Andrew Hastie has attacked “nameless cowards” and “muppets” in his party who questioned a social media post where he bemoaned the loss of Australia’s car-making industry.
The aspiring Liberal leader, who has publicly declared his desire to one day take the reins of the party, posted to Instagram on Monday about the loss of domestic car manufacturing.
“We used to make complex things in this country … Both the Liberals and Labor have let us down in the past by letting the car industry disappear,” he said.
“It’s time to put Australians first,” the caption read, parroting US President Donald Trump’s “America First” slogan.
When Holden and Ford ended production in Australia more than a decade ago, the then-Coalition did not bail out the companies, which had been heavily subsidised over the years by successive governments.
Loading Instagram content
Mr Hastie has grown increasingly outspoken on a number of policy issues in recent weeks, campaigning against net zero, on migration, energy and domestic manufacturing.
After posting the video, anonymous Liberal colleagues questioned Mr Hastie’s policy pitch, and asked in The Australian how the “well produced” video had been paid for, saying parliamentarian salaries were modest.
Mr Hastie again took to social media.
“Nameless cowards briefing in the paper,” he wrote.
“It was filmed by competent, patriotic gen Z staffers you muppets.”
Liberal turmoil continues
Mr Hastie’s comments come just a fortnight after the Coalition feuded over remarks by Jacinta Nampijinpa Price that led to her sacking from the frontbench.
The NT senator took to social media this afternoon to applaud Mr Hastie’s hit back at colleagues.
“The Liberal MPs who disagree with Andrew Hastie’s views should have the courage to own their comments instead of hiding behind anonymity,” she wrote on social media.
“It seems like the factional warlords are in overdrive with their pathetic backgrounding efforts to undermine a debate our country must have.
Andrew Hastie asks an important question, “What sort of country do we want to be?”
Nationals senator Matt Canavan, another conservative MP who has frequently stood in opposition to his own party, congratulated Mr Hastie for “calling out this BS”.
With turmoil from Senator Nampijinpa Price’s sacking so recent, Liberal MP Aaron Violi cautioned his colleagues on ABC Afternoon Briefing.
“What I would say as a general comment is all conversations between colleagues should be face to face and private, the Australian public wants us to be a strong, united opposition holding this bad government to account,” Mr Violi said.
“Clearly, when we go through such a devastating result as we did on May 3rd, there is a lot of soul searching to do … many like to put out their public commentary as well, which they are entitled to do, but I think conversations about colleagues should be had face to face and privately.”