It's absurd to think that it would have not have occurred to the AFP that conducting a "raid" on a Labor Senator and Labor staff on a matter not relating in any way to national security during an election campaign would be potentially politically damaging to the raided party.
And although the primary risk of political harm is to Labor, there is a chance that Turnbull is also annoyed, given a risk of "blowback" due to suspicion that the government had a role in the timing, no matter how improbable that might be.
[Oh, I hear someone thinking - well, if the political risk is to both parties, then the AFP may as well go ahead anyway. I would not agree - if the investigation is into a non urgent matter, not relating to national security, and has obvious potential to influence voter's perceptions no matter how it is explained them, then it is foolish of the AFP to be raiding any political party during an election campaign.]
I am curious as to what the Right wingers in the media will say about this. I don't have high hopes - they are completely on side with Border Force bribing people smugglers on the high seas, and acting completely without public scrutiny under cloak of fake "operational matters" secrecy; but I could be wrong....
Update: happily, I was wrong, in that even Andrew Bolt is questioning the AFP decision.
1 comment:
It makes the AFP look incompetent. It took them this long to believe they had to raid the offices when they were looking at this since last December???
most people will believe the decision was political and then when they find out what it is all about ask themselves why are they looking at this.
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