Anthony Albanese’s resistance to calling a national royal commission in the wake of Bondi is nearly impossible to comprehend.
Some would argue a benign explanation – that he misjudged the national mood and has dug himself into a hole. Others think he may fear what an inquiry might turn up, in terms of his government’s failures in combatting the spread of antisemitism.
The calls for a federal royal commission are now reaching a roar. The pressure was palpable at Sunday night’s memorial service at Bondi, where Albanese was booed. He’d offered to speak, but organisers decided that could produce an unseemly reaction.