Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has admitted that unless the words coming from his mouth are scripted, that voters cannot trust him to tell the truth.
Tony Abbott told The 7.30 Report last night that he will often say things that are not ‘absolutely correct’ in the heat of the moment and these should not be confused with scripted and considered comments.
“I know politicians are going to be judged on everything they say, but sometimes in the heat of discussion you go a little bit further than you would if it was an absolutely calm, considered, prepared, scripted remark.
“Which is one of the reasons why the statements that need to be taken absolutely as gospel truth are those carefully prepared, scripted remarks.”
“All of us when we are in the heat of verbal combat, so to speak, will sometimes say things that go a little bit further,” Mr Abbott said.
Tony Abbott then went on to make ambiguous references to how people can know whether he is telling the truth or not, worsening the train wreck of an interview with Kerry O’Brien.
“Most of us know when we’re talking to people or when we’re listening to people, I think we know when we can put absolute weight on what’s being said and when it’s just the give and take of standard conversation,” he said.
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has struggled since dropping support for the ETS, with the Labor Leader’s spokesman quick to jump on the ‘You can’t trust Tony Abbott’ bandwagon.
”Mr Abbott has now confirmed you cannot trust what he says because some things are real and some things are not real,” a spokesman for the Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, told the SMH.
”There are two Tony Abbotts – and you’ll never know which Tony Abbott is talking, even in Parliament – the scripted Tony, or the Tony Abbott swept away by the heat of discussion.”
Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard stayed on message to the ABC “He is basically telling you that there are two Tonys. There is apparently Gospel Truth Tony and then there is Phoney Tony,” Ms Gillard said.