Trudeau defends his choice for governor general amid revelations about her past

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is defending his pick for governor generalafter it was revealed she struck and killed a pedestrian while driving and was once the subject of a criminal probe for assault.

Trudeau said Thursday his team did a thorough vet of Julie Payette, a former astronaut who will assume the largely ceremonial post in the fall, and there is nothing in her past that disqualifies her for the job.

"I assure everyone that there are no issues that arose in the course of that vetting process that would be any reason to expect Mme.Payetteto be anything other than theextraordinarygovernorgeneral that she will be," he said, calling her among Canada's "very best."

Trudeau on Julie Payette

7 years ago

Duration 1:10

The Prime Minister spoke to reporters in Barrie, Ontario Thursday

Two issues have emerged since the prime minister announced her appointment last week. First, Payettewas charged with second-degree assault when she lived in Maryland in 2011, but it was later dismissed by prosecutors and the case was "expunged" from her record. Payettehas dismissed the assault allegations.

"For family and personal reasons, I will not comment on these unfounded charges, of which I was immediately and completely cleared many years ago, and I hope that people will respect my private life," Payette said in astatement.

Second, Payette was involved in a fatal car accident in which she was not found at fault. TheToronto Starreported the car accident Wednesday and spoke to the family of the late Theresa Potts, a recovering alcoholic who was on her way to an AA meeting at the time of the incident.

Payettedivorced her former husband, Billie Flynn, a testpilot with Lockheed Martin in the Washington, D.C., area, shortly after the 2011 car collision.

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"Obviously, our hearts go out to the family affected by this tragic accident it's a terrible and tragic thing," Trudeau said.

Trudeausaid the vetting process "raised absolutely no issues," and his talks with the future vice-regal didn't focus on her past.

"The conversations I had with Mme. Payettecentred around the extraordinary service, her vision for the country, her vision of the role that she would fulfill as governor general and demonstrated to me her extraordinary strength in being one of our great governor generals."

Conservative Leader Andrew Scheersaid Trudeau has some questions to answer about the vetting process, but he would not comment on matters in her personal life.

"My position on her nomination has not changed," Scheertold reporters Thursday. "I indicated my support for her nomination when it was first announced."

Scheer on Payette

7 years ago

Duration 0:25

Opposition Leader Andrew Scheer on the government's vetting of Julie Payette for Governor General

Payette was the first Canadian female to visit the International Space Station in 1999, and is a former chief astronaut at the Canadian Space Agency.

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