Listening to sports scribe Tracey Holmes verbally executing Anika Wells on Brisbane ABC radio station 4QR late yesterday, one of our washed-up, bitter, hack compilers of MGH had this sudden vision of Holmes as a hanging judge.

He probably now regrets mentioning that to our graphic artists on The Bug‘s creative mezzanine level but what’s done is done, right?

Holmes was declaring that her quick ring-around of major sports bodies’ head honchos some days ago had revealed they had lost faith in Wells as sports minister after some torrid days of MSM frenzy over her family reunion spend.

In what was largely a repeat performance of the words she used for a Fin. Review piece mid week, she did hint at these sports jocks’ disappointment over her performance as sports minister but make no mistake: the general thrust of both her radio and newspaper efforts was that Wells was more or less finished as sports minister for expensive family reunions on a snowfield and clocking up a $1000 bill for a Comcar left waiting for some hours as she had fun mixing with sporting people and seeking out a photo op.

Doubt that? Here’s the opening paragraphs of the Fin. Review column and it’s clear that Wells’s “lack of judgment” has little to do with any ability to administer a portfolio well.

It’s lucky Anika Wells has the high-profile communications ministry because she may have lost the support of some of Australia’s most senior sports officials.

It has been telling that in a ring-around of many of the heads of major sports organisations not a single one had anything to say in support of Wells or her achievements in the 3½ years that she’s held the sports portfolio.

While her travel is audited, Wells can avoid answering constant media questions about her seemingly casual approach to spending other people’s money.

The best I could get was this from one very senior official: “I like Anika a lot. But it’s hard to defend having limo drivers waiting for hours.”

And from another: “She’ll ride this out. But may lose sport.”

Adding later: “I hope she learns.”

No early mention of something like “This lazy bitch is costing us millions in funding our sport badly needs to survive.”

Or … “Wells couldn’t pick out a Sherrin in a pile of golf balls!”

Oh, and how about that intro? Again…

It’s lucky Anika Wells has the high-profile communications ministry because she may have lost the support of some of Australia’s most senior sports officials.

See how crystal clear and logical is the mind of a highly respected and veteran scribe?

Holmes thinks that Wells’s apparent misuse of family reunion entitlement rules – and let’s face it, give a pollie a perk and they’ll turn it into a lurk! – means she should lose her sports portfolio because that’s all people will talk about if she rocks up for a photo op at the MCG Test or Australian Open.

But Wells is lucky she’s also communications minister, a job she can supposedly keep as she sells the government’s under 16 social media ban. It’s silly-thinking nonsense.

But enough already! Now for the punch line. Newscorpse and Nine’s rags and shock jocks have been hammering away at Wells over those family-reunion expenses for days now and it’s for only one reason; it’s what their bosses want them to do, especially the Murdochs who must be experiencing a more searing hatred of Labor than normal for harming the divine, money-making, right of fellow billionaires at Farcebook, etc, etc. How dare a woman interfer in secret men’s business!

Given that recent info has shown Wells way down the list of pollies failing the pub test if not the rules of their family reunion travel rorts, why the fuck should a senior ABC journalist happily join in the pile-on?

Aunty – and Holmes – must do much better. Following a far-right media platform with a specific agenda of bashing Labor is not a good look for our national broadcaster.

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