Jim Chalmers can talk. It’s the doing part that’s beyond him

When it comes to public policy in a democracy, the best combination of traits for a politician is someone who can deliver results in terms of results while also being able to effectively communicate the importance of those results.

As everyone knows, Treasurer Jim Chalmers did his doctoral thesis on Paul Keating (albeit during Keating’s term as prime minister, not during his time as treasurer). Keating is known to be both a deliverer of results and a communicator of rare acuity.

If you can’t have both, it’s better to have someone who does the delivery, even if he or she isn’t the best communicator.