Sol's Man Trying For Top Us Job

Sydney Morning Herald

Monday March 5, 2007

Michael Evans

Michael Evans finds the Telstra boss is a big fan of freedom.

SOL Trujillo probably paid more attention than most in these parts when Republican John McCain flagged his intention last week to run for US President.

Back in 2000 in his US West days, Sol was Senator McCain's "number one career patron", the national finance co-chairman of the committee that raised funds for McCain's failed tilt to be the leader of the free world.

The US Centre for Public Integrity says Trujillo and US West gave McCain $US107,520 ($137,274). Why on earth might he have done that?

"As chairman of the Commerce Committee that regulates the telecommunications industry, McCain has been able to return the favour; in May 1999, McCain introduced the Internet Regulatory Freedom Act, legislation that would have allowed such Baby Bells as US West to enter the lucrative broadband internet market," the group said.

"Trujillo praised the bill, exulting: 'If the internet is deregulated in the manner Senator McCain is suggesting, US West will be able to provide high-speed internet service to an additional two million households and businesses throughout our region during the first year alone'."

Hang on, haven't we heard that song in these parts?

Sol, whose US West operated in Senator McCain's state of Arizona, even appeared before a Commerce Committee that McCain chaired.

"Regulation and unequal treatment of industry players is widening the digital divide, red-lining millions of small and medium sized businesses, rural areas, inner cities and government and educational institutions," Sol said.

Hmm, that's also got a bit of a familiar ring to it.

But given he's so practised at flinging coin at pollies, it must be galling for Sol to fling a few bucks at a government in Australia whose regulatory stance he can't stomach.

Maybe he's more inclined to sling a few extra bucks Kevin Rudd's way this year.

Sir Lounge-a-Lot

The ghost of Banquo returned to the Supreme Court late last week to oversee yet another NRMA stoush.

As if it wasn't enough for one former board member, Richard Talbot, to bring defamation action against the current president, Alan Evans, over comments made during the 2005 NRMA board election campaign, there was a special guest appearance in court.

Who was that up the back of the court room, sitting right behind Evans? None other than former president, Ross Turnbull.

The man who had spent much of his life in Bellevue Hill and Macquarie Street had last been heard of staying at a charity-run hostel for the homeless overlooking Iron Cove.

Turnbull sat through the second day of proceedings before Justice Harrison but left before the jury found Talbot had been defamed. The defence has a few weeks to consider its position.

A few thousand volts

Woodside boss Don Voelte has landed in a royal bunfight with a former employee he blasted in an email, our spies in the West report.

Steve Major is suing Woodside Energy for defamation in the WA Supreme Court after being on the receiving end of a fruity email from Volatile Voelte last October after Major quit the company's Libyan operations.

Major wrote to Voelte outlining his reasons, including complaints about a long delay getting a house in Tripoli.

He pointed out he no longer needed a job for financial security and his level of intolerance had risen to a point where minor irritations were unacceptable.

Voelte's response, initially circulated among Woodside top management and later into the outside world, didn't hold back.

He pointed out he'd been on a 19-day roadshow trip across Australia and North America, travelled through 17 cities on 22 flights, and his life had been made tougher by a security crackdown that did not let him take fluids on planes.

Voelte said he'd also pulled an all-nighter getting board papers out, had lost his luggage, cancelled flights and spent a night in tornado-ravaged Chicago airport.

Voelte asked Major: Now what was this about your minor irritations being no longer acceptable . . . even if a position is interesting and challenging?

He welcomed Major's resignation saying: "Steve, you made the right choice . . . for Woodside that is."

Voelte attacked Major's claims to financial security, pointing out he probably had 50 to 100 times the security of the former executive and that financial security did not even rate in fulfilling life's experiences.

"Here's hoping you experience no further minor irritations in life," Voelte told Major.

Major is claiming unspecified damages against Woodside.

Dicky name

Remember Jan Cameron, the reclusive former NZ-based Aussie squillionaire who founded Kathmandu ?

Well, when she flogged the outdoor gear shop to private equity last year, she kept her stake in another Kiwi adventure gear outlet, Fairydown.

But having moved back to Tassie to enjoy our tax regime, it's emerged she's considering flogging Fairydown.

If you haven't heard of Fairydown this side of the dutch, there's a good reason.

While it was the gear that kept Sir Edmund Hillary snug atop Mount Everest, apparently the name was always considered too "gay" for homophobic Aussies.

Fairydown, which in fact began life as Fairy, has struggled recently after parent company Arthur Ellis was bought out by AMP Capital Partners. Hugo Venter, a former Arthur Ellis boss, tried in 2003 to reincarnate it as "Zone" in Australia to de-fairyfy it.

© 2007 Sydney Morning Herald

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