Rob Ford.
Remember him? The former mayor of Toronto isn't in the spotlight the way he used to be, but he's still in municipal politics, and still itