Rudd under Attack - Again!

Mud not the fountain that gave drink to thee. - William Shakespeare

Treasure Peter Costello accuses Opposition Leader Kevin Rudd of initiating the mud-slinging campaign. According to Costello, in an interview with Channel Nine’s Laurie Oakes, it all started with Rudd calling the Prime Minister (and Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer) a liar over the AWB wheat scandal, Iraq’s possession of WMD, and the child overboard incident.

The Government has stepped up their attacks on Rudd’s personal integrity by evoking something near the themes of political ambition in the Shakespearean tragedies of Macbeth, King Lear, and the Tempest.

The daughter of the late farm owner, Aubrey Low, is accusing Rudd of muddying the reputation of her family, suggesting that, “He's dragged our father's proud reputation through the mud time and time again.”

Rudd has on occasion publicly made reference to a childhood event on this farm in which his father had worked. After his father died Rudd says that his mother was kicked off the farm, and that his family had to sleep in the family car and get by on charity. This was, Rudd explains, the impetus behind his political ambition.

Downer said this morning that, “Mr. Rudd is one of those people who would say absolutely anything to advance his own personal interest”. And that now he is getting into conflict with people over the truth about his past. In Rudd’s defense, Shadow Treasure Wayne Swan said, “you wonder how low these dirty attacks can continue.”

Aubrey Low Kevin Rudd