Have You Driven A Ford Lately?

Apparently not too many:

Ford needs to get his own life in order.

He is now a liability to his own agenda of fiscal conservatism, because the longer he stays in office, the more City Hall will become a circus, preoccupied with the mayor’s personal issues and credibility rather than with spending taxpayers’ money wisely.

Rob Ford is now the issue, so that means Rob Ford must leave. That said the ardour of his supporters remains undimmed. For some time we've been making fun of Justin Trudeau's supporters for their blind adherence to the Shiny Pony, no matter what silly little words fall out of his mouth. The fact that the Once and Future King is nothing more than a prepackaged product of Gerald Butts & Co, will not change his fans' dreamy obsession. In a very narrow sense, Rob Ford and Justin Trudeau seem to be getting their teflon from the same shop.

The difference is that Justin's support comes from the ignorant and the witless. Ford Nation is comprised of a different type of voter: Desperate conservatives. Having had years of David Miller's insufferable Left-wing smugness, and a city council that tips precariously between semi-sane and semi-ridiculous, the bloated form of Rob Ford was initially a blessing. Sure he was living proof that you can take the boy out of the trailer park, but not the trailer park out of the boy, but he seemed competent and hard working. He also possessed that rarest of political virtues: He did what he said he was going to do.

This is the tragedy of Rob Ford, his white trash persona has overwhelmed his better qualities. Instead of surrounding himself with clever and tough people, he has an entourage that would give the Hell's Angels second thoughts. When he says something intelligent, it comes out as remarkably stupid. For several months he could not complete a sentence without using the phrase "gravy train." Then there is the touchy arrogance. A man more comfortable in his skin would have apologized for his behaviour, sought help, and returned to city government stronger and more popular than ever. But a man capable of that level of self awareness doesn't call up a Toronto Sun columnist and start yelling. 

Now imagine the anti-Rob Ford. Imagine someone with John Tory's personality and skills but with Rob Ford's convictions and toughness. What you would have, ladies and gentlemen, is a political mastermind capable of reviving the conservative movement in this country. Someone who might make the Great Mike Harris seem like a piker. Toss in some plausible sounding French and Jason Kenney has competition to replace Stephen Harper. Instead we have a big fat might have been hanging over the immediate future of Toronto.

The rest of the country is, no doubt, secretly enjoying this. The Imperial Capital with its imperious tone toward the flyover provincials and hayseeds of the Dominion, stuck with a clownish mayor. It's like showing up at the Royal York and having Red Green working at concierge. It's funny but not always in a good way. Toronto really needed Rob Ford. Unfortunately Rob Ford needs to get his act together. That ain't happening anytime soon.

 

Comments

[Cytotoxic]

"Rob Ford is now the issue, so that means Rob Ford must leave."

No he doesn't-not unless every other 'big visibility' mayor has to resign too. Because a highly visible mayor will always be the issue. That's how politics works. Limited government advocates aren't going anywhere with this glass jaw attitude.

[John Chittick]

There were also a lot of Albertans embarrassed by the antics of Ralph Klein. As difficult as it is for the refined armchair politicos, the collective tolerance of a (crude or unkempt)citizen legislator-not part of the political class is likely the only thing that will return the state to anywhere near legitimacy. Notice that any political icon of the left can get away with anything short of raping babies on TV (or apparently sexting their penises). The left unifies (when it counts) behind their imperfect leaders because theirs is a righteous crusade to advance statism. Conservatives commonly eat their own because there is no real coherent philosophy, just libertarianism corrupted by varying levels of progressivism entangled in over-sized egos.

[MikeG81]

"Rob Ford is now the issue, so that means Rob Ford must leave."

Please. If he was a filthy lefty the media would be crapping themselves to support him.

[Jim Whyte]

I'm a 905er, and consequently a very desperate conservative thanks to the direct property tax levied by Toronto on York, Durham, Peel, and Halton. Anybody that promised fiscal responsibility in the City was indirectly promising some property tax relief in the RMs around it.

(For the uninitiated, we have, since the Mike-gacity was erected, paid a surtax to subsidize municipal government in Toronto. The rationale is that the regions consume Toronto social services -- yes, people come in from Cannington and Palgrave and Headford just to hoover up Toronto social services. Parades of exurban mendicants come down the 404 and 410 every day. No, really.)

A little anecdote, circa 1 March 2006, will give an example of how well THAT pans out. There was a sudden heavy snowfall. I had needed to drive downtown to interview someone, and left Bay/Dundas as the clock was striking 3:00. In four hours (punctuated with frantic cell calls to my wife about who could get to daycare before our son turned into a pumpkin) I got to Steeles. As soon as I crossed into Markham, the roads were plowed, and traffic -- though slowed by the storm -- was moving. I was at the day care in middle-YR half an hour later. (He was unscathed, thanks.)

The City That Works? Yeah, right.

Apropos of my Duffy comment, Ford had a record for being frugal with Council expenses -- the kind of person that gets an expense account and says "it's NOT my money" (rather than "it's not MY money"). I didn't greatly care what kind of stupidity the City got up to, as long as the GO train ran on time and I could leave the Big Smoke behind; but the prospect of not paying as much for the stupidity was a beacon and Ford was the one that lit it.

I was (and remain) a skeptic about the crack video. I have nagging doubts about the City police force's professionalism, after it's been undermined for so long by the lefties on City council. Compare some of the things we've seen in recent years from the OPP and YRP -- and the Toronto force has had much more leftie masters for a much longer time.

But my skepticism is unravelling, particularly after Ford decided he wanted to be oh-so-kewwwl like the Dauphin and told the world he'd toked his way through high school. If he did, it may explain a lot. (Ever notice how dope smokers think the laws exist only as an abstraction, and should of necessity be bent to make them happy? Never a good sign in a politician.)

Many of the other things -- oh, horrors, he got drunk on St. Patrick's Day -- are thanks to the chum in the news-cycle waters and nothing more. Staying sober on St. Patrick's Day, not calling the cops on Marg Delahunty, or not getting a bus for the football players in your charge, are worse moral failings if you ask me. But the pugilism and verbals? That's genuinely objectionable. For a while, he was an asshat, but he was our asshat. Enough of those little accidents of fate and he's just another asshat.

Klein had some of the same non-qualities, too, but he did exactly what you say Ford should have done: backed off and got help.

Can't agree about John Tory's smarts and sophistication. Talk radio is precisely where he belongs, although maybe he'd be a better fit on the other end of the phone line. (Okay, that's all just invective without substance, but really, the guy was terribly inept. I refused my ballot that election and only went to the poll to vote against MMP.)

What Ford has done is give the left a comic effigy to hold up. Fixing the City has become a joke, with him as clown, and increasingly as the gag writer and choreographer too. And so desperation turns to despair.