Squiz Today – Monday, 27 August

SQUIZ SAYINGS

“You can take the superhero out of her costume, but you can never take away her superpowers.”

Said tennis great Serena Williams’ sponsor Nike on news her “warrior” catsuit would be banned from the next French Open. Williams urged fans to suspend their superhuman outrage; “Everything’s fine guys” she said.

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TURNBULL/BISHOP OUT, MORRISON/FRYDENBERG IN. AND BREATHE…

THE SQUIZ
With Australia downing tools and collectively scratching its head in confusion, newly installed PM Scott Morrison and deputy Josh Frydenberg scanned the scorched earth left behind by the events of the last week as they now try to redeem the Coalition in the eyes of voters.

GIVE ME THE KEY POINTS…
• Friday saw some extraordinary political manoeuvering that paved the way for Morrison to become Oz’s first PM to get the job without challenging the incumbent, facing an election or replacing a PM who had died.

• Morrison saw off former deputy leader Julie Bishop and beat former PM Malcolm Turnbull’s challenger Peter Dutton 45-40 to become the leader of the Liberal Party and our nation.

• Josh Frydenberg goes up the ladder/greasy pole to become deputy leader and Treasurer. Even Parliament House institution/cleaner Anna Jancevski was pleased for him…

• Almost outshone by grandson Jack, Turnbull gave a final press conference and blamed the “insurgents” backed by “powerful voices in the media” for the destruction of his government. Still, he said he has “great optimism for Australia.” His departure date from politics has not been confirmed.

• Bishop announced she was going to the backbench. Bruised by her poor result, leaked WhatsApp messages showed many colleagues’ “hearts” were with Bishop but there was a concerted effort to back Morrison.

WHAT ON EARTH WAS THAT ABOUT?
Conservatives say the Coalition’s electoral chances were diminished under Turnbull because they were “bleeding to the right”. No, that’s not a horrible medical condition… It means they believed Turnbull had to go in order to ‘secure the base’. Others, including former PM John Howard, say some of the blame lies with Turnbull because he lost control of the party. So while Abbott and his backers have settled the score by ousting Turnbull, they failed to take the party’s leadership away from the ‘moderates’. And Dutton still has a cloud over his eligibility to be an MP.

Looking ahead, Morrison’s election means:

• Not much will change on the policy front.

• There are not many new faces on the front bench. Which means former PM Tony Abbott didn’t get a ministry (although he and former deputy PM Barnaby Joyce have been offered ‘special envoy’ roles)…

• And a lot of work needs to go towards rebuilding trust with voters with today’s Newspoll showing support for the Coalition dropping to its lowest point in a decade.

Only time will tell if Morrison’s colleagues give him the chance to succeed.

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SQUIZ THE REST

MASS SHOOTING IN FLORIDA
Reports say there are multiple fatalities from a mass shooting at a downtown shopping/dining complex in Jacksonville, Florida. The shooting occurred during a video gaming tournament and at the time of send this morning the situation was still unfolding. Updates can be found here.

BOAT ARRIVAL IN FNQ
Authorities are searching for about 30 people who are believed to be hiding in croc-infested mangroves near the Daintree River. They are believed to be some of those on board the first asylum seeker boat to arrive in Australia in more than four years, although authorities said it is possible the group are fishermen. “Normally, if it was a boat of asylum-seekers then once they hit land, the people-smugglers have told them to stay put and claim asylum. In this situation they have all fled,” an official source told The Australian. Eleven of those on board were detained last night, and the search will continue today.

WE'LL DRINK (MINERAL WATER) TO THAT
A big new medical study has found that no amount of alcohol is safe for your overall health. A fact to back that up? Alcohol was the number one risk factor for disease and premature death in men and women between the ages of 15 and 49 in 2016. Study author Emmanuela Gakidou said; "We're used to hearing that a drink or two a day is fine. But the evidence is the evidence." Huff. "There is no safe level of driving, but governments do not recommend that people avoid driving," countered another professor.

LIGHTNING TRUMPS FEVER
Perth was yesterday painted green for the West Coast Fever as they took on reigning champions, the Sunshine Coast Lightning, in the Suncorp Super Netball Grand Final. Played before a record crowd of 13,722, the game was a nail-biter (which is convenient because you can’t have long nails in netball…) with the Lightning victorious 62-59.

And while we have you… The All Blacks have retained the Bledisloe Cup with their defeat of the Wallabies 40-12. The less said about that the better…

QUICK WEATHER NEWS WRAP
Hurricane Lane became a tropical storm, and while there was flooding across Hawaii, the impact wasn’t as bad as anticipated.

Parts of central Queensland received hail as big as golf balls yesterday.

Not enough to end the drought and fill the dams, but a good part of NSW and Queensland received some rain over the weekend. It was enough for some to get their kit off…

VALE JOHN McCAIN
One time presidential candidate, senator and war hero, John McCain died yesterday just a few days shy of his 82nd birthday. He was diagnosed with a brain tumour mid-last year. His was a big life, but some key points include:

• He was imprisoned and tortured for five-and-a-half years after his capture by the North Vietnamese in the late 60s/early 70s. McCain carried the injuries for the rest of his life - he was unable to lift his arms above his head and walked with a stiff gait.

• Known as a maverick within the Republican Party, McCain’s one gamble that didn’t pay off was his selection of Sarah Palin as his running mate in the 2008 presidential election. Some argue it was the start of a road that led to Donald Trump’s presidency. But these are the clips we’ll remember.

• McCain commanded respect from all sides of politics and his last couple of years were punctuated with attacks on Trump.

His daughter Meghan said “he was a great fire who burned bright”.

SQUIZ THE DAY

Tennis - Start of the US Open

World Rock Paper Scissors Day

Birthdays for designer Tom Ford (1961) and Aussie F1 driver Mark Webber (1976)