While we usually limit our focus to the traditional media in Australia, today’s National Press Club address contained a piece of intellectual dishonesty so egregious that I simply could not let it pass. Barnaby Joyce was asked where he’d find 3.2 billion dollars to fund the coalition’s climate change policy, take a look at his […]

While we usually limit our focus to the traditional media in Australia, today’s National Press Club address contained a piece of intellectual dishonesty so egregious that I simply could not let it pass.

Barnaby Joyce was asked where he’d find 3.2 billion dollars to fund the coalition’s climate change policy, take a look at his response.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNLkCRgHrbA[/youtube]

Do you see what happened there? Barnaby tried to pretend that $3.2 billion is less than $1,400 million. He actually slipped up at the beginning of his answer and said he had $1.4 billion of Labor spending to cut, before reframing it as $1,400 million, then went on to say he could find 3.2 out of 1400. But he’s not trying to find $3.2 million, out of a possible $1,400 million, he’s trying to find $3.2 billion.

This is one of Senator Joyce’s first major appearances as opposition finance spokesman and he has deliberately tried to fudge some pretty straight forward figures, it does not bode well for the quality of information he’ll supply during the election campaign.

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