By Jim O’Toole on assignment
James Ashby, Pauline Hanson’s right hand man, has started a smear campaign against Katters Australian party claiming it would form government with Labor in the event of a hung parliament after the October 26 election.
James should remember the adage, “people who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.”
Ashby is joined at the hip with One Nation spokesman and candidate Damian Huxam who posted a media release claiming KAP would form government with Labor.
When read more closely it turns out KAP leader Robbie Katter said nothing of the sort. On ABC Radio Premier Stephen Miles reached out to Katter hoping the party would consider forming government in the event of a hung parliament.
Katter was not involved in any way. The somewhat upset KAP leader said there was “no way” he would join with Labor.
This is another of Ashby’s lies that will soon return to bite him on his treasured posterior.. His sexual harassment claim against former House of Representatives Speaker Peter Slipper for whom Ashby worked in 2012 has resurfaced.
Although gay, Ashby allegedly rejected slimy Slipper’s advances.
Ashby took court action in 2012 against Slipper who denied the claim and the case was later withdrawn.
While chasing Slipper, Ashby racked up $4.5 million in legal fees.
In 2018 Ashby sought an ‘Act of Grace’ payment from the federal government to pay his whopping $4,537,000 legal bill an amount which can be provided by the finance minister if deemed appropriate due to special circumstances.
The request was refused. Cairns News has been left wondering how Ashby, Pauline Hanson’s Chief of Staff, can pay off such a huge bill when earning $150,000 a year?
It is well known Pauline’s God is money and according to insiders there is no way she would have paid it for him.
KAP Leader Robbie Katter questioned why One Nation, having similar values to his party would attack him on the eve of an election. It was only six months ago that talks were held between the two parties trying to establish a coalition. Pauline soon killed it when she told KAP officials she would join her party on the condition she was “the boss.”
“It could be connected to the defection of state member, Stephen Andrew, to KAP,” Mr Katter said.
Andrew, the Member for Mirani was One Nation’s only state member and is a capable performer who has worked closely with KAP state parliamentarians for the past three years or more.
Andrew deserted One Nation a month ago because he had not been supported by the party for more than three years after having an argument with Pauline Hanson early in his term.
Pauline’s well-known modus operandi is “my way or the highway” and this seems a perfect example.
Ashby is running in the Central Queensland seat of Keppel. We believe readers should send this article to friends and relatives in Yeppoon or Emu Park in the Keppel electorate.
Cairns News believes Ashby will direct his preferences to the Liberals.
It should be noted Cairns News in no way believes Senator Malcolm Roberts is involved in Ashby and Huxam’s smear.
Below is an article researched by Cairns News staff in 2017:
From 2017
Pauline Hanson has the national political arena clamouring at her feet but there is an odium of dejavu as many pundits fear the reborn party will implode yet again.
The public sacking of four candidates over minor indiscretions has marred a perfect start to a public resurgence of anti-Islam sentiment, a policy effectively harnessed by Hanson.
Her burgeoning loyalist movement has been refuelled in part by a suspected Islam-motivated killing of six pedestrians in Melbourne two weeks ago when a rabid Greek, allegedly a latter day Muslim convert driving a car, apparently mowed down numerous people walking along the footpath near Flinders Street Railway Station.
The murderous driver, Dimitrious “Jimmy” Gargasoulas, was filmed doing donuts and yelling obscenities (some witnesses say he was mentioning Allah) at an intersection before driving off along a footpath at speed wiping out five innocent shoppers and injuring another 15.
One Nation’s electoral stocks are bolstered each time such incidents occur, but it seems the party’s stunning performance could be stymied by personalities.
The perceived fly in the Hanson ointment is one James Hunter Ashby, a former Liberal staffer for disgraced former Speaker of the House of Representatives Peter Slipper.
Ashby is now Hanson’s closest advisor and pilot, who has been accused of totally dominating her, from media appearances, speeches, dealing with candidates and policies to much of her personal life.
One Nation’s erstwhile party president Ian Nelson has been widely acclaimed for holding the party together during its public upheavals over the past 20 years.
This time around, Nelson was pushed right out and remains bitter about Ashby.
Many supporters feel Ashby is just another Liberal ‘white ant’ sent by Liberal and Nationals mandarins to subvert the party and Hanson, in a similar mode to David Oldfield, another advisor sacked by Hanson 14 years ago. Oldfield then won a seat in the NSW Upper House.
In 2002 Health Minister Tony Abbott and Liberal Treasurer Peter Costello’s father in law, Peter Coleman bankrolled a legal challenge against Hanson that eventually saw her jailed allegedly for electoral funding fraud in 2003 by the Queensland Labor Government of megalomaniac Premier, Peter Beattie
Some supporters claim Hanson is mesmerised by Ashby, and describe him as a particularly dangerous and volatile character with longstanding links to the Liberal Party — one who loves to make things blow up, such as throwing mobile phones around when having an argument.
