Attorney-General a job for legal expertise, not political head-kicking

It’s a real issue because although we accept that the Minister for Health doesn’t need to be a doctor, the Attorney-General holds a vital role in our democracy.

In that context a calm legal independent aloofness is needed because the rule of law is what keeps any democracy from sliding into an authoritarian state. The Attorney-General’s role, then, calls for a sharp legal mind. So it’s no surprise the three most brilliant attorneys-general of the last 50 years were all not just lawyers, but QCs, before they went into politics: Tom Hughes, Lionel Murphy and Bob Ellicott, who resigned on principle in 1977 rather than give into political pressure from PM Malcolm Fraser.The other vital area of the Attorney-General’s job is to protect our independent judiciary from scurrilous attack.

The other vital area of the Attorney-General’s job is to protect our independent judiciary from scurrilous attack.That kind of wild partisan attack on the courts by politicians has a clear subtext – that judges should forget legal reasoning and only listen to political powerful and those with loudest, shrillest voices in the media. That’s not just undemocratic; it’s a big step toward a dictatorship.

Get me in the ring with this fool

No, he should not. Bad call from Guy.

He is not a smart man.

duncanfine Too many lawyers in Government - Government and Parliament should be more representative of the community.

Wasn’t he going to relocate the fruit bats out of his electorate?

Irrelevant. Victorian Liberals won't win office for decades. Stop wasting time talking about them.

Are you kidding with this story/headline?

'Brilliant'

Nope.

The one thing he is not, is an intellectual giant. He is an absolute buffoon of the highest order.

No

With his reputation of posting death cards on social media he is totally inappropriate for that role!!! What a disgraceful appointment!!!!

Stick me in the “arrogant Trumpian fool” column.

Just checking; it's this Tim Smith you're talking about, right?

Seriously, does *anyone* think he's a 'brilliant political brawler' (other than perhaps Tim Smith)? Surely you're either taking the piss or trying to confect a story.

Brilliant Brawler. 😉😗😜🤪😅🤣😂🤢🤮

How about neither brilliant or arrogant?…id go with just a plain old simpleton instead

Of course he should. Very knowledgeable man. I recall a few years back he told Jon Faine he’d never heard of the Beatles.

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