Published by Punter Konrad & Punter James
<p>Welcome to the Punters Politics podcast, making politics simple for the everyday punter.</p> <p>Join Everyday Punter's Konrad & James each week as they expose the hidden agendas, break down the odds stacked against us and explore a new way to do politics.</p> <p>Power to the punters.</p>
Listen on Apple PodcastsThis week, Punter Konrad brings you two massive ideas Australia could implement right now that would make everyone's lives better, cheaper, and fairer, but probably won't happen because the corporate lobbyists and media machine will do everything they can to stop it. We break down why legendary finance journalist Alan Kohler thinks nationalising childcare is the only way to fix the broken system where we subsidise private profits while parents pay exorbitant fees for lower quality care, how economist Cameron Murray explains why a variable royalty on gas that scales with the market price would lock in billions during booms without letting the lobbyists unwind it during busts, and why both of these solutions are common sense until the corporate media gets their filthy mitts on them and turns them into culture war fights to protect billionaire profits over punter wellbeing. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)
This week, we sit down with legendary Australian journalist Ray Martin for a raw, unfiltered conversation about media, power, and whether everyday punters can actually change anything. We break down why corporate media is consolidating while trust is collapsing, how billionaires use newspapers to protect their real businesses, whether the ABC is truly independent or just responding to Murdoch's agenda, and why Ray thinks social media might be better than the old system despite AI and disinformation running rampant. We get into why politicians still suck up to Murdoch even when he attacks them, how gas companies use scare tactics to protect their rip off contracts, whether Aussies are too afraid to challenge authority despite hating tall poppies, and why Ray's advice after 60 years in journalism comes down to three words: have a go. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)
This week, we team up with Chas Licciardello and Dr. Dave Smith from the ABC's Planet America podcast to run through exactly what Princess Pauline is hoping to import from the US after her cozy Mar-a-Lago visits with Trump and Gina. We play the corruption speed round, where Chaz and Dr. Dave race through Trump's greatest hits. We break down why American political scientists are jealous of Australia's system, what it means when Pauline plasters Trump all over her website saying she wants his action and style, and why punters should be very worried about what happens when our potential opposition leader starts taking notes from the world's most corrupt democracy. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)
This week, punter favourite and self-described people's economist Gary's Economics joins us from the UK to break down why you're getting poorer, who's getting richer, and what we can actually do about it. We get into wealth taxes, the propaganda machine protecting billionaires, why every government will eventually have to choose between taxing the rich or gutting your public services, and why the solution might be more simple than you think. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Every time the world's biggest corporations look at Australia, we lose — our gas, our minerals, now our land and water for their AI data centres. The bloke meant to get us a good deal, Andrew Charlton, is a product of the revolving door: mates spinning between lobbying, consulting and government, swinging it wide open for Big Tech every time. Here's how Charlton sells us out. Watch - TINY LIES: The $50K Political Donation That Disappeared (The Internet Reviewed Investigation) - • TINY LIES: The $50K Political Donation Tha... (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0imcJ7jnCs) Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)
This week, we bring you a full punter on battle between Dan Bleakley, co-founder of Australia's first electric trucking company New Energy Transport, and longtime YouTube commentator and libertarian Topher Field, to settle the question: are electric trucks the future of Australian freight, or just another taxpayer-funded pipe dream? We break down the heated debate over a viral Instagram post claiming electric trucks just beat diesel again, why one side says we're subsidising a fantasy while the other says we're shackled to a volatile fossil fuel crisis, and how a disagreement over basic arithmetic turned into a full scale ideological clash between progressives betting on new technology and conservatives defending the status quo. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)
This week, Queensland's LNP government scraps the ban on developer donations just in time to hand out $7 billion in Olympic building contracts, while one nation's brand new MP pulls a sickie on his first day to dodge voting on the gas tax. We break down how lifting the corruption ban led to $170,000 in developer cash within weeks, why Princess Pauline's 36% attendance record should dock her pay like any other job, and how politicians legalized corruption by calling the bill the electoral laws restoring electoral fairness amendment bill while punters got distracted by e bike crackdowns. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)
