Jody Wilson-Raybould, the ex-justice minister, who is rightly or wrongly embroiled in the SNC-Lavalin affair, has had enough; she resigned from her position in the Trudeau cabinet Tuesday, but she is not going quietly.
As she did when she was demoted from the justice portfolio, Wilson-Raybould issued a short statement in which she thanked her constituents, her colleagues and the Indigenous communities for their support, but there was no mention whatsoever of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
READ MORE: Trudeau ‘disappointed’ by Wilson-Raybould’s resignation, says she raised no concerns on SNC-Lavalin
That glaring omission, plus the prime minister’s terse statement announcing Wilson-Raybould’s resignation, which did not include the traditional thanks for her service, re-enforces the feeling that there is a huge rift between the PM and his minister.
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Time will tell if there will be any continued political fallout on the issue, but, with the SNC-Lavalin issue still percolating, it’s another headache the PM doesn’t need.
WATCH BELOW: What’s next for Jody Wilson-Raybould after her resignation?
More importantly, now that Wilson-Raybould has been emancipated from the shackles of Cabinet confidentiality, it appears she may be preparing to tell her side of the SNC-Lavalin affair.
She’s hired prominent lawyer Thomas Cromwell to represent her on this file and offer guidance on what she can and can’t say about the issue.
It’s purely speculative to suggest that any statements from Wilson-Raybould would inflame or deflate the controversy surrounding the SNC-Lavalin issue, but it has the government on the defensive again and that’s never a good thing in an election year.
Bill Kelly is the host of the Bill Kelly Show on Global News Radio 900 CHML.