View from The Hill: Albanese lashes Hanson over attack on his mother

Former Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has harshly responded to Pauline Hanson's attack on his late mother, describing Hanson's remarks as "nasty" and "spiteful". During a Sunday news conference, Albanese stated, "My mother was way out of Pauline Hanson's league". This is the second time in recent days that Hanson has found herself on the defensive after making a personal attack.

In February, Hanson's senior colleague Barnaby Joyce distanced himself from One Nation's animated cartoon, which depicted Liberal frontbencher Andrew Hastie as a "traitor" multiple times. Hanson's comments about Albanese's mother, who passed away in 2002, were made in a podcast with Karl Stefanovic, which went unreported until recently.

In the podcast, Hanson expressed disapproval of Albanese referring to growing up in public housing, saying it was "pathetic". Albanese, who is close to his mother, emphasized his pride in his upbringing and his mother's character, stating she was "compassionate, not uncaring" and "generous, not mean". Albanese confronted Hanson's remarks, saying, "If Pauline Hanson wants to criticise me, then that's fine.

But my mother was way out of Pauline Hanson's league." His colleague Joyce also condemned Hanson's comments, stating, "I don't think you should be talking about the late mother of anyone in this game, and certainly not reflecting on circumstances over which she had no understanding."