Abbott tells MPs victory within grasp

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has rallied his troops with a message that an election
victory is within their "ready grasp".
As the coalition joint party room met for what may be the last time before the
election, Mr Abbott imbued his team with a sense of hope.
"Victory is within our ready grasp," he told them.
"We are in reach of a famous victory."
But there are plenty who want to rain on his parade.
Retiring Labor backbencher Bob McMullan believes it's almost impossible for the
government to lose from its current position in the polls.
Labor's primary vote has taken a dive to 35 per cent, a level some say makes the
election unwinnable.
However, the latest Newspoll has Labor ahead on 52 per cent after the distribution
of preferences.
Mr McMullan told Sky News the crucial measure on election day would be the two-party
preferred vote.
"No government at the position we are in the polls six months out has ever lost," he
said.
"No leader of the opposition with a disapproval rating of Tony Abbott has ever won."
Mr Abbott continues to trail Kevin Rudd as preferred prime minister but he has
closed the gap during recent months.
Mr McMullan wasn't the only person to sound a note of caution to the coalition.
Nationals leader Warren Truss told coalition MPs they were "not home yet".
Still, Mr Abbott believes the government's performance makes it untenable.
He launched a scathing attack on Labor's record on the economy and the resource
super profits tax.
"To have gotten us into so much debt is unforgivable, to have wasted so much money
is unconscionable," Mr Abbott said.
"But to be introducing a mining tax that will put a dagger through the heart of
prosperity is a crime against the future."
Mr Rudd acknowledged the government was facing "some difficult times".
He told Labor MPs this included the reaction to the mining tax, but stressed
negotiations were "highly productive" and insisted the government had made
significant progress.
The government is preparing its MPs to try to win back voters over the winter break.
There will be another caucus meeting later this week to brief them on progress with
the government's health reforms, which will start taking effect from July 1.
And with the war in Afghanistan increasingly unpopular, Mr Rudd has assured them
Australia's commitment will be "defined and finite".
Outgoing MP Belinda Neal believes that Labor needs to sell its message better,
particularly on climate change.
"They've decided we've done a good job on the economy, but essentially that's a job
done, it's over, we really need to get our message out there clearly," she told
Fairfax Media.
"They haven't made up their mind, but they have a question mark. We need to take the
opportunity to really communicate with the electorate."
It was a concern echoed by others in caucus, who don't believe the government is
doing an adequate job selling its message.
A worry is Labor's brand in marginal seats in areas such as western Sydney, where
state Labor was hammered in the Penrith by-election.
A Newspoll, released on Tuesday, put the coalition ahead 56 to 44 per cent in
Lindsay, which is currently held by Labor's David Bradbury.
Mr Bradbury is understood to have told caucus that while the by-election was won and
lost on state issues, voters had considered federal matters such as asylum seekers
and the cost of living.