HEARD THIS ONE BEFORE — Blame everyone but JUSTIN TRUDEAU. There’s some sort of accountability exercise going on and Deputy Prime Minister CHRYSTIA FREELAND is being set up as a political sacrifice. — Her apparent offense: Being an ineffectual sales agent (translation: lousy communicator) for the economic policies led by a PM who went into a pandemic election declaring he doesn’t prioritize thinking about monetary policy. — It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s a Cabinet shuffle trial balloon: Two anonymous sources dumped on Freeland by way of a report from The Globe and Mail’s BOB FIFE, knocking the DPM for failing to deliver an “upbeat economic message.” In Washington at the NATO summit, the story caused a stir among the press traveling with Trudeau, prompting the PMO to smother it with denials. — Fife vs. Fife: The fishbowl chatter compared and contrasted Thursday’s talker with the August 2020 bombshell that spelled the beginning of the end of former finance minister BILL MORNEAU's political career. Note the similarities and differences in Fife’s verbiage and sourcing: → Headlines: Both set up conflict between the minister and the Prime Minister’s Office. In 2020, Morneau’s job was “in jeopardy” after “clashes” with the boss. On Thursday, the story’s digital headlines evolved throughout the morning. Each mentioned rising tensions between the offices. → Unnamed sources: Four years ago, Fife vaguely cited “insiders” and “sources” widely believed to be PMO staffers. Yesterday, Ottawa's scoop machine attributed “two sources” who claim to be familiar with “the view of some senior officials” in PMO — including KATIE TELFORD. → The Carney in the room: Both stories name-checked MARK CARNEY, the former central banker and forever-maybe Liberal leadership aspirant. Four years ago, “sources did not deny” Carney could replace Morneau. On Thursday, sources cited “discussions internally about the possibility of recruiting” Carney. — Where in the world is Carney? England, where he recently sat in the royal box overlooking Wimbledon's center court. Carney also took meetings this week at 10 Downing. → They said, they said: 2020’s tale didn't include formal PMO comment on day one. Morneau’s office did provide a quote. In Thursday's story, the PMO said the boss “has full trust” in Freeland. Per Fife, the minister's office “was not available to comment.” → Timing: The 2020 hit also landed in the summer before the next federal election, just like Thursday’s Freeland story. Time is running out for a shuffle if the PMO is truly looking for someone new to hold the pen for next year’s high-stakes election budget. → Trudeau initial reaction: Trudeau told reporters in Washington Thursday that he’s been trying to convince Carney to join federal politics for years. This was after he was asked to confirm reporting by the Toronto Star’s ALTHIA RAJ that he’s had discussions with Carney about the possibility of replacing Freeland in finance. Trudeau didn’t answer the question directly — that is, he didn't outright deny it. Freeland is a “close friend and ally and partner,” Trudeau said. “I have full confidence in her abilities, and on the work we're going to be doing together.” In 2020, Trudeau expressed “full confidence” in Morneau immediately after the Globe ran its first story. Morneau resigned a week later. — In related reading: CHRIS NARDI of the National Post notes, “PMO's leaks targeting Freeland evoke memories of the purge of Bill Morneau.” And from the Globe’s CAMPBELL CLARK: “A cunning plan to leave the Finance Minister dangling by a thread.” — Sloppy or genius comms: The Globe piece dropped the same day Trudeau was ready at last to announce a timeline to reach NATO’s 2 percent defense-spending target. — Curious timing: The PM chose to make his announcement at the close of the summit in Washington. Had he shared his 2032 target at the start of the week, it may have saved Canada from being called a U.S. defense freeloader by Senate Minority Leader MITCH MCCONNELL (R-Ky.), Sen. DAN SULLIVAN (R-Alaska) and others. It’s not like the extra days helped policy advisers firm up any details. — Back to (Ottawa) life. Back to (political) reality: It’s been nearly a year since the PM attempted a major reset to Cabinet. Not only did the touted overhaul fail to reset Liberal fortunes, it actually backfired after failing to live up to the hype. — Will she stay or will she go? One senior Liberal told Playbook on Thursday they are absolutely certain Freeland will stay put. "I don't think she's going anywhere. In fact, she's not going anywhere," they said, pointing to her involvement in taking on "nearly every major crisis and obstacle the government has tackled since NAFTA, and actually going back further to CETA." — Gaming this out: If whiteboards in the PMO are already toying with the idea of another summer shuffle, there’s a stack of dates for consideration before the House returns Sept. 16. → Timing will depend on Trudeau’s annual summer vacation. → There’s a Cabinet retreat to plan for (usually late August or early September). → There will also be a pre-sitting caucus retreat. → Trudeau must also call a by-election in the Montreal riding of LaSalle–Émard–Verdun by July 30 for a vote that has to take place by Sept. 16, latest. Liberals still don’t have a candidate in that riding after Trudeau dumped former Justice Minister DAVID LAMETTI from Cabinet, which led to his resignation. SEND US YOUR SMART TAKES: Think a Cabinet shuffle is on the horizon? Email us: ottawaplaybook@politico.com | 
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