Quotes from David Marr

He hasn't reneged on Catholicism entirely. Pope Francis he thinks impressive: "A remarkable guy. A breath of fresh air." Catholic social teaching is still in his head, along with the "golden rule" every boy was taught at Xavier: "It was at the heart of the Jesuit call to be a 'man for others.' And I have spent my working life, both representing workers and as parliamentarian, trying to measure up to this standard of compassion and empathy.

A first bill for the abolition of compulsory student union fees failed in 2004 but it was back as soon as the government won control of the Senate.

But the bill was also loathed by the National Party because it would drain university sporting clubs of cash. Out in the bush, those clubs and that money mattered.

Shorten is one of that interesting pack of politicians born of determined mothers and largely absent fathers. There are so many: Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and Tony Blair are distinguished alumni. Among recent Labor leaders in Australia are Rudd, Albanese and Shorten. Among the qualities these men share are self-discipline, boundless ambition and an appetite for approval on a national scale.

I fundamentally believe that if you empower people, you can move mountains. I fundamentally believe that if people are given a fair go, the world's a better place, people are happier individually and society progresses.

Where Abbott was most himself, Shorten beat a retreat. "For Labor, national security is – and always will be – above politics," he says but what he means is that Labor will buckle whenever the government declares security is at stake.

He acknowledges that endorsing push-backs at the National Conference in July was only the latest in a long line of catch-ups with the Coalition's refugee policies. But he is confident Labor won't be forced to go any further: the worst has been reached. But isn't that what Labor always says? "Time will tell but I know that if we want more humanity in our system, I'll do a better job than the other fellow.

There was no factional discipline in the drift towards Rudd. Individuals were making up their own minds. In some worlds, that's how politics works.

He invaded the Women's Room with a Channel Ten news crew and cub reporter Mike Munro. The issue was voluntary fees. The point was ridicule. When asked to leave the room, Abbott declared for the cameras: "This is a man's room for the moment.

They see a lot of pit bull pups at the RSPCA, her handler tells me. Why? "Because young guys have pit bulls and they are idiots and they don't desex their dogs.

The press has given up saying so but these two men are denouncing what they once supported: a price on carbon and an emissions trading scheme.

faction warfare erupted in Victoria. They do politics differently there. Wars are fought in the name of peace. Explosives are packed under the foundations of the Labor Party in the name of stability. They call the wreckage left after these brawls rejuvenation. The wonder is that Victoria delivers any Labor talent to Canberra and remains, decade after decade, a stronghold of the party.

Abbott joined the union, the Australian Journalists' Association. He led a little strike at the Bulletin and opposed a big strike at the Australian.

They had the shattered look of people given what they'd wished for.

After announcing the scheme, Abbott sought with some charm the absolution of his startled party. "Sometimes," he said, "it is better to ask forgiveness rather than permission.

News Limited, which was the bridge on which this American dialect crossed into Australian public life. Decades

Abbott thought Turnbull's leadership was terminal at that moment. What he was hearing was a bar-room brawl between his leader and the guru of a great swathe of the Liberal Party. This was no way to deal with Alan Jones. Turnbull wasn't showing the necessary respect. It would cause immense damage.

the far right where politicians are spending so much energy harvesting votes these days is not Australia. Nearly all of us are somewhere else, scattered around the centre, waiting for a government that will take this good, prosperous, generous country into the future.

That he won Warringah with a single speech is a myth. Not in living memory had there been such an open, aggressive and competitive Liberal pre-selection contest as there was in Warringah in 1993.

Grey faces in libraries around the world mask inner lives of considerable emotional volatility. We know

They were wary of each other at first, but in time formed a tight alliance that lasted twenty years until it came unstuck over the execution of Julia Gillard.

when you haven't got the numbers, be vicious. It's called minority politics.

He stumbled and told the truth one night: workers had lost protections under WorkChoices.

What he's about is destroying a government. Looking like a prime minister in waiting is a second-order consideration.