Barry Soper: Will politicians learn from their mistakes?

John Key was offering his buddy any help he could give, like how to run a minority Government that he's been successfully doing for the past eight years. Photo / Twitter

Opinion

The call probably went something like this.

"Hey Mel, it's John here," no more formal introduction would have been required as Malcolm Turnbull has already listed John Key as his mentor, even though in the money market business the Aussie was much more successful in making it, money that is, than JK ever was.

These two men are used to volatility, dealing with what David Lange used to call the demented reef fish in the financial markets.

Dealing with a demented electorate is much more difficult though, once they've swum there's no turning back short of throwing the Burley ballot box back into the wash.

Like all good money market men, Turnbull took what he considered a calculated risk, throwing all the political seats, federal and senate, into the wash hoping it'd throw up a school of compliant minnows but instead getting a barracuda like Pauline Hanson, for the Senate, along with a Kiwi muckraker Derryn Hinch, who if be wasn't naturalised, would have more than likely been deported by now.

So John Key was offering his buddy any help he could give, like how to run a minority Government that he's been successfully doing for the past eight years. Mel was inconsolable, how could he have got it so wrong?, he lamented. Even if he could stitch something together, his own grip on the leadership was beginning to unravel with the budgie smuggler Tony Abbott already back in front of the mirror, striking a poise.

And why not? Turnbull got rid of him just nine months ago, reassuring his colleagues that he'd have a better chance of heading a stable Government than the mad monk.

So the counting of around 1.5 million postal votes begins in earnest today, but it's possible the nail biting could go on until Friday week.

As Key hung up after counselling his inconsolable cobber, he rightly began to contemplate what the Aussie outcome could mean for him.

The possibility of the Aussie Labour Party making such a spectacular comeback three years ago was about as likely as Donald Trump winning the Republican ticket for the presidency, or as David Cameron resigning because the UK had turned its back on Europe.

And what would his endorsement of Turnbull last week mean to a possible Aussie Labour Government this, or possibly next week?

Well they all make mistakes but do they all learn from them?