GO BEHIND THE HEADLINES as Prime Minister Stephen Harper visits Governor General Michaëlle Jean for the second time in 3 months.

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Canada Governor-General Michaelle Jean saves PM Stephen Harper from ousting (Dec. 6, The Australian) read

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Lest we forget, it was just 3 short months ago that Prime Minister Stephen Harper visited Governor General Michaëlle Jean to seek the dissolution of parliament and send Canadians to the polls. For the governor general - a position many Canadians deem ceremonial - and the prime minister, there are many ins and outs regarding the legalities of this relationship. And that's what makes this interview so interesting.

THE INTERVIEW Patrick Monahan, dean of Osgoode Hall Law School at York University, appeared on The Agenda with Steve Paikin on September 5, 2008 (go to episode page) to analyze Harper's decision to override his own legislation on the timing of federal elections, and examine the legal complexities of the relationship between the GG and the PM.

Steve Paikin wrote on September 5, in a blog post titled, Getting Ready for The Call:
Others ... believe even with the fixed date, there's nothing that legally prohibits the PM from asking the governor-general to send us to the polls. And that the GG has no option but to oblige the PM.

IN A FORESHADOWING OF THINGS TO COME, the subject of Stéphane Dion forming a government by coalition comes up, and Monahan states, "There's really no chance whatsoever that Stéphane Dion could form a government. In order to form a government ... he'd have to get the support of both the Bloc Québécois and the NDP ... Mr. Layton is not going to support Mr. Dion ... and Mr. Duceppe ... is certainly not going to support Mr. Dion ... so there's really no chance whatsoever that Dion could form a government."

If a week is a lifetime in politics, then 3 months is an eternity.