Ashby stands accused by Nelson of blackmailing One Nation candidates into buying election material from his print shop or face losing pre-selection.
This is a serious charge that could be investigated by the Queensland Electoral Commission.
This self-appointed One Nation gatekeeper allegedly vets all email and media traffic to Pauline Hanson and the party and has been accused of taking over the personal Facebook site of sacked Cairns candidate Peter Rogers.
Rogers said he had an abusive call from Ashby when he was sacked from the party for having a reference on his site to the alleged 1996 Port Arthur massacre.
It is widely known this incident was a government sponsored psychological operation when 35 people allegedly were shot by a long haired gunman, now proven not to be Martin Bryant.
It is also known within party circles that in 1999 Pauline Hanson was thoroughly briefed about the Port Arthur subterfuge. In fact when she mentioned it to the media at the time she was pilloried by News Ltd, Fairfax and the ABC.
Ashby would do well to ask senate President Stephen Parry about his role in preparing for Port Arthur when he was an undertaker in Tasmania during 1996.
After several years of investigation into “Ashbygate” by Independent Australia political correspondent Dr Martin Hirst, culminating in Ross Jones’ outstanding book of the same name , it clearly showed that, while working for Speaker Peter Slipper, Ashby was also working undercover as an agent of the Liberal Party to undermine and destroy him. This he achieved in spectacular style.
In a similar ploy, the Spy Catcher, Malcolm Turnbull has been accused by One Nation party members of assigning Liberal Party mole James Ashby to infiltrate and destroy One Nation
Once an admirer of Hanson for what she had achieved and what she had been through as a result of her electoral success, Member for Kennedy Bob Katter said he is most wary of James Ashby and is critical of Hanson for abandoning WA One Nation senator Rod Culleton, no doubt on the advice of Ashby.
Katter says if Senator Culleton is thrown out of the senate over the loss of a $7 key then the Liberals and One Nation do not get to choose his replacement.
“It goes to the number two on the ballot who is a One Nation True Believer, not of the new, ‘James Ashby (Liberal) One Nation’ that we see today,” Mr Katter said.
“The staggering injustice of what has been done to Senator Culleton makes it legally impossible for him to defend himself… His tiny little pockets against the Government acting with the support of his One Nation party leadership.
“The President of the Senate with the support of One Nation has taken away Senator Culleton’s most basic rights to appeal by having his bank accounts frozen. They have effectively killed his ability to appeal.
“It’s clear now that while the Liberals could count on One Nation doing as they’re told on the four burning issues,
- For the ‘Bash up the workers’ bill (ACCC),
- For the ‘Bash up the farmers’ bill (Backpacker’s Tax),
- For the Sale of Kidman to Gina Rinehart and Shanghai CRED,
- Failure to push for a Royal Commission into the banking industry.
“Senator Culleton has been a vote we can count on for these four key heartland issues.”
Hanson and Ashby so far have refused to talk to Katter but this rejection will prove to be the Achilles heel of One Nation in Queensland.
They do not realise that the culmination of ten years hard work by Katter has effectively torn down the bona fides of the two party system of government.
He has been relentless in his campaign to show up the many faults of duopoly policies such as free trade, exporting manufacturing overseas, asset sales, foreign ownership and now he will introduce a mirror bill to the Trump-styled visa ban on Muslims entering Australia at the February sittings of Federal Parliament.
Hanson owes her resurgence to the tremendous wakeup call engendered by Bob Katter and State Members Robbie Katter and Shane Knuth.
Katter Jnr and Knuth have done a tremendous job with holding the balance of power according to retired, three- term, One Nation MP Rosa Lee Long of Atherton, FNQ.
“They have shown what can be done for their electorates by having this power,” Ms Lee Long said.
This week Shane Knuth rejected any possibility of him shifting his allegiance to Pauline Hanson, in spite of three LNP members jumping ship.
Last year Hanson promised KAP that One Nation would not run against either state member.
It remains to be seen if Ashby will support Hanson on her pledge.
(One Nation in 2024 is running candidates against all sitting KAP members)
The duo will soon discover that Katters Australia Party preferences will be essential to win seats north of Brisbane.
Similarly there are northern seats KAP could win with the aid of One Nation preferences.
Unless KAP and One Nation get together to keep the main parties out of Queensland, Ashby by design will allow the Liberals to take government with the aid of One Nation preferences.
Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce, not widely known for sharing his intelligent views on politics, said last week: “Ashby is only slightly less-dodgy than Slipper.”
A definitive investigation by contributing independent journalists writing for SOS News has added to the ‘Ashbygate’ crisis that seems set to derail Pauline Hanson and her now lifelong quest to get the country back on track.
Outsiders looking in believe Pauline is again doomed to disaster if Ashby continues on his past and present form and as such we present a more detailed analysis of why party members should remove Ashby from his role as the only advisor to Pauline Hanson.
Pauline reiterates she is her own person. Then she should demonstrate it.
