After Payette resigned, the office suddenly seems ceremonially important

Last summer, the CBC published a report about an office that is often all but forgotten about, the office of the Canadian Governor-General. The Governor-General, of course, is the representative of the Queen in Canada. The powers of the office are understood to be largely ceremonial and diplomatic: but when a minority government is in power the office does do some important bureaucratic work signaling when the minority government may have lost its mandate and formally triggering a new election. 

  This summer the office came into the limelightLimelight (noun): literally, the word refers to be in the theatrical spotlight; it’s a historical reference to the way theatrical stages used to be lit in the early nineteenth-century, wherein they would heat lime. Today, the word refers figuratively to the attention of the broader public. To be ‘in the limelight’ means that a number of media have taken note of you and are prominently featuring you across various platforms. , and not in a good way. The CBC reported that Julie Payette—Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s choice for the job—had created a toxic atmosphere at Rideau Hall. According to a number of anonymous sources, Payette had a long track record of berating Berate (verb): to berate someone is to abuse them verbally for a sustained period of time. employees, humiliating them in public, and relentlessly finding scapegoatsScapegoat (noun): a person who is publicly blamed (and punished) for the wrongdoings of another person. Synonym of ‘to take the fall for someone’. for her own shortcomings. While the charges were not of a sexual nature, the accusations of bullying came against a backdrop of the second wave of #metoo charges in Quebec; the idea of such a toxic workplace at such a high level during these times of crisis created a public relations problem for Trudeau and the Liberal Party. Trudeau, of course, is still recovering from a year of minor and mid-level scandals: the WE charity and the SNC-Lavalin scandals played out over the past several months. Trudeau stuck by his Governor-General in September, but the controversy never sufficiently died down. It has been noted that when Payette was appointed, Trudeau did not review a panel of candidates for the position, instead simply appointing what appeared to be his first choice.
Last week, an independent report corroborated the anonymous sources: the working environment was toxic. Thursday, Ms. Payette resigned via a letter that appeared to deny the allegations, insisting that she was resigning for the good of the country. Her resignation comes at an awkward time and highlights that the Governor-General’s office is not entirely ceremonial. If Trudeau’s minority government were to fail a confidence vote, they would need to turn to the Governor General’s office in order to dissolve Parliament and hold an election.
The Governor General’s office acts, perhaps, as a bit of a Canadian political traffic director. As of today, that position is vacant and just at the moment when it might be needed. The entire episode, it appears, has given conservatives new ammunition in their quest to unseat Justin Trudeau’s Liberals from power. 

i. “Gov. Gen. has created a toxic climate of harassment and verbal abuse at Rideau Hall,
sources allege.” CBC. Jul 21, 2020. 9 mins. Intermediate. 

ii. “Independent firm completes review into claims of ‘toxic’ environment at Rideau Hall.” CBC.
Jan 21, 2021. 6 mins. Intermediate. 

iii. “Canada’s Governor General Resigns Amid Reports of a Toxic Workplace.” The New York
Times. Jan 21, 2021. 4 mins. Intermediate/Advanced. 

iv. “Read Governor General Julie Payette’s Full Resignation Letter.” The Globe and Mail. Jan
21, 2021. 3 mins. Intermediate/Advanced 

v. “Payette is the one resigning — but Justin Trudeau has to wear it.” CBC. Jan 22, 2021. 5
mins. Intermediate/Advanced.