Maxime Bernier’s ex-girlfriends.

What looked like a non-issue a week ago has exploded with the surprising firing/resignation of Maxime Bernier, ending a rather underwhelming year as foreign affairs minister. Once touted as a possible heir to Harper, his political future is pretty much toast:

Maxime Bernier has resigned as foreign affairs minister, after he acknowledged leaving sensitive government documents out in the open — apparently at his former girlfriend’s home.

Sources told CTV News the documents included classified information for last April’s NATO summit in Romania. One sensitive document contained details about NATO’s military strategy in Afghanistan.

Leaving your stuff at an ex’s is always awkward, so I’d image when it’s confidential NATO files, “awkward” doesn’t even begin to describe it.

So Bernier is out and the former Liberal David Emerson becomes Harper’s third foreign affairs minister, with a shuffle expected this summer, at which point some other poor sucker will get the job. Although it’s a difficult portfolio, I can’t for the life of me imagine them faring any worse than Bernier, who has now given Harper one of the larger black eyes of his time as PM thus far.