Tony Abbott talked about roads this week.
That may not seem a big deal, but his Sydney media conference marked a turning point after almost a fortnight of focus on one issue: getting the bodies of MH17 victims out of Ukraine.
The prime minister received an expected and warranted bounce in his personal ratings from his single-minded effort to satisfy the families of the victims of pro-Russian separatist missile attack.
But coalition strategists are very much aware the government still trails Labor in two-party terms and faces a difficult task to turn that around, even with a public focus on the strength of Australia's leadership in the MH17 response.
It appears likely the Australian and Dutch police contingent won't get the unfettered access to the crash site in eastern Ukraine that the United Nations Security Council sought a week ago.
Ukrainian government forces are intensifying their efforts to take back towns seized by separatists.
The pro-Russian militia, who at least initially pulled back from areas around the crash site, are gearing up to defend the territory.
What happens next will largely depend on the attitude of the Russians who are supplying arms to the militia.
Abbott has been reluctant to judge Russian President Vladimir Putin too harshly.
But the United States and Europe haven't hesitated to tighten sanctions on Russian companies and the government to get a ceasefire and full withdrawal.
Putin, who is set to shake hands with Abbott when he visits Australia in November for the G20 summit, is being backed into a corner with little chance to save face.
Add to this the fact that two-thirds of Russian voters think the sanctions are a joke, it makes it all the more likely that Putin won't give up on "freeing" the people of eastern Ukraine and abandoning them to Russia's enemies.
The Ukrainian part of the investigation into the MH17 crash would then have to be abandoned, leaving police and forensic experts to piece together what happened based on the already gathered evidence.
The fields of eastern Ukraine may in time become like those of Flanders or Villers-Bretonneux, with bodies never to be recovered but always to be remembered.
It is perhaps with that in mind that a memorial service has been planned for Melbourne on August 7.
It will be an opportunity for the nation to grieve and move forward, even though the families still await the identification of their loved ones.
The government has subtly begun turning its attention to domestic matters, as Abbott showed with his western Sydney roads announcement.
With parliament due to return on August 26, and much of the budget to be legislated, the government still needs to win over cross-bench senators.
Treasurer Joe Hockey, who flew to Tasmania to speak with maverick Palmer United Party senator Jacqui Lambie on Thursday, has flagged a willingness to deal.
"From time to time there will always be changes ... the intent of the budget is to get back to surplus," he says.
However, both the treasurer and prime minister have ruled out a mini-budget and talked down the idea of a double-dissolution election, which the coalition would almost certainly lose at this point.
As with previous minority-held senates, governments have found the best way to do deals is to appeal to a senator's passion for the state they represent.
Hence Hockey's round of talks on their home turf.
The treasurer has maintained a high profile over the past fortnight, spruiking his new authorised biography and strategising the budget pitch as Abbott kept his head in the Ukraine.
Hockey's success in securing the passage of key budget measures would be an undoubted plus for the government.
But it could also serve to boost his leadership credentials should Abbott's ratings dip as domestic issues come to fore once more.
Interestingly, Hockey has shared the podium with Abbott twice this week - in Tasmania to talk about jobs and in Sydney for the roads announcement.
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