CAMERON MILNER: Budget backflip kills Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ leadership aspirations

Anthony Albanese’s tax backflip was as predictable as Pauline Hanson’s rise in popularity to become the nation’s preferred PM.

Albanese has always been a jellyback on real reform, earning himself the acronym — AACO — Albanese Always Chickens Out.

It’s no wonder that fed up Australians, when faced with a choice between the deception of Albanese and the weakness of Angus Taylor, instead chose the strength of Hanson.

Also predictable is that the relationship between Albanese and Treasurer Jim Chalmers is totally salvageable after this Budget.

Albo had already constantly briefed against Chalmers and publicly chopped him off at the knees.

Snubbing your economic captain from regular Sunday strategy sessions at the Lodge for the sycophantic company of Penny Wong and Katy Gallagher was just one of many slights from the PM to his Treasurer.

But the feeling is mutual as former Chalmers’ staff tell of their boss putting the PM on speaker phone so he could pull faces while Albanese spoke.

The relationship was already dysfunctional, as Chalmers’ raw talent amplified the absence of any in Albanese.

The dynamic is nothing new. We’ve had Hawke/Keating tensions in the past, Howard had Costello’s measure, Rudd saw Swan as a joke. But Albanese feels deeply threatened by Chalmers.

His insecurity has been on full display and though he finally summoned the political courage to implement Bill Shorten’s housing reforms, this Budget went much, much further.

And the proof of that overreach is the total capitulation last week on CGT and trusts.

The Albanese death tax lasted five weeks before being garroted.

But after lying at every turn, voters can’t trust Albanese not to reintroduce his death tax in time.

This is why Labor is in freefall and the Treasurer has every right to be aggrieved, his prime ministerial aspirations now dead and buried.

Chalmers’ reformist image has forever been soiled by Albanese’s consistent ability to wilt under any pressure.

It’s a tragedy for the Labor Party and also a huge loss for Chalmers’ closest backer, Wayne Swan.

Swan may well have achieved ironic praise as the world’s greatest treasurer in 2008 as he did his best Steve Bradbury impersonation, but Chalmers was his protege and his pet project.

Swan has never hidden his plan to live out his own policy agenda through a Chalmers prime ministership.

He even forgave Chalmers sobbing for forgiveness from Rudd as he swore allegiance to ensure his preselection in Rankin in 2013.

Swan’s criticism of Albanese from the position of ALP president has always been about fighting for Chalmers.

Swan wanted an early election even as Cyclone Alfred bore down on Brisbane to avoid an underdone pre-election Chalmers Budget.

He railed against complacency rather than celebrating Albanese’s emphatic parliamentary numbers. None of his disloyalty has been missed by the Albanistas.

When the Budget was handed down, Swan came out saying it was great house prices were falling even though that meant hard working families were losing money.

Chalmers may well rue not standing up to Albanese more strongly, as this Budget is now officially the worst since Keating’s train wreck reversal of the L-A-W tax cuts of August 1993.

Labor MPs trotted out as foot soldiers to sell the Budget have now been told to turn and run in full retreat.

For Albanese, it doesn’t really matter. He’s always been more focused on records such as time in office, than on governing for Labor.

The challenge for Chalmers is that every MP now gets to question his judgment and have a second view on whether he’s actually that talented.

For so many Labor MPs it’s now firmly ABC: Anyone But Chalmers.

Who will that be?

Mark Butler is making his run with NDIS reforms, Andrew Charlton is charting a whole future economy with AI. Housing Minister Clare O’Neil is clearly a contender.

And let’s not forget Tanya Plibersek’s steady leadership and genuine Labor convictions or Tony Burke’s over-inflated ambitions, despite giving concierge services for ISIS brides.

And that’s just the internal threats to Chalmers’ clear desire to be PM.

Outside there’s One Nation and the orange tsunami about to smash Canberra politics as we’ve known it.

Albanese was tolerated — never loved — by voters. He won the last election as voters’ least worse option.

For Hanson, Taylor and for Chalmers it’s all come down to Albanese’s Budget lies.

Chalmers and Taylor share a common problem.

Albanese has backflipped, making Chalmers an accomplice to his failure.

Albanese’s lies and voter disgust with him has seen voters bypass Taylor completely and go for Hanson.

How did it go so wrong for Jim and Angus?

Given the lies and backflips, how could it not have?

Cameron Milner is a former Queensland Labor State secretary