Tallyrand call the office

The election of President Trump, the Leave victory at the UK Brexit referendum, the revival of One Nation here in Australia … the political earthquakes of 2016 have exposed the gap between the political class and ordinary voters.

The rejection of the leadership of the political establishment has been driven in large part by resentment of political correctness.

Significant numbers of voters have grown tired of political elites shutting down legitimate public debates by branding as ‘racists’ all who dare to raise subjects such as immigration levels, Muslim integration, and Aboriginal affairs.

This is the context in which to assess the political prospects, and potential implications, of the Turnbull Government’s belated plan to reform the operation of the Racial Discrimination Act.

In response, the usual suspects from the multicultural industry have played the race card and claimed that the proposed softening of Section 18C will unleash ‘hate speech’ against ethnic minorities.

This assessment is based on a dim view of Australia as an inherently racist country. This is an absurd but nevertheless widely held opinion in political, media, and academic circles, despite modern Australia’s remarkable track record as a harmonious multi-racial nation that has successfully welcomed and blended millions of people from around the world.

Opponents of amending the RDA are trying to inflame racial divisions in order to convince the Coalition that it will pay an electoral price for attempting to restore freedom of expression.  The same motives also appear to be behind the Labor Party’s rejection of any changes to Section 18C.

But this cynical calculus, and the whole notion that supporting changes to the RDA will cost votes, seems to completely ignore the significance of recent political events.

Surely — given all that has happened in the past 12 months — now is not the right time for politicians to be telling ordinary voters they are too racist to be trusted with free speech?

Or maybe when it comes to some members of the political class, Talleyrand’s famous line about “learning nothing and forgetting nothing” is all too accurate.