Nine times Aussie pollies have gone viral, from Katter's croc claim to the misogyny speech

From the weird to the wonderful, here are nine times politicians have become a memeRBy Rudi MaxwellTopic:Social Media10m ago10 minutes agoMon 16 Feb 2026 at 3:54amLoading...abc.net.au/news/political-memes-angus-taylor-pauline-hanson-bob-katter/106342538Link copiedShareShare articleWhen Angus Taylor took to social media to finally announce his ambitions for the leadership of the Liberal Party, thousands responded with the same words."Fantastic. Well done. Great move Angus."Loading Instagram contentIt wasn't AI-generated comments or bots.It was a reference to a 2019 social media moment when Angus Taylor MP commented on one of Angus Taylor MP's posts with those words.And while the comment was quickly removed, the phrase has continued to follow Mr Taylor.From actions that seem downright weird to making speeches that soared, Australia's politicians are under constant scrutiny.And Angus Taylor is not the first politician whose comments have sparked a meme.'Torn to pieces by a crocodile'Loading...Bob Katter was asked his views in the lead-up to the 2017 plebiscite on same-sex marriage."People are entitled to their sexual proclivities, let there be a thousand blossoms bloom," he said."But I ain't spending any more time on it."Because in the meantime, every three months a person is torn to pieces by a crocodile in north Queensland."Katter's crocodile claim spread far and wide, although the ABC factcheck unit found it to be incorrect.Speaking to Australian Story last year about that interview, Katter said there were times when he had so much information he wanted to share that "it stumbles all over itself and comes out garbled".If you are seeing me now it means I have been murderedLoading...Before One Nation harnessed the power of AI to make videos mocking Robert Irwin and Bluey, or filmed strangers on the streets of Melbourne, back in 1997 a bizarre video emerged of Pauline Hanson."Fellow Australians, if you are seeing me now it means I have been murdered," Hanson, the independent member for Oxley at the time, said. "For the sake of our children and our children's children, you must fight on."Do not let me passing distract you for even a moment."After Hanson's 1996 maiden speech in which she made controversial and divisive comments about Aboriginal people and Asian people, the member for Oxley claimed she received death threats.Fellow founder of One Nation David Oldfield filmed the 'message from the grave' video and said he released it as a publicity stunt.After falling out with Oldfield, Hanson claimed in a 2016 SBS documentary that he had betrayed her by releasing the video.The misogyny speechLoading...When Australia's only female Prime Minister Julia Gillard rose to her feet and began responding to Opposition Leader Tony Abbott, she was speaking from her core."I will not be lectured on misogyny by this man, I will not," she said."And the government will not be lectured about sexism and misogyny by this man. Not now, not ever."After enduring repeated misogyny and sexism — Abbott standing in front of a sign saying "Ditch the witch"; derogatory and abusive comments from shock jocks; comments on her appearance and offensive questions about her partner's sexuality — when Abbott moved a motion accusing her government of misogyny, Gillard had had enough. Gillard's blistering words resonated with millions of people and her speech not only went viral; her words have been printed on merch like T-shirts, tea towels and coffee mugs; inspired a play and one of the lines was the title of a book of essays by the former Labor leader.A horror movie right there on the TVLoading...During an interview with the ABC in July 2012, Labor's trade minister Craig Emerson broke into song."No Whyalla wipe-out there on my TV," Emerson sang not quite to the tune of 70s glam rockers Skyhooks' hit song Horror Movie."No Whyalla wipe-out there on my TV."No Whyalla wipe-out there on my TV."Shocking me right out of my brain."Dr Emerson was responding to the then-opposition leader Tony Abbott's comments that the South Australian city of Whyalla would be wiped off the map because of Labor's carbon tax.Why he chose courtyard karaoke to try and make the point remains a mystery more than a decade later, but it certainly gave the internet a few days of fun.I don't hold a hose, mateScott Morrison had an internet moment when he took a family holiday to Hawaii. (Supplied: Prime Minister's Office)As Australia burned during the summer of 2019, Liberal former prime minister Scott Morrison decided to take a quick family vaycay to Hawaii.But, Mr Morrison didn't exactly follow protocol (wouldn't be the last time) and did not issue an official public note about his absence.When journalists asked his office if the PM was in Hawaii, they were told this was incorrect.After two volunteer firefighters died, questions were being asked about where Morrison was and