The scathing indictment by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s report of the government’s overall failure was not something that Trudeau wanted to own up to just before an election. He therefore seized the opportunity to portray the Catholic Church as the culprit responsible for the deaths of the Indigenous school children. To create the scenario, Trudeau publicly called on Pope Francis to come to Canada and personally apologize to the Indigenous people. The government subsidised media picked up on Trudeau’s agenda and promoted a smear campaign against the Catholic Church.