Politicians don't want a meddling president

Reflecting on The Queen of Australia's representative, the Governor-General Quentin Bryce, Michelle Grattan, The Age's political editor, could not help regretting the lukewarm support a republic enjoys in Australia's ruling class.

"... it is unlikely Australians would accept anything other than a popularly elected president. This is the model hated by many politicians (and Malcolm Turnbull in his pre-politician days when he headed the republic movement). They fear an elected president, unless the office's powers were very precisely codified, could in extreme circumstances become a competing power centre to the prime minister.

"Maybe the complexity of these issues is one more reason why the Rudd Government has been notably slow to put further flesh on Labor's commitment to a republic. Nearly a year on we are still waiting for its answers to ideas — of which support for a republic was one of the most favoured — to come out of the 2020 summit, a gathering that at the time seemed quite important to the PM."

I received the link to this article with the remark: "i like the comment about how the pollies hate the idea of an elected pres...hahahah ...so much for democracy .... "

Interesting that Michelle Grattan referred to Malcolm Turnbull "in his pre-politician days when he headed the republic movement" as if it was a garden club or a senior citizens group. So the republic movement was no political organisation, Michelle Grattan?