What happened to the "inevitable republic" that was taken for granted in 1998?

Of all the media I least expected The Australian to publish an article on "the Australian commentariat and the news reporters [...] barracking for the seemingly inevitable republic".

Christopher Pearson recalled his experience of the 1998 Constitutional Convention and predicts: "Among the past and present premiers, it's not hard to imagine even the likes of Bob Carr campaigning for the preservation of the House of Windsor, if that was what it took to defeat the direct election model."

"AS a journalist in 1998 I attended the Constitutional Convention held in Old Parliament House, Canberra.

"It was a rather unsettling experience because, almost without exception, the Australian commentariat and the news reporters were barracking for the seemingly inevitable republic.

"I was a columnist with The Australian Financial Review and persuaded the editors that in the interests of balance it would be a good idea to send me along as a sceptical, contrarian observer. This stratagem had the added benefit of shaming The Australian, a far more vehemently republican journal, into giving Tony Abbott the same brief."

Read the whole article here.