Political bottom feeders in Western Sydney

I wanted to find a historical derivation of the phrase "bottom feeder", but couldn't in the time. I wanted to include it in this short post.

The Australian Prime Minister has been campaigning in Western Sydney. Not averse to seizing any opportunity, the Opposition Leader appeared in that area as well. They and some of their senior colleagues got dragged into a debate over refugees and migration that I can only describe as unseemly. My boat will be smaller than your boat more or less summarises one thread in the exchange of slogans. I can be tougher than you can be, another.

For the life of me, I can't see why the PM allowed herself to be dragged into campaign mode in Western Sydney. I would have thought that blind freddy could see that it was a high risk strategy. It just doesn't make sense. Among other things, it destroys the one thing she has going for her, the advantage of incumbency, the capacity to at least pretend to stand above the campaign fray. We are running the country. Let Mr Abbott campaign. We don't have time.

I was trying to work out just what hot house atmosphere allowed a plan to be hatched that was so disconnected from reality. Anyway, it's done. Now we just have to suffer through an interminably long campaign in which policy and the actual business of running the country will come second to immediate events.