The Week In Review - Dumb and DIMIA: The Next Chapter

And the saga of DIMIA rolls on, as only the saga of DIMIA can, with Amanda Vanstone grinning for all she's worth as she tears down reams of razor wire from Baxter Detention Centre ... not mentioning that it's actually going to be replaced with an electric fence (it's far more hygienic ...)

In an appalling way, it's very symbolic of the way DIMIA operates - put on a happy face, make a superficial gesture towards fixing a deeply flawed system, under no circumstances actually take responsibility, just cover it with a different sort of wrapping.

On the ABC this week, Vanstone washed her hands of all blame for the wrongful deportation of Vivian Solon. It's true that she was not head of the department when the incident - described by report author Neil Comrie as `catastrophic' - but firstly, she is the head of the department now, making her the one responsible for at least taking the burden of the blame, and secondly, anyone remember a bloke named Philip Ruddock, grinning like a Cheshire Cat all the way to his inevitable knighthood ??? The whole matter is an absolute disgrace

Yesterday's interview with Fran Kelly on Radio National must surely go down as one of the oddest of the many odd interviews Vanstone has held with the ABC (recall for example the infamous Great Eastley Dummy Spit):

FRAN KELLY: And, Senator Amanda Vanstone, the Minister for Immigration joins us now. Minister, welcome.

AMANDA VANSTONE: Uh, welcome. Thank you for welcoming me. Yes. Good.

It gets better. And yes, I heard the interview, and there's no way you can fake someone's phone reception being lousy. Vanstone's phone reception was lousy., as was her attitude to the ABC, as it always is when they put her in an uncomfortable spot - as they should do.

FRAN KELLY: Minister, We're losing your line here, so I'm not sure if you're going through a tunnel or something?

AMANDA VANSTONE: muffled --- not going through a tunnel, I'm in a perfectly clear area.

FRAN KELLY: Oh, OK.

AMANDA VANSTONE: Perfectly clear reception on MY part.

FRAN KELLY: OK, well we're having trouble with you here. Can I just move to the moves you're putting in place to fix this?

AMANDA VANSTONE: Apparently not enough trouble to interrupt me and tell me not to go on with what I'm saying.

FRAN KELLY: Sorry Minister, are you there?

AMANDA VANSTONE: (muffled and cranky) --- oh, I'm here all right.

FRAN KELLY: Minister, I just wanted to ask you about your $230m plan to try and fix this, can you tell us briefly how that will work, what will change things here?

AMANDA VANSTONE: (sarcastically) Ah, so reception is working well enough again!

FRAN KELLY: Just now it is Minister, it's in and out.

AMANDA VANSTONE: (cold as an Eskimo's ring) Well, I'm very pleased. Well, the $230m will make a significant difference. muffled muffle muffle talk to different sections of the department ----

Once again ... oh so symbolic ...