We live in a populist age. But the key to leadership these days is to exploit populism but not become its victim. This invites a judgment about the conservative, notably the populist conservative, wing of the party and its highly vocal media supporters.

This group loses virtually every battle of ideas it fights, border protection and the voice excluded. It is obsessed about its own obsessions, weak on Australian history, out of touch with how Australia has changed, incompetent in policy formation, brilliant at alienating sector after sector in the community, inept in understanding cultural power, disastrously bedazzled by Trump’s success – and, in its relentless espousal of conservatism as the defining ethic of the Liberal Party, it will consign the party to permanent opposition, if not worse.

The LNP has cornered the market in unpopular popularism.

The right focus on mean and nasty. On the right this is very popular.

Looking back you have things like - the offshore solution,  the children overboard lie, Children in detention SA, the waterfront disgrace, boat people, the Aboriginal intervention etc. All very popular with the right at the time. As mean and nasty as you can get the better.

Not looking good liberal voters , boomers are dead or dying with conservative views ... do the liberals swing further to the right ?

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Funny how Trump has damaged right wing politics around the world. Many politicians of the right don't understand that getting on the Trump bus is killing them. The trump bus is built on ideocracy and authoritarianism. MAGA isn't loyal to the right it is only aligned to Trump.

US politicians on the right believe they can inherit MAGA but the reality is that without Trump MAGA very likely will pack their bags their flags and their silly MAGA hats and go home never to vote again.