It is no revelation that an increasingly unabashed discourse of racism, nativist superiority and religious intolerance floats on ignorance.

But for Pauline Hanson – a parliamentary leader for whom the expansion of these prejudices is the central project – being outed as bigotry's uncritical conduit was less revelation and more like hitting a brick wall. At speed.

The collision of prejudice and evidence came late on Thursday, once Hanson had finally deigned to come to Canberra to meet her core responsibilities in the "house of review" – namely, scrutinising the executive's taxing and spending priorities via budget estimates committees of the Senate.