‘Lying cowards’: Andrew Hastie steps up attacks on One Nation

The war of words between Pauline Hanson and Andrew Hastie has escalated, with the One Nation leader refusing to delete or apologise for satirical cartoons commissioned by her party that called the Liberal frontbencher and former SAS soldier a “traitor” and a “gutless maggot”.

In a fiery interview on News24, formerly Sky News, Hanson was repeatedly pressed to distance herself from the comments about Hastie – whose seat One Nation is specifically targeting at the next federal election – but declined to do so, arguing “it’s a satirical cartoon, for Christ’s sake”.

“I don’t think he is a traitor, and I’ve never called him a traitor,” Hanson said in the interview on Wednesday afternoon. “And I have the highest regard for people in the Defence Force … and I respect him for his services that he’s done for Australia.”

Despite those comments, Hanson has refused to remove One Nation’s Please Explain cartoon that made the accusation against the decorated former soldier and is pinned to the top of her X social media account.

After her interview, Hanson evaded reporters gathered outside the News24 studio rather than taking any further questions.

Earlier on Wednesday, Hastie had thrown down the gauntlet to Hanson and former Coalition colleague Barnaby Joyce over the cartoon, labelling them “lying cowards” after they denied calling him a traitor.

In a blistering interview with ABC News 24 on Wednesday afternoon, Hastie said he was putting his career on the line to fight the ascendant populist party after lying low while he was subjected to an online hate campaign.

“I was quiet for quite some months as all this was going on, but I’m drawing a line under it, and I’m locked in,” he said.

The federal police recently provided Hastie with upgraded security at his home and office over threats to his safety over his testimony for the defence in the Ben Roberts-Smith defamation case against this masthead.

The Liberal frontbencher sent out a newsletter to his supporters on Tuesday that claimed the minor party had “picked a fight with the wrong veteran” after labelling him a traitor for testifying in the Roberts-Smith case.

Hastie told the Federal Court in 2022 that it was a “fairly well-established rumour” that Roberts-Smith had kicked a person under the control of Australian troops off a cliff in Afghanistan, and had a reputation as a bully among the ranks.

He defended his testimony and accused One Nation of exploiting anger over the war crimes charges Roberts-Smith is now contesting.

“Swearing an oath as a Christian before God, I did that. I took that very seriously, as did other witnesses as well,” Hastie said in the interview.

“And there’s a legal proceeding underfoot, and they have politicised that to the detriment of everyone involved, including Ben Roberts-Smith. How are we ever going to have a fair trial with this sort of politicisation of an issue so central to who we are as a country?

“It’s still there, and in that cartoon, I’m called a ‘traitor’ eight times, along with ‘gutless maggot’ – that I don’t really care about. But when you start calling me a traitor to my own country, then we have a big, big problem.

“It’s a slur on me. It’s a slur on other veterans who have given under oath evidence to federal court, and I’m calling on Pauline Hanson and Barnaby Joyce to either own this, don’t be weak, don’t be cowards, own it, and explain why I’m a traitor and why other veterans are traitors, or delete it.”

Hastie said he stood with Australians “who believe in the rule of law, who believe that Australian soldiers should be held to high standards of battlefield conduct”, contrasting with Hanson and Joyce “who never ever served a day in our uniform overseas on operations”.

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In her interview, Hanson said Hastie was getting his “knickers in a knot” and “making a mountain out of a molehill” as he angled for the Liberal leadership.

“The way he’s carrying on now, it’s basically, is he, is this all about a leadership challenge to Angus Taylor? And that’s what it possibly is … trying to get a bit of courage to go to take on Angus Taylor.”

Joyce said he had never called Hastie a traitor “nor ventured anywhere close to any such statement about him. In fact, I have never said a bad word about him”.

Liberal MPs circled the wagons around Hastie on Wednesday, praising the frontbencher for taking the fight to the insurgent populist party.

Liberal MP Garth Hamilton said Hastie’s criticism of One Nation was a pivotal moment for the Liberal Party.

“I 100 per cent stand by Andrew,” he said. “I think we are here to fight Labor, and One Nation has waged this war against one of the best conservatives in the nation.

“Quite frankly, I am bloody proud of the way he has conducted himself throughout this.”

Fellow Queensland Liberal James McGrath declared his support for Hastie and said One Nation politicians should “hang their heads in shame”.

“I stand with Andrew Hastie. I think what Pauline Hanson’s One Nation have said about Andrew Hastie on their social media is an absolute disgrace,” McGrath told News24.

“He’s got more bravery in his right foot than all those One Nation politicians put together.”

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Brittany Busch is a federal politics reporter for The Age and Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via email.James Massola is Chief Political Commentator. He has previously been National Affairs
Editor and South-East Asia Correspondent, and has won Quill and Kennedy awards and is the 2026 Press Gallery Journalist of the Year. Connect securely on Signal @jamesmassola.01Connect via X or email.AdvertisementAdvertisement