This week, billionaire mining magnate Gina Rinehart tips in a cool $26 million to help a former Channel 7 executive grab a 10% stake in Australia's second biggest broadcaster, just as the anti corruption boss who was supposed to be finding dodgy politicians gets investigated himself for allegedly being dodgy. We break down how Australia's second highest media concentration in the world keeps getting worse, why the National Anti Corruption Commission has found zero corruption in three years despite 7,000 referrals, and how corporate media ran a textbook death tax scare campaign over a testamentary trust policy that affects 5% of the wealthiest Aussies while everyday punters defended billionaires in the comments. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)
This week, Princess Pauline Hanson bravely takes the stage at the gas lobby's own conference to announce her "Norway-style" gas policy — written, by her own admission, in consultation with the gas producers themselves. We break down why her 10% royalty isn't remotely the actual 78% Norway charges, how Sunrise spent a week peddling a fake death tax while Nat Barr accidentally realised on-air that everyone's negative gearing is grandfathered, and how the federal court just found Coles GUILTY of running the Down Down scam on punters. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)
This week, Albo bravely protects his NRL gambling buddy by burying a landmark kids gambling addiction report under 4,000 pages of budget spreadsheets while journalists were literally locked in a basement. We break down how the government sat on gambling reform recommendations for 1,049 days, why Pete V'landys and the NRL are raking in gambling commission cash, and how a unanimous report calling for a blanket ban on gambling ads got watered down to an opt out online system that does absolutely nothing. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)
This week, we recap the "Tax Gas Not Beer" tour and tear down Albo’s hollow gas reform—a policy that raises zero dollars and won't even kick in until after the next election. We also dive into a heated housing showdown between economist Richard Dennis and developer Jack Henderson, debating everything from capital gains tax to whether the government can actually build affordable homes. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/) Fact checks welcome citations NECESSARY! Here are the citations Jack and Richard sent through for claims around the DHA at the end of the debate there. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DMFmkzUCV1UKUJ2EVlmH8WTlvU1FWrbiE5itBVxC0uc/edit?usp=sharing
This week, Konrad breaks down his appearance on the Karl Stefanovic Show podcast where he was ambushed by Senator Susan McDonald, the shadow resources minister, in what turned out to be a debate he never agreed to. We go through the full uncut interview, score the political manoeuvers, expose the gas lobby talking points being recycled by politicians, and reveal why this setup was designed to turn a popular policy issue into a culture war distraction. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)
This week, Konrad's Senate inquiry testimony sparked a media firestorm, from "zinger box" clips on ABC to Sky News pundits losing their cool over his Parliament House t-shirt and supposed "grifter" status. While former Treasury Secretary Ken Henry and Senator Jacqui Lambie joined the "Legends List" by demanding the gas cartel "stop the crap" and pay their fair share, Shell executives were absolutely smoked, failing to explain why they paid zero PRRT despite billions in revenue. We’re exposing the "Lobbyist Playable Characters" like Angus Taylor while celebrating legends like David Pocock and Ed Husic, all while fueling a $102,000 war chest for our May 8th Newcastle pub crawl to prove we should be taxing gas, not beer. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)
This week, Albo dodges the gas tax question with a masterclass in political deflection, Channel 7 runs cover for fossil fuel interests, and the lobbyist war chest smashes through $96,000. We break down the propaganda playbook, expose corporate media conflicts of interest, and celebrate two massive high court wins that just struck down rigged election laws and anti protest powers. Albo's Gas Tax Dodge: Political Maneuver of the Week Triple J Hack asks the Prime Minister the question every punter wants answered: are you taxing gas exports? Albo responds with peak confused grandpa energy, saying "we'll have the budget next month" while physically turning away to invite the next question. We score the maneuver, break down why he's probably not taxing gas profits at all, and explain why punters should expect a useless windfall profits tax that targets zero dollars in actual profit because Santos and Woodside conveniently make nothing on paper. Channel 7's Fossil Fuel Propaganda Exposed Channel 7 reporter Liam Bartlett ambushes Environment Minister Chris Bowen, demanding he resign over his "renewables obsession". We watch the full unedited exchange, score the political maneuvers, and then reveal that Liam used to work as Global Head of TV Creative Visual at Shell International, Channel 7 is owned by billionaire Kerry Stokes who has major gas interests through SGH Energy and Beach Energy, and both companies pay around 2% to 5% tax while earning billions. Conspiracy or coincidence? Punters decide. High Court Strikes Down Rigged Election Laws & Anti Protest Powers Feel pepped, punters. The high court has struck down Victoria's rigged electoral donation laws that allowed major parties unlimited donations through nominated entities while