Beazley Declares It's Time

The Australian Labor Party has less than a year to improve its general standing in the minds of voters. If he is to win office, leader Kim Beazley can't rely solely on the rises in home mortgage rates that would hurt borrowers and leave Prime Minister John Howard vulnerable. Nor should Beazley count on Australians giving Howard the kind of thump U.S. President George W. Bush received last week for his grim war in the Middle East. To fix its brand, as they say in the trade, Labor has to go beyond Iraq and I-rates. "We have spent too much time...