When it comes to Trump, Albanese’s tactic has been don’t buy-in and don’t bite back. Why has that changed?

The prime minister clearly believed that Trump’s threat of mass bombings of bridges and power plants crossed a new line

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Anthony Albanese has adopted a careful and deliberate strategy for dealing with Donald Trump since his return to the White House in early 2025: don’t buy-in, don’t bite back.

The approach is a calculation that there is little to be gained from responding to Trump’s every Truth Social post, lest it distract the government, provoke the president or, heaven forbid, threaten the Aukus pact.