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Baird_(politician)

Another backwards liberal flat earther

Yeah the Liberal party are not so much conservatives anymore they're regressives.

 

[NSWCROW]

and are behaving like petulant children.

Only been happening since 07

 

[NSWCROW]

Just looking into his apparent successor Mike Baird
" has a pro-life voting record, voting against embryonic stem research and euthanasia, and does not support gay marriage"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Baird_(politician)

Another backwards liberal flat earther

Bazza - NOT Tone's boy
Gladys - NOT Tone's girl
Baird - Tone's boy

Can't wait

 

[Todman]

Yeah the Liberal party are not so much conservatives anymore they're regressives.

 

[Ice-Wolf]

LOL Liberal party

 

[benchwarmer5]

Barry O quits in disgrace after being caught telling porkeys to ICAC....

Abbott - "We are seeing an act of integrity, an act of honour, the like of which we have rarely seen in Australian politics."

Is this considered double speak ?

 

[romeoh]

Barry O quits in disgrace after being caught telling porkeys to ICAC....

Abbott - "We are seeing an act of integrity, an act of honour, the like of which we have rarely seen in Australian politics."

Is this considered double speak ?

Precisely-the guy has actually transgressed on several fronts/ flawed behavior and he is a hero. Way to go Tone.

 

[Hank Scorpion]

 

[The Speaker]

Just looking into his apparent successor Mike Baird
" has a pro-life voting record, voting against embryonic stem research and euthanasia, and does not support gay marriage"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Baird_(politician)

 

[AM]

Just looking into his apparent successor Mike Baird
" has a pro-life voting record, voting against embryonic stem research and euthanasia, and does not support gay marriage"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Baird_(politician)

Fits the Abbott mold perfectly then.

 

[benchwarmer5]

Are you a best of best friend ?

 

[Brown Bottle]

 

[telsor]

I don't care about the person's politics or interests...corruption in politics needs to be hit where ever it's found, even when it's a 'small thing'. zero tolerance, and pollies just need to accept that if they want to represent us, they'll be held to a higher standard.

That said, resigning over a 3K bottle of wine? While I agree it was the right thing to do (and wish it was more consistently applied), something doesn't seem quite right there. I'm thinking either there is something bigger and he resigned because he saw it coming, or he was setup for a fall in some behind the scenes move and didn't have the numbers in the party room after this.

 

[Juddism]

Gerard Henderson embarrassed himself on Lateline. Ultra Liberal defence mode, ICAC doing it wrong, spinneroonie.

Sky News last night would have been a train wreck.

Kind of makes you wonder where the conservatives get off bashing ABC about bias yet Henderson et al are on every week.

 

[telsor]

Kind of makes you wonder where the conservatives get off bashing ABC about bias yet Henderson et al are on every week.

Yeah, all those conservatives hosting shows and stacking panels, with only a token progressive ont hem.

 

[CLUBMEDhurst]

What I can't understand is why Giroloma after finding the note from O'Farrell in his personal papers why he released it. Some grudge against his own party?

That's the question I've been asking myself Mags. I'm wondering what Di Girolamo's relationship with Baird is. Mebbe I'm just a conspiracy nut, but I find it interesting that a well respected and essentially capable Premier resigns to be replaced by a god-bothering Abbott clone

 

[pjcrows]

Said it on the day - setup.

 

[GuruJane]

The funniest thing is that they didn't even go after him. Nobody thought he'd done anything corrupt. Even if he openly admitted that he'd been given the bottle of wine and hadn't declared it nothing actually came of it so nobody would really care. ICAC hasn't found anything beyond this bottle of wine linking him to dodgy deals in any way and they were only interested in it because it says something about Di Girolamo and whether he was "buttering up" O'Farrell with gifts. Nobody's suggesting the gifts worked.

Somehow one of the most respected and popular politicians in the country has, in less than 24 hours, been undone by what should have been the most innocent questioning possible at this type of inquiry. Honestly the sentence "What I do know is if I had received a bottle of 1959 Penfolds Grange I would have known about it and I did not receive a bottle of Penfolds Grange" right now looks like the dumbest sentence ever uttered in the history of Australian politics. He's just given us a lesson on how to destroy a very impressive career in 30 words.

Seems to me that BOF was more buddy buddy with Di Geronimo than he cares to let on these days - ergo the very warm note, plus the phone message. Panicked and BSed Icac. Had to resign not tough out because he knew coz of the leaks that more stuff would come out about friendship with di Geronimo.
No way he would have forgotten that present. That's my theory anyway.

 

[clogged]

Said it on the day - setup.

Yeah definite stitch up. Relatively liberal premier gets replaced by religious troglodyte. A certain section of the NSW Libs get what they've always wanted.

 

[GuruJane]

Looks like Bazza was hopelessly compromised.

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/job-offer-after-wine-gift-20140418-36wg1.html

Very hard to believe he had a memory lapse now.

 

[skilts]

Contrary to what some have written about the relative (lack of) quality of the '59 Grange Hermitage, my drinking of it indicated it was worth losing your job over. I doubt many on these boards have drunk it. The only reason I did was because it was given as a present, to be drunk immediately, over dinner, by a great restaurateur. This was during the mid-1970's. Admittedly, it was the first Grange I'd had. The only better one I've had was the '63.

A mate and I had attended a Rosary at St Pat's Cathedral and went to the restaurant, in Bourke Street, afterwards. The owner came to our table and commiserated with us at length about the loss of his and our friend, on whose behalf the Rosary was recited. He then asked my mate what we wanted to drink with our dinner. My mate suggested he should select the wine. Thus, the Grange. It never appeared on the bill.

 

[davywap]

Whats to report? Boats have stopped..

LOL