They go after Gladys Liu because she's Chinese
As Australia's 2022 federal election campaign intensifies, the contest has turned as much on the character of political combat as on the substance of policy. In Alice Springs — itself a place of deep historical tension — Prime Minister Scott Morrison faced protesters and pivoted to accusations of racism against Labor's advertising targeting MP Gladys Liu, while both parties competed to demonstrate social conscience through spending pledges on Indigenous health, veterans, and youth crime. All of this unfolded against the quiet, persistent toll of a pandemic that has now claimed nearly 7,000 Australian lives, a grief that continues even as the political theatre commands the foreground.
- Morrison arrived in Alice Springs to megaphones and anti-fracking protesters, a chaotic scene that set the tone for a day dominated by attack rather than vision.
- Labor's targeted digital advertising campaign against Gladys Liu — citing fake news, returned foreign donations, and misleading election signage — has struck a nerve, given her razor-thin 0.5% margin in the Victorian seat of Chisholm.
- Morrison and Frydenberg fired back hard, calling the ads racist and dishonest, arguing Labor was singling Liu out because of her Chinese heritage — a charge Labor rejected as deflection from legitimate scrutiny.
- Both parties attempted to reclaim moral ground through policy: Labor announced $519 million for veterans and $111 million for Indigenous health, while Morrison pledged $14 million for youth crime prevention in the Northern Territory.
- Behind the campaign noise, 17 more Australians died from Covid-19 on Sunday alone, with the national pandemic toll approaching 7,000 — a reminder that the stakes of governance extend far beyond the daily theatre of electioneering.
Scott Morrison's Sunday in Alice Springs began with the sound of megaphones — anti-fracking protesters making sure their voices carried over his. It was an apt overture for a day when the Prime Minister devoted more energy to attacking Labor than to outlining his own vision.
The target of Morrison's criticism was Labor's digital advertising campaign against Liberal MP Gladys Liu, whose Victorian seat of Chisholm she holds by fewer than 1,100 votes. The ads, running across major social media platforms, catalogued a series of controversies: fake news spread on Chinese messaging apps, $300,000 in donations returned after donors were flagged as a national security risk, and election day signage designed to mimic the colours of the Australian Electoral Commission. Morrison called it 'sewer politics,' accusing Labor of targeting Liu because of her Chinese ethnicity. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg went further, labelling the campaign a 'desperate, dishonest, racist attack ad' and noting Liu's distinction as the first Chinese-born member of the House of Representatives.
Morrison also revived scrutiny of Labor deputy leader Richard Marles, who in 2019 had shared an advance copy of a speech with the Chinese embassy. Marles maintains it was a routine courtesy and that nothing was changed. Morrison framed it as evidence of Labor's compromised stance on foreign interference.
Labor, meanwhile, was making its own pitch through policy. Senator Penny Wong announced a $519 million veterans support package in the Northern Territory, while MP Mark Butler unveiled $111 million targeting Indigenous health — specifically chronic kidney disease, which affects Indigenous Australians at four times the national rate, and rheumatic heart disease, from which Indigenous children are 55 times more likely to die. Morrison countered with a $14 million youth crime prevention plan and $3.4 million in mental health services for young people transitioning to adult care.
Through all of it, the pandemic continued its quiet accumulation. Seventeen Australians died on Sunday, bringing the national toll to nearly 7,000. More than 31,000 new cases were recorded across the country, with hospitals in New South Wales alone carrying nearly 1,600 patients. The election campaign has moved to the foreground, but the pandemic has not gone away.
Scott Morrison arrived in Alice Springs on Sunday to a wall of noise—anti-fracking protesters drowning out his words with megaphones, their frustration audible even to reporters standing meters away. It was a fitting backdrop for a day when the Prime Minister would spend much of his energy attacking his political opponents rather than discussing policy.
The focus of Morrison's ire was Labor's advertising blitz targeting Liberal MP Gladys Liu. The campaign, running across Facebook, Google, YouTube, and Instagram, posed a simple question to voters: "What do we know about Liberal Gladys Liu?" The answer, according to Labor's ads, included a list of controversies. Liu had spread fake news on Chinese messaging apps. She and the Liberal Party had been forced to return $300,000 in donations after the donors were flagged as a national security risk. Her campaign had used election day signage designed to mimic the colors of the Australian Electoral Commission—a tactic Labor characterized as an attempt to trick voters.
