Comedian Josh Thomas and Liberal MP Wyatt Roy have gone tweet to tweet over asylum seeker policy - and it got personal.
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The very public argument started with 21 characters tweeted by the Please Like Me star to Roy: "You're being a twerp".
The comment was made in reply to the Queensland MP's tweet: "1100 deaths at sea, 1400 children in detention.Our polices have saved lives– a fact lost on Labor members".
The tweet was accompanied by a nearly five-minute video of Roy addressing Parliament on the "hypocrisy of the Left".
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@Wyatt_MP You're being a twerp. — Josh Thomas (@JoshThomas87)
October 22, 2014
Thomas, whose show has been nominated in the comedy category for an International Emmy, then fired off a series of tweets accusing the government of cruelty and hiding the truth.
.@Wyatt_MP If the goal of being cruel to asylum seekers is to deter people from getting on boats then why the secrecy? — Josh Thomas (@JoshThomas87) October 22, 2014
.@Wyatt_MP And why not be crueler? We are a great, rich nation. Kick them in the balls, film it and put it on YouTube. — Josh Thomas (@JoshThomas87) October 22, 2014
He sent Roy a link to this Sydney Morning Herald article about allegations of 33 cases of sexual abuse involving children in detention centres in Australia.
"Remember when you guys cut foreign aid? Remember when you spend $1b a year on detention centres? You aren't nice guys/girl," Thomas tweeted.
The 27-year-old also quizzed Roy on what would happen to gay refugees settled in Papua New Guinea, where homosexuality is illegal.
Roy, who was the youngest person ever elected to the Australian Parliament, was quick to defend his side, saying there were at least 515 fewer children in detention compared to when the government took office.
The 24-year-old said Australia could now accommodate "more of the world's most vulnerable" and asylum seekers were no longer drowning trying to reach Australia.
@JoshThomas87 In 07 only 4 ppl in detention, no children. 2013 1400 children in detention.Reduced that # by over 516 http://t.co/OgUBh3K26K — Wyatt Roy MP (@Wyatt_MP) October 22, 2014
He also fired these zingers:
@JoshThomas87 really? Is this where you are going with this conversation. No wonder you have to ask ppl to like you. http://t.co/OgUBh3K26K — Wyatt Roy MP (@Wyatt_MP) October 22, 2014
@JoshThomas87 is this part of your routine? I wouldn't open with that in any company http://t.co/OgUBh3K26K — Wyatt Roy MP (@Wyatt_MP) October 22, 2014
In a pared back tweet, Thomas responded: "No, it wasn't a joke".
In what appears to be the final tweet in the argument, Thomas attempted to bring Immigration Minister Scott Morrison into the discussion.
@Wyatt_MP Also, there are less because loads were sent back to danger. It's not good having @ScottMorrisonMP as your legal guardian. — Josh Thomas (@JoshThomas87) October 22, 2014
Morrison kept his fingers clear of the keyboard. In fact, he hasn't posted on his verified Twitter account since 2013, when he congratulated the Cronulla Sharks rugby league team on "an incredible performance in such a tough season".
This isn't the first time Thomas has taken an Australian politician to task. Earlier this month on ABC's Q&A program, Thomas got into a heated exchange with maverick north Queensland MP Bob Katter about comments he had made about homosexuality.
"You go out and you deny the existence of homosexuals in North Queensland; they exist. There's an app called Grindr; I'll put it on your phone," Thomas said.
"All you need to do to answer the question is say: 'You know what, I've said some stuff in the past, it was a mistake. I understand now, it's hurting people's mental health, it's part of the problem, not part of the solution. I'm sorry, hooray for gay people, here's some glitter.' That's it. You've fixed it."