capping independents at $5,000, and New South Wales anti protest laws that gave one police commissioner the power to block protests across huge chunks of Sydney. Both rulings confirm what punters already knew: politicians rig the system to protect themselves, and the courts are the last line of defense. Nanny State Alert: Cops Fine Superintendent for Riding a Bike South Australia's top traffic cop gets fined for using his phone while riding a 9 kilogram carbon road bike at 20 kilometers an hour after a Karen dug through his Strava and reported him. We sound the nanny state alarm, call out the absurdity of applying one and a half ton car rules to bicycles, and defend the superintendent even though he'd probably give us a ticket for the same thing. Konrad Goes to Canberra: Senate Inquiry Witness Konrad is heading to Canberra to testify as a witness in the Senate inquiry into gas taxes, courtesy of a loaned Polestar 4 from Whipsmart EV leasing. The lobbyist war chest now sits at $96,000, the free sauce campaign launches on Chuffed to put 200 stickered bottles into pie shops across Australia, and punters can now grab free source bottle stickers at punterspolitics.com. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)
This week, we expose the real scam behind NDIS fraud that nobody's talking about. While YouTubers rack up millions of views chasing dodgy providers and the media runs endless clickbait about disability rorts, we break down why privatization is the actual problem. We explain how pseudo privatized government services create rent seeking middlemen, bloated overheads, and fraud riddled systems that cost more to police than they would to run properly. Plus, why this exact same pattern keeps repeating in childcare, aged care, vocational education, and every other marketized government program. The Gas Lobby Attacks Me Personally In A Million Dollar Ad Campaign The Australian Energy Producers have released attack ads featuring an actor who looks suspiciously like me, complete with oversized tee, light features, Australian accent, and a smug delivery in a green screen bar. We break down why they've stopped saying taxes and royalties and started outright lying by claiming gas companies paid $21 billion in taxes when that number includes royalties, how David Pocock's beer tax versus gas tax clip went viral in Senate Estimates, and why the gas lobby acknowledging my existence is the biggest strategic mistake they've made yet. Sticky Bandits Strike Again & The Free Sauce Quest Continues Punters have been out slapping stickers on Liberal Senator campaign signs, welcome to Western Australia road signs, and one absolute legend stuck the Norway versus Australia gas royalties sticker on the back quarter panel paintwork of their car. We break down the costings for the free sauce side quest, reveal that shipping 200 stickered sauce bottles would cost $17.75 per unit, announce the Chuffed fundraiser to get sauce bottles into pie shops, and confirm we're in talks with Heinz after most other sauce companies politely declined our collab request. Punter Confessions: The E Bike Penance & The Skydive Discount Konrad admits he accepted a heavily discounted skydive in New Zealand from Punter Miles, a skydive instructor who enjoys the show, and puts it to the punters whether that's acceptable or a breach of trust. Plus, footage of Punter Alex getting a 20 minute ride on the back of the Punters e bike on New Year's Eve, proving the penance system is working, and a correction on where Australia's fuel actually comes from after Patreon Punter Kenneth provided two citations proving some of it does come from the Middle East via Singapore. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)90
This week, we unpack the 26 cent fuel excise cut that's supposed to save you money at the pump while the government quietly hands over $10 billion a year in petrol subsidies to Gina and her mining mates. We break down why this three month discount costs taxpayers $2.5 billion, how 15 mining companies pocket $3 billion a year from fuel tax rebates punters never get, and why even Fortescue's CEO Dino Otranto is calling out the scam on LinkedIn. CBA Boss Backs Gas Tax & The Lobbyist Power Play The head of Commonwealth Bank publicly backs a windfall profits tax on gas companies, and we explain why corporate Australia is finally picking sides. We meet Punter Rachel, the crowd funded lobbyist hired with your $80,000 to take on the gas cartel in Canberra. She breaks down her strategy for targeting marginal seats, lobbying crossbenchers, and preparing for budget week to expose exactly what the gas lobby asked for and what they got. Nanny State Update: P Platers Banned From Google Maps Queensland police confirm that learner and P plate drivers are banned from using Google Maps on their phones, even hands free, even through Bluetooth, but they're legally allowed to unfold a street directory while driving. We sound the nanny state alarm again and explain why this rule is peak Karen policy that makes young drivers less safe, not more. Card Surcharge Ban Finally Arrives & The Free Sauce Quest Launches From October 2026, Australians will no longer be slugged with card surcharges at checkout, ending the $1.6 billion annual cash grab by banks on Visa and Mastercard transactions. We celebrate the win, call out the final cash grab delay, and launch the free sauce side quest with stickers, bottles, and a heat map at freesauce.quest to track every pie shop in Australia giving punters a fair squeeze. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)
