Fighting the court of public opinion

At his press conference on Wednesday, Christian Porter looked a broken man. It was as if he knew his long-held ambition to be prime minister of Australia was over.

Porter’s first thoughts were with the woman who accused him of raping her in 1988 and her parents, before he insisted that nothing of the sort happened. But he also wanted to make a point that was very personal.

If he stood down, it would mean that “any person in Australia can lose their job, their life’s work, based on nothing more than an accusation”.

There is no reason why Porter can’t still be what he is now – an effective minister who handles the crushing workload that goes with being Attorney-General, Industrial Relations Minister and Leader of the House. But that was never the endgame.