Close of nominations for the Victorian state by-elections sees pretty much every political party you could think of... except the Liberals.

The Greens, Democrats, DLP, Family First and the ALP are all having a go, as well as nine independents spread over both districts.

So who will all those Liberal voters vote for?

Three years ago today I was talking about the federal election, and all I had to talk about were interest rates, housing affordability and subtle hints about the war in Iraq. Nothing changes does it?

Here is what I said about the claims at the time that under a Labor government interest rates will go up:

I refused to believe that the government in power had anything to do with interest rates beyond a single percentage point. To blame Labor for the 17% interest rates of the late 90's is insane. I'm of the school of thought that it either would have happened anyway, or it was a combination of world economic flow for the 10 to 20 years before the 90s. Sure I have no idea what I'm talking about but you'll never convince me you have proof any single government has any control over this stuff.

The Libs got in and interest rates went up. You might argue they might have gone up more, or less, under a different government. But that isn't the leg they were trying to pull at the time.

They're trying to pull exactly the same leg this time...

This morning I watched "the week in politics" and in it they showed John Howard at a Liberal love in with a microphone walking around the crowd taking questions like he was Ricky Lake or something. One question, being read from a card and sounding seriously staged, was "will you give the same defacto protections and rights to same sex couples" and Howard without blinking said "No", and the crowd applauded.

I wanted to throw a brick through the TV.