If you missed the program, host Karl Stefanovic chatted to the Morrisons about a range of topics from their high school romance (ew, Jesus, gross) to just some of the long list of criticisms the PM has faced in his tenure.
The 20-minute-long segment reeked of humanising a disgraced leader moments before an election that could decide his political career. But the bigger problem with it was that Morrison had Jenny speak on his behalf.
She recalled being shocked when she heard about Brittany Higgins‘s and other staffer’s alleged experience with sexual harassment in Parliament. She slammed the question at the National Press Club about those alleged texts about Morrison from former NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian. And she made a weird throwaway comment about former Australian of the Year Grace Tame for snubbing Morrison in that iconically relatable photo.
Who on earth advised Jenny and Scott Morrison that it would be a political master stroke to take a cheap shot at Grace Tame on #60minutes #auspol pic.twitter.com/BM1GAzYJlX
— Bagel (@underwhelmedtbh) February 13, 2022
OMG Jenny said #GraceTame has no manners or respect. How fucking rude. Read the room Jenny! She’s digging a bigger fuckin hole for him and it’s bloody hilarious from where I’m sitting #60minutes #60Mins
— smiling assassin (@smilingassass11) February 13, 2022
When Jenny is asked about an alleged rape in Parliament House she mentions 'problem solving'. Very odd. No mention of an investigation just a problem that needs to be solved. #60minutes
— Lilybet de Rosè (@sukiyaki_1) February 13, 2022
Jenny Morrison was used in the 60 Minutes interview to defend Scott Morrison from the criticisms he’s faced as Prime Minister. It was painfully obvious. But the optics of a woman responding on behalf of her husband regarding questions around his leadership failures — particularly regarding women’s issues and in light of criticism from female victims of sexual abuse — felt extremely on the nose.
It discredited the work of incredible women like Higgins and Tame who have been pushing for an end to sexual harassment in Parliament and have fought for female voices like theirs to be heard and respected in the federal institution in the past 12 months.
The Guardian’s Matilda Boseley and others pointed out the tactless optics of this interview on Twitter as the segment aired: “Anyone else feel that starting the interview with a woman apologising for a man’s mistakes is a bit on the nose for this administration?”
Anyone else feel that starting the interview with a woman apologising for a man’s mistakes is a bit on the nose for this administration? #60minutes
— Matilda Boseley (@MatildaBoseley) February 13, 2022
“It’s so subtle isn’t it, having Jenny tell us it’s about manners so that we think Grace Tame is the problem, the uncivilised one,” signaled Asylum Seeker Resource Centre founder Kon Karapanagiotidis.
“Yet Grace is the hero of this story and Morrison it’s villain. No amount of spin changes this. One stands for truth, the other bereft of it.”
It’s so subtle isn’t it, having Jenny tell us it’s about manners, so that we think Grace Tame is the problem, the uncivilised one. Yet Grace is the hero of this story & Morrison it’s villain. No amount of spin changes this. One stands for truth, the other bereft of it #60minutes
— Kon Karapanagiotidis (@Kon__K) February 13, 2022
Others like comedian Dan Illic compared Morrison delegating answering Stefanovic’s questions to Jenny with the way he has delegated the responsibility and response towards the COVID-19 pandemic to the state governments.
Scott Morrison is delegating responsibility for this profile piece to Jenny like a Prime Minister delegates COVID19 response to the States. #60minutes
— Dan Ilic (@danilic) February 13, 2022
When Morrison loses the election will he be blaming it all on Jen because her 60 Minutes performance wasn't up to scratch?
— Captain Nemo's Left Sock. YMMV. GSPs rock.???? ???????? (@RuncibleH) February 13, 2022
This might be the most sickening thing I've seen on TV. Are the Morrison's really playing the victim card? Absolutely no self awareness from these people. How could they think this was a good idea? #60minutes #60mins
— Ribbo (@Ribbontrain) February 13, 2022
It was frustrating but not really surprising that Morrison and his political advisors tried to use his wife to bolster his political defense. But it was still was very telling of how he viewed the criticism against him.
Morrison later in the program attempted to play the ukulele in front of his wife, kids and Stefanovic. The scene was uncomfortable to watch as is but particularly out of pocket because the ukulele is commonly associated with Hawaii AKA where the Prime Flopster fucked off on a holiday to when the country was on fire in January 2020.
It did not give what the Morrisons thought it would give. It felt even more tactless by the end of the interview when the Morrisons joked with Stefanovic that his comments that they might book a holiday to Hawaii if they lose the election were “too soon”.
But again none of what we saw in Scott Morrison’s 60 Minutes interview surprised us. It just proved my theory that he doesn’t appear to really care what people with views different from him have to say and is focused on marketing himself as the husband of a wife and two kids instead of the Prime Minister who continuously failed to be there for the nation he was elected to lead when he was supposed to.
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