Politics is a perverse business. When shadow home affairs minister Andrew Hastie last week assured the nation there were no moves to replace opposition leader Sussan Ley, many assumed his comment meant there were.

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Hastie was speaking after Ley kicked Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price off the front bench after Price refused to endorse her leadership.

Ruffled feathers were anything but smoothed because leadership challenges are always preceded by declarations of loyalty and nothing-to-see-here statements.

So it came as little surprise on Monday night when Hastie further inflamed leade

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