Professor Marcia Langton has criticised former prime minister Tony Abbott's new book, accusing him of blending fact and error, evidence and myth, ideology and history to present a Trumpian narrative of Australian democracy. In her analysis, Langton highlights contradictions between Abbott's praise for Viktor Orbán and his claims about Australian democracy, noting that Orbán is accused of dismantling democracy in Hungary.
Langton points to Abbott's speech at the Hungarian CPAC conference, where he expressed hope that 'Trump 2.0' would be more successful than the first term, raising questions about what Abbott considers 'successful'. She argues that the answer lies in white Christian nationalism, a parochial version expounded by the right kind of immigrant, white and British, as Abbott extolls in his speeches.
The book, 'Australia: A History', has been praised by historian Frank Bongiorno, but Langton identifies factual errors, such as attributing the term 'fire-stick farming' to Tim Flannery rather than Geoffrey Blainey. She notes that Blainey wrote the preface, yet the book contains sloppy rhetorical arguments not fully supported by facts.
Langton examines Abbott's treatment of immigration and multiculturalism, citing his use of the FitzGerald report and 1988 Newspoll data showing 77% of respondents believed Asian migration should be slowed. She connects this to the ongoing 'Blainey Debate' about non-white immigration and multiculturalism, which remains polarised in Australia.
