{"id":770711,"date":"2026-06-30T21:37:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-30T21:37:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/770711\/"},"modified":"2026-06-30T21:37:13","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T21:37:13","slug":"pauline-hanson-visits-islamic-college-wearing-israeli-pin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/770711\/","title":{"rendered":"Pauline Hanson visits Islamic College wearing Israeli pin"},"content":{"rendered":"

July 1, 2026 \u2014 5:00amSave<\/p>\n

You have reached your maximum number of saved items.<\/p>\n

Remove items from your saved list<\/a> to add more.<\/p>\n

AAA<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no doubt One Nation leader Pauline Hanson is enjoying a new lease on life off the back of a wave of new-found popularity.<\/p>\n

So we were hardly surprised to hear there was a Seven Network camera crew following the senator around late last week, for a yet-to-be announced segment to air soon. Word is the network was following Hanson when she made a visit to an Islamic college in Brisbane, where we\u2019re told she wore an Israeli flag pin.<\/p>\n

\"PaulinePauline Hanson in the Senate on Tuesday.Alex Ellinghausen<\/p>\n

No word on what exactly happened during the visit, other than that there was an exchange and Hanson left. When we tried asking One Nation about it, a party spokesman declined to comment. Representatives of the Seven Network also couldn\u2019t give us a steer.<\/p>\n

Word of Hanson\u2019s Islamic college visit came across our desk less than a fortnight after the One Nation leader used her first address to the National Press Club after 30 years in politics to talk about the need for Australia to be \u201cmonocultural\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cRadical Islam is my grave concern \u2026 I think we\u2019ve got 18,000 people on ASIO watch lists at the moment, and probably 220 very serious [cases], in a country like this?\u201d Hanson said.<\/p>\n

Hanson was, of course, the subject of intrigue heading into this week, as those in political media circles were wondering what surprises she might have up her sleeve for Canberra\u2019s night of nights, the annual Midwinter Ball. But the One Nation leader decided skip the annual event.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s not to say the party won\u2019t be represented. One Nation recruit Barnaby Joyce, enjoying a fresh bounce of popularity, is set to attend.<\/p>\n

Midwinter no-shows<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not uncommon to hear journalists bemoaning Canberra\u2019s night of nights. But it looks like politicians are beginning to lose interest in the annual Midwinter Ball as well.<\/p>\n

\"MPsMPs and journalists pictured at the Midwinter Ball last year.SMH<\/p>\n

Regular readers will no doubt recall CBD brought word on Monday that One Nation leader Pauline Hanson would give the knees-up a miss. So too Foreign Minister Penny Wong, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke and Transport Minister Catherine King.<\/p>\n

Well, there are more: Also absent are Senator Jacqui Lambie and Greens leader Larissa Waters, who both attended last year. There\u2019s more: Senate Opposition Leader Michaelia Cash, Liberal MP Ted O\u2019Brien, and independent senator Lidia Thorpe are all staying home.<\/p>\n

But we have no doubt the nation\u2019s lobbyists will be more than happy to take their place. All for a good cause!<\/p>\n

Lounge loversRelated Article\"One<\/a><\/p>\n

Independent MP Monique Ryan used parliament last week to deliver a blistering spray at Australia\u2019s airline duopoly, arguing politicians have become far too cosy with the companies they\u2019re meant to regulate.<\/p>\n

As evidence, the Kooyong MP revealed she had ditched her invitation-only Qantas Chairman\u2019s Lounge membership in 2023 after deciding the perks risked influencing political decision-making.<\/p>\n

Ryan told parliament she had come to believe politicians should not be \u201cguests of the very industry they are meant to hold accountable\u201d, arguing the relationship between airlines and Canberra helped explain why Australian passengers still lag Europe and Canada when it comes to compensation for delays and cancellations.<\/p>\n

But Ryan\u2019s public renunciation of the Chairman\u2019s Lounge prompted some amusement among Canberra\u2019s frequent flyers, who say the Kooyong MP remains a familiar face in airline business lounges on her regular Melbourne-Canberra commute.<\/p>\n

In response, Ryan\u2019s spokesperson told CBD Ryan earned a lifetime Qantas Gold membership during her previous career as a medical researcher which took her around the world.<\/p>\n

\u201cUse of that sort of membership, which is contingent on a lot of work-related travel, is very different from relying on the largesse of the airlines for access to their Chairman\u2019s Lounges,\u201d the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n

Regardless, it seems we won\u2019t see Dr Ryan in line for a Hudson\u2019s coffee and $9 magazine from WH Smith any time soon.<\/p>\n

Deeming\u2019s long-distance lawyer<\/p>\n

The Victorian Liberal Party is once again keeping the legal profession in lunch money with Moira Deeming again engaging a lawyer to communicate with a second colleague.<\/p>\n

While Spring Street observers were pondering the age-old question \u2013 when is a headlock not a headlock? \u2013 a few political insiders were more intrigued by another aspect of Deeming\u2019s response to Matthew Guy, who requested an apology after she accused him of placing her in a form of headlock.<\/p>\n

Why had the Caroline Springs-based MP hired a lawyer from Perth?<\/p>\n

Deeming turned to Cornerstone Legal director Tim Houweling to fire off a statement after Victoria Police closed its investigation into Deeming\u2019s claim, and \u201cdetermined there was no offence detected\u201d.<\/p>\n

Houweling is no ordinary suburban lawyer. He is president of the South Perth Liberal branch and key ally of conservative powerbroker Nick Goiran, part of the influential faction known as The Clan.<\/p>\n

Before dipping his toe into Victorian politics this week, Houweling was known for playing a prominent role in the WA Liberals\u2019 internal battles, including drafting a censure motion against the more moderate federal WA senator Dean Smith.<\/p>\n

Houweling, a \u201cPerthonality\u201d in his own right, was unavailable to tell CBD how he landed the Deeming brief.<\/p>\n

But with the Victorian Liberals now openly considering dumping Deeming from their upper house ticket, she may be wise to retain his services given his considerable experience navigating internal Liberal Party politics.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Start the day with a summary of the day\u2019s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Save<\/p>\n

You have reached your maximum number of saved items.<\/p>\n

Remove items from your saved list<\/a> to add more.<\/p>\n

\"JohnJohn Buckley<\/a> is a CBD columnist for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect via email<\/a>.\"FionaFiona Byrne<\/a> is the CBD columnist for The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via email<\/a>.From our partners<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"July 1, 2026 \u2014 5:00amSave You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":770712,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[64,63,44],"class_list":["post-770711","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-australia","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/770711","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=770711"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/770711\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/770712"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=770711"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=770711"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=770711"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}