George Brandis would no doubt like to be attorney-general, the first law officer of Australia, in the next Coalition government.

Senator Brandis is a barrister and a senior counsel, although the latter appointment was the subject of harsh criticism given it was awarded to him six years after he gave up active practice at the Queensland Bar.

But Senator Brandis's conduct in the Craig Thomson affair provides cause for concern about what sort of attorney-general he would be if the opportunity arose. Senator Brandis has pursed the ALP backbencher Thomson with a vigour that is disturbing on a number of levels.

Firstly, there are the telephone calls to ministers and police commissioners. Senator Brandis called New South Wales Attorney-General Greg Smith, a fellow Liberal, in early August. Smith says that Brandis was alerting him to a forthcoming media story which would reveal Brandis had asked the New South Wales DPP to look at the Thomson matter.

Then a couple of weeks later Brandis was on the phone again, this time to speak with New South Wales Police Minister Michael Gallacher to again alert him to the fact that Brandis would be sending a brief to the Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione. Gallacher himself alerted Scipione to look out for the Brandis brief.

Then there was Brandis's call to Australian Federal Police Commissioner Tony Negus last week. Brandis apparently wanted to clarify whether the AFP would be investigating the matter.

http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/2860776.html

The Federal Opposition says it may consider changes to racial discrimination laws following the Federal Court's ruling against political commentator Andrew Bolt.

The Herald Sun columnist was found guilty of breaching the Racial Discrimination Act by vilifying a group of Indigenous Australians in two articles he wrote in 2009.

Shadow attorney-general George Brandis says he is not questioning the judgment, but says the law as interpreted by the court places an unacceptable limitation on political freedom.

"Regardless of the niceties of the case, the fact is today in Australia... journalists, commentators, ordinary citizens are not free to make critical and unpopular remarks in the course of ordinary political exchange," Senator Brandis told Sky News.

"I think that is a terrible thing"

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-09-29/opposition-says-bolt-ruling-limits-political-freedom-/3040590

Oh yes George, let's change the act so you and your mob of ritewingnutters can be disgustingly racist... Excellent... And if you, people of different colour skin, are in the firing line of unpopular political comments from the ritewingnutters, go bury yourself... or go paint yourself white. But don't object to the victimisation.

see toon at top...