This week, we unpack ASIO's new secret detention powers that let them jail you without a warrant, without telling anyone, and without you being able to say a word about it. Both major parties waved it through while punters were distracted by $3 diesel. We break down how the Attorney General can now rubber stamp interrogations, why kids as young as 14 can be nabbed off the street, and how Albo went from quoting Nazi speeches against these laws in 2003 to passing even worse versions today. Japan Demands Free Gas & The Gas Bludger War Escalates The Japanese ambassador rocked up to Canberra demanding we keep handing over gas royalties for free because they hate surprises. We've got a surprise for them. The gas lobby is now running full page newspaper ads trying to convince punters that beer tax is higher than gas tax by stacking multiple tax categories into one number. We fight back with punter propaganda, break down their dodgy maths, and explain why every punter needs to be all hands on deck as the May budget approaches and Labor considers a windfall profits tax. Nanny State Alert: E-Bike Crackdown Explained We sound the nanny state alarm as Queensland and New South Wales introduce roadside dyno testing for e-bikes, lower legal power limits to 200 watts, introduce licensing requirements, crush powers for illegal bikes, and footpath speed limits of 10 kilometres an hour. We sit down with Patrick from Streets and Scars of City Past to break down why this is classic Karen overreach, how Europe handles e-bikes with tiered licensing that actually works, and why Australian politicians would rather ban alternatives than build cycling infrastructure. Pauline Hanson's Private Jet Defense & The Sticky Bandits Strike Again Pauline Hanson gets grilled over undeclared flights on Gina Rinehart's private jet and pulls off a solid pub crawl defense, stumbling from no cost to the taxpayer to name dropping Anika Wells while Barnaby Joyce swoops in for the alley oop. We score the maneuver, break down the propaganda tactics, and celebrate the return of the sticky bandits who've been slapping punter stickers on Liberal and Labor MP signs across the country. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)
This week, we unpack Labor's quiet move to model a windfall profits tax on gas and coal, the propaganda war already kicking off from the gas lobby, and why this could be the biggest policy shift we've seen in years. We break down what a windfall tax actually is, why the EU and UK already have one, and how Australia's been letting gas companies pocket billions in war-driven profits while taxpayers bail out the rest of the economy. The Petrol Crisis Blame Game: Who's Actually Responsible? Konrad plays the blame game with Australia's petrol panic, breaking down who's pointing fingers at who. Labor blames panic buyers, the Liberals blame Labor, the ACCC blames price gouging retailers, and the media is absolutely fanning the flames. We dig into Australia's structural fuel vulnerability, the refinery closures under the Coalition, Morrison's bizarre decision to store our reserves in the US, and why corporate media might be making this worse than it needs to be. The Punters Lobbyist Is Locked In After raising over $80,000 and filtering through 37 applications, Punter Melissa has locked in the Punters Lobbyist. We break down the hiring process, the vetting, the reference checks, and what comes next as we prepare to take on the gas lobby with our own Canberra insider. Plus, the free sauce campaign is officially launching with stickers, bottles, and a guerrilla marketing plan to remind Aussies that gas companies get free gas while punters pay for tomato sauce. South Australia's Election, Slay or Nay, and The Internet Reviewed We cover South Australia's election results where Labor dominates again, play a new game called Slay or Nay featuring Supreme Leader Malinauskas roasting One Nation's housing policy, and sit down with Kirsten Drysdale from The Internet Reviewed to spotlight Carrick Ryan, a former AFP agent and geopolitics expert worth following if you want nuanced takes on conflicts, politics, and Australian policy. Watch more from Kirsten Drysdale's channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@UCQFXq97bgp86MMny1f-oYFA Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)
This week, we dive into the gas tax drama - who voted for the punters, who sided with the gas lobby, and One Nation’s backflip. We unpack multiple political manoeuvres and pageant politics, from Albo’s tussle with Karl Stefanovic, Victorian Premier Jacinda Allen turning the CFMEU corruption saga into a personal spat, and Penny Wong’s semantic gymnastics when asked if Australia is at war. Plus: the latest on the punters’ e-bikes, Konrad loses his shirt live on air, and a new side quest unlocked - free sauce at every pie shop in Australia. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Konrad flies solo this week to unpack the Epstein files and what they reveal about how rich wankers actually run your country. This isn't conspiracy theory territory, it's a leaked blueprint of power, influence, and how billionaires casually interfere with elections, rig policy debates, and help each other escape consequences while ordinary punters play by completely different rules. Bypass the Algorithm, Sign up to the Punter Times Newsletter https://www.punterspolitics.com/pages/email-sign-up Support We the Punters on PATREON (https://www.patreon.com/punterspolitics) Buy Punters Stickers & T-shirts (https://www.punterspolitics.com/)