Liu holds the Victorian seat of Chisholm by the thinnest of margins: 0.5 percent, a victory of fewer than 1,100 votes in 2019. Labor sees the seat as winnable, and the advertising campaign is part of that strategy. But Morrison saw something darker in the approach. Speaking in Alice Springs, he accused Labor of targeting Liu because of her ethnicity. "They go after Gladys Liu because she's Chinese," he said. "They're engaged in what I think is a sewer tactic here." Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, himself under pressure in his own seat of Kooyong, went further, calling the campaign "a desperate, dishonest, racist attack ad" and noting that Liu was the first Chinese-born person to sit in the House of Representatives.
Morrison also revived criticism of Labor deputy leader Richard Marles, who in 2019 had provided the Chinese embassy in Canberra with an advance copy of a speech he planned to deliver to Beijing Foreign Studies University. Marles has said the move was a courtesy and that none of his remarks were altered. Morrison used the episode to paint Labor as compromised on matters of foreign interference. "It's a desperate ploy by a Labor Party opposition who has been caught out actually running their own policies and speeches past the Chinese government," he said.
Meanwhile, Labor was making its own case to voters through policy announcements. Senator Penny Wong, campaigning in the Northern Territory, announced a $519 million plan to strengthen services for veterans and their families, including expanded family support programs and employment initiatives. South Australian MP Mark Butler unveiled a $111 million health spending package focused on closing gaps in Indigenous health outcomes. The plan targeted two conditions: chronic kidney disease, which affects Indigenous Australians at four times the rate of non-Indigenous Australians, and rheumatic heart disease, a condition Butler described as a disease of poverty. Indigenous Australians are 15 times more likely to contract rheumatic heart disease than their non-Indigenous counterparts, and Indigenous children are 55 times more likely to die from it.
Morrison, for his part, announced a $14 million plan to combat youth crime in the Northern Territory, coupled with $3.4 million in mental health support services to help young people transition into adult care. He linked job creation to crime prevention, arguing that employment builds hope, community, self-respect, and confidence.
Beneath the campaign theater, Australia's pandemic death toll continued to climb. On Sunday, 17 deaths were recorded across the country, bringing the total since the start of the pandemic to nearly 7,000. New South Wales accounted for eight of the deaths, Victoria two, South Australia five, Western Australia one (a teenager), Queensland three, and Tasmania one. The ACT and Northern Territory recorded no deaths. Across the country, 31,000 new cases were reported, with hospitalizations and ICU admissions continuing to strain health systems. New South Wales alone had 1,588 people hospitalized and 64 in intensive care. The pandemic, though no longer dominating headlines as it once had, remained a steady presence in the background of the election campaign.
Notable Quotes
They're engaged in what I think is a sewer tactic here.— Scott Morrison, on Labor's advertising campaign
Indigenous children are 55 times more likely to die of rheumatic heart disease than their non-Indigenous counterparts in this country.— Mark Butler, Labor MP, on health disparities
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does Morrison think the Labor ads are racist? Liu's past is documented—the fake news, the donations, the signage.
Because she's being singled out, in his view, for her ethnicity. He's saying Labor wouldn't run the same ads against a white MP with the same record. Whether that's true is the argument.
But Labor is just pointing to facts, aren't they?
Yes. But facts can be deployed selectively. The question is whether Labor chose Liu because the facts were damaging, or because she's Chinese. Morrison is betting voters will see the latter.
And Marles? Why bring that up now?
To muddy the waters. To suggest Labor itself has compromised relationships with China. It's a counterattack—if you're going to question our people's judgment, we'll question yours.
Does it work?
In an election, maybe. It shifts the conversation away from Liu's actual record and onto Labor's motives. That's the whole point.
What about the health announcements? Why are both parties suddenly focused on Indigenous health and veterans?
Because those are swing constituencies in marginal seats. The Northern Territory matters. Indigenous health is a chronic failure both parties want to claim they'll fix. It's real policy, but it's also electoral math.