The one word missing from the budget

One of the lessons from the Trump campaigns in the US is that if you talk to “minority voters” and address their concerns, then they will vote for you in greater numbers than they used to. Trump increased his share of the black vote from 8% to 15%, Hispanics from 28% to 46%, and Asians 27% to 40%.  

And by talk to I mean talking to them specifically and talking to them generally as Australians about values that they share with you. There is no way a majority of migrants should be voting Labor on the basis of this budget. They understand thrift, they understand pulling your weight, and many of them have had a much closer brush with war or violence than the Treasurer.

Most of them also didn’t come here to be multicultural cyphers on election propaganda. Australia isn’t an island AirBNB, it’s a home they want to be part of and have a stake in.

Pauline Hanson certainly got the memo, but we need others to as well. The more budgets that Jim Chalmers delivers, the worse things are going to get. For all of us.