Turnbull selectively quotes Menzies,

He wanted to stand apart from the big money, business establishment politics of traditional “conservative” parties so styled of the right, as well as from the socialist tradition of the Australian Labor Party - the political wing of the union movement. Menzies said at the time:

“We took the name ‘Liberal’ because we were determined to be a progressive party, willing to make experiments, in no sense reactionary but believing in the individual, his right and his enterprise, and rejecting the socialist panacea.”

It was a hamfisted attempt to neutralise Tony Abbott. The subtext is Turnbull is more like Menzies than Abbott - thus he Turnbull is the true Liberal, living up to Menzies values.

Fairfax was there to lend a hand, just to make sure the real anti-Abbott message wasn't lost.

JAMES MASSOLA, FAIRFAX:

James Massola, from the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age newspapers. Thanks for your speech of course and I’d like to pick up a point you made about Sir Robert Menzies in founding the Liberal Party which I’m willing to guess is not going to go unnoticed back home. Can I ask do you believe that Menzies-

PRIME MINISTER:

Well I hope that people have noticed that he founded the Liberal Party.

(Laughter)

You’re reflecting very adversely on the historical education of Australians.

(Laughter)

JAMES MASSOLA, FAIRFAX:

Indeed, PM. Can I ask do you believe that Menzies’ legacy, and indeed that your governments agenda is in danger of being hijacked by the conservative wing of your party? Why have you made this point?

PRIME MINISTER:

No, I think it’s very important as I said in my remarks - and indeed using the phrase Tony Abbott, the first person I heard use in our party anyway, the sensible centre - the path for our party was set by Menzies when he brought together both the liberal and conservative traditions and of course these labels will be most debased in social media outrage cycle of today, but he brought together those traditions. John Howard described it as a broad church. They are brought together and indeed they are shared by most of us, share both traditions, they are not exclusive. But the important thing was to set the party as a party of progress, indeed of innovation. Menzies gave a speech in 1966 I recall where he talked about innovation even more often than I normally do, James, so there is nothing new about Liberal Prime Ministers talking about innovation. But the focus has got to be on delivering for the people you represent and pretty much in any policy area and when I often talk about this in the area of energy, ideology is a very poor guide of policy. The focus has got to be on getting results so that is why I say in respect of energy for example my best guides are engineering and economists, not ideology and politics.

The problem for Turnbull in being more Menzies than Menzies is you have to take the good with the bad.  Hard to reconcile progressive, liberal values with this.