Nazi Germany has been invoked as part of a deepening spat between Nick Xenophon and a former ally, who has compared Mr Xenophon's legal work for Chinese tech giant Huawei to being on the payroll of German arms manufacturers on the eve of World War II.
In an extraordinary speech to federal parliament, independent senator Rex Patrick lashed out at Mr Xenophon, who was hired by Huawei more than two years ago when the company was banned from supplying 5G services in Australia.
Mr Xenophon has vigorously rejected Senator Patrick's comments, describing them as a "disgrace" and a "miserable" attempt to appeal to voters.
Both men recently announced their intentions to seek re-election to the Senate at the upcoming federal election, turning them into electoral enemies and triggering an escalating war of words between them.
"[Mr Xenophon] was entitled, as a private individual, to work for whoever he wished," Senator Patrick told the Senate last night.
Krupp was a major weapons supplier to the Third Reich, while Messerschmitt was an aircraft company that built planes for the Luftwaffe that were then deployed to raze European cities.
Senator Patrick continued his broadside by accusing Mr Xenophon of treating Huawei as an "underdog" rather than a "vast Chinese conglomerate".
"Mr Xenophon now says that he has not worked for Huawei for some time, though we don't know when he ceased. He now claims to support the Australian government's 5G ban on Huawei," Senator Patrick said.
"As a declared Senate candidate, he should now, in the interests of transparency and accountability, disclose the full details of his contractual relationship with Huawei."
Mr Xenophon was elected to the Senate in 2007 but resigned from his seat in 2017 to mount an ultimately unsuccessful bid to run for the South Australian parliament, before returning to legal practice.
His exit from federal politics allowed Senator Patrick — a long-time adviser to Mr Xenophon and former submariner — to fill the vacancy in the federal parliament's upper house.
Mr Xenophon today slammed the remarks of his ally-turned-adversary.
"It is unbecoming of Rex Patrick to reference the lead-up to the Holocaust in a miserable attempt to dredge up some votes," Mr Xenophon told the ABC.
Mr Xenophon said his involvement with Huawei — which he was previously quizzed about in 2019 — was strictly confined to legal advice.
"The law firm Xenophon Davis acted for Huawei Australia. They were under ruthless attack and we defended their legal rights, as lawyers do," he said.
"We were not lobbyists for them, we didn't engage with Canberra at all.
"Is [Senator] Patrick suggesting that, if you are a Chinese company or person, you are not entitled to a legal defence? Is that the Australia he wants?
"How dare he question my loyalty as an Australian — it is a disgrace upon him."
Independent MP Rebekha Sharkie — who was elected to federal parliament for the Nick Xenophon Team, which then rebranded as Centre Alliance — was this morning asked about Senator Patrick's comments.
She told ABC Radio Adelaide she had not heard the speech.
"I think many people were surprised when Nick did work for Huawei," she said.
Ms Sharkie said Senator Patrick had "done a really good job" in the Senate, but Mr Xenophon "has the right to put his hand up" to contest the seat.
