Allegedly, Chretien offered to fall on his sword and take the blame for it, but Martin -- foreshadowing what a forgettable PM he'd end up being -- refused that, because he wanted it to look like he was taking bold, decisive action against corruption. Clearly not the wisest move, but that's the rumour.
I think Chretien would've been able to whitewash it all, though. Does anyone remember the Billion Dollar Boondoggle? Six months before the 2000 Federal Election, the AG report showed that the government had somehow misplaced around a billion dollars. Just couldn't account for where any of it had gone. He turned that around into a defense of government spending, and had his House Whip (Don Boudria) deflect every question that came his way in QP with a binder full of how much the government had spent in every riding. It was totally avoiding the question, but it worked, and the next fall they gained something like 30 seats (they were helped, of course, by running against Stockwell Day).
I think Chretien would've pulled the same thing with Adscam, and I think it would've worked. A defense of keeping the country together during its darkest post-referendum days, a little of his APEC ("Pepper? I put it on my plate.") charm, and people would've forgotten all about it by the time Martin came to power.
)