Suddenly, Albo’s a hard-nosed patriot (with an acute scent for votes)

March 1, 2026 — 5:00am

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Anthony Albanese has never been so sure of anything in his life: he does not want the ISIS women and children to come to Australia. As he hit the airwaves on the issue over the past week and a bit, it struck me that I’ve never before heard him so certain.

Once upon a time, when a politician spoke with such unadulterated confidence, it was time to sit up and listen. It would have indicated deep-seated conviction. Now my first instinct is to check the polls.

New polling shop Fox & Hedgehog confirmed my suspicions. A national poll out last Sunday found that 64 per cent of voters oppose or strongly oppose allowing the return of “the wives and family members of Australian men who flew to the Middle East to fight for ISIS”. Now, it is of course statistically likely that the prime minister is genuinely among the slightly lower, but still majority, 56 per cent of Labor voters who oppose or strongly oppose the repatriation. But it can’t hurt that he knows the Australian people are overwhelmingly with him.

Since Australians have started to worry more about social cohesion, Albanese has been shifting his stance. He’s begun to champion patriotism (with “progressive” as a modifier, to make it less scary) and updated his usage of “social cohesion” to imply integration. One of his ministers even defended Australia Day in a public speech made this week. Yes, even if it continues to be held on the current date. I’ve got whiplash. This is a massive........

© The Sydney Morning Herald