Three federal parliamentarians were in attendance at Echuca: The local liberal party member, Sharman Stone, Nationals Senator Barnaby Joyce, and Federal Opposition leader, Tony Abbott. Right from the outset, the LYM were in their faces, challenging them to show how seriously they care about farmers, by repealing the Water Act 2007, which they voted for and passed.

Sharman Stone was campaigning for the Victorian election, opportunistically blaming Labor and the Greens for the policy to shut down the food bowl, and attempt to cover up the Coalition's role in passing the Water Act 2007. She stormed off when LYM member, Glen Isherwood, confronted her on it. Barnaby Joyce was spoken to and given the MDBA Fraud DVD. Glen told Barnaby that the only way to defeat the MDBA Plan, was either by Tony Burke rejecting it, or the Water Act being repealed, and Tony Burke was not going to listen because he didn't listen to the farmers when the Single Desk was being dismantled. Barnaby didn't disagree, but his only course of action was oriented to inquiries and parliamentary processes, which he later raised in his question to the MDBA. He remembered our 2008 food crisis mobilisation, and was very agitated by our presence.

Just before the event began, Tony Abbott rocked up too, and Aaron Isherwood was quickly on to him. Aaron asked him quickly, "Are you going to repeal the Water Act? Are you going to stop this policy which is genocide? This policy will kill Australians!" At several points during the event, Aaron intersected Tony, and hammered him on this issue.

Doug Mitchell and Glen Isherwood asked question to the MDBA authority. They were attempts to raise the mindsets of the people in attendance, to recognise the bigger picture: that they were being targeted for extermination under this policy. When Doug Mitchell got up to ask a question, Sharman Stone herself immediately got up to stand behind him, to ask the next question, however, her intention was to intimidate and distract. The audience were not happy when Doug finished his question, which had rubbed a raw nerve. He stated that the Liberals and Nationals were equally implicated in the plan, with the Water Act, and the only way it can be stopped is by repealing the act. Halfway through the question, Stone taunted Doug from behind, saying that people could vote for the CEC instead of them. Doug exclaimed, "Yes! You can do that!" Many in the audience didn't like Doug being so explicit, and many appeared to side with Sharman Stone, their local Liberal member, who they have put their faith in, to save them. This showed the manipulation that these communities allow to happen to themselves. Ian Sinclair, the moderator, ignored the question Doug put, and moved to the microphone on, not even bothering to ask the MDBA whether they wanted to respond. Glen Isherwood later asked a question. The audience, when mentioning he was from CEC, let out a bunch of hisses, whispers and a few jeers. After they settled down, Glen continued. Upon hearing mention of the Wentworth Group, Ian Sinclair got impatient, saying the Wentworth group is not the point to talk about in the meeting, and telling him to hurry up. Glen said it was the point, and continued. Following the question, many people in the crowd applauded! In response, Mike Taylor first said that the social implications are very important, and tried to emphasise that he cares, although it is obvious that he is just attempting to dispel the anger people have. Taylor again denied the Wentworth group had any connection to the MDBA report. But then, in an ironic double speak, confirmed that the whole point of the Water Act 2007 is "Ecological Sustainability", as is the MDBA report, which Glen had pointed out in his question!

One funny question came from a lady, who continued to press home the point that it was Turnbull and the Liberals who pushed this through, and that since Tony Abbott, who was one who voted it through, was there in attendance, she wanted to know if he had big enough balls in his budgie smugglers to go back to Canberra, and oppose this seriously. There was wild laughter and cheers from the entire audience.

Tony Abbott got up and said that no Act is ever perfect, but with Barnaby Joyce and Bill Heffernan, we can get a good outcome for farmers. He said that he would support any proposal that came from them, putting them up as the front-men for the Liberal/Nationals. This again, is pulling the farmers into a trap, using populism to get them to slit their own throats.

After the event, the LYM really turned up the heat, to intervene on the MPs that were there. As Abbott, Stone and Joyce came to give a press conference, Aaron jovially asked Tony whether he had managed to get his story straight for the media. Again, he walked quickly on, and Aaron followed behind. After Abbott and co masturbated for the media, pinning the blame entirely on Labor and the Greens, and admitting no role of their own in writing up the objectives, Aaron got a question in as Tony started taking questions. Aaron asked if the three had read the Water Act. They all said "Of Course!" indignantly, and then Sharman exclaimed "We wrote it!" Aaron shot back, "Exactly!", and as Aaron tried to follow up that question, Sharman tried to go on the defensive and make a statement, but Aaron pressed. Barnaby, who had been watching us intently throughout the meeting, started whispering in Tony's ear, then said we couldn't ask a question because we were political. The three MPs then quickly split, taking no more questions, and sealing their lips. As Abbott was walking away, Glen, who was behind the camera at that point, said to Tony, "It was your government who passed the Water Act, you set the terms of the report. What do you say to that? Do you accept that you guys are responsible?" He smiled goofily but said nothing.

Sharman Stone, who remained a little behind, was bragging that the Water Act was not to blame, and that it was Labor and Greens. LYM member, Katherine, confronted her, quite angrily, saying that it was the Liberal Party who gave the absolute power, under the authority, to Tony Burke, the minister for Agriculture and Sustainable Population and "you, Sharman, voted for it...You set up the fact, that the parliament will not pass this (the MDBA Report), but Tony Burke and the Crown will. YOU!" Sharman, who was initially trying to intimidate Katherine, said nothing.

In a remarkably tragic conclusion to the intervention, some farmers, visibly enraged, came up to Aaron, and yelled at him for ruining their chances of defeating the MDBA plan, because we upset and scared away Tony Abbott! However, one of the farmers who remained behind, was more reasonable, and hung around to find out the real history, which we had brought to the meeting. A Victorian Farmers Federation representative was also very impressed with our infrastructure proposals, but thought we should "drop the other stuff and concentrate on that". Aaron asked, "if they are so great, what is preventing them being built? That's the issue. That is why we are going after Prince Philip," etc. He was worried, and reluctantly agreeable, because he knew deep down that it is true. He remembered us from the Melbourne meeting.

What stood out, to the LYM members, was the danger of how the communities in these areas get easily manipulated by the tradition of the Liberal/National attachment they have. It was a real sore point for many, when we went after this in discussions and in Doug's question particularly. Many of the farmers don't know the history, and many prefer to look for an easy explanation, that it is the Greens who are killing us. However, what is important, is rather than saying what is populist and easy to accept, is saying what is true. It really isn't the greenies that have caused this, they are what they are, but it is the failed axioms and traditions of the entire culture, which show up within the farmer mentality, which are killing them. However, what is an interesting observation is when you explain that the British are behind the environmentalist policy, and specifically Prince Philip and the WWF, there was no defense of the Monarchy. And when some farmers attempted to defend the Monarchy, discussion quickly shifted to the real policy of depopulation, and they were a target. Farmers are really being forced to think when faced with the choice of saving their farms and livelihood, or being loyal to the Monarchy, who are killing it. Many seem more inclined to save their areas. In the organising, we must emphasise that part of that fight, is taking a passionate stand to save the nation as a whole, not just their local area, the MDB. That is why it is essential to circulate the DVD, "The Great Murray Darling Basin Fraud".