Anthony Albanese’s 2012 speech in which he quoted a fictional US president has prompted fresh speculation about which imaginary leaders might perform well in modern opinion polls.
Philip Cooney, of Wentworth Falls, recalled the then-transport minister’s reference to Andrew Shepherd, the president played by Michael Douglas in the film The American President, during an address to the National Press Club.
“Which other fictional presidents and PMs might do well in today’s opinion polls?” Cooney asked.
Albanese avoided censure from the then-prime minister, Julia Gillard, who was said to be fond of Douglas and noted that he was “married to a Welsh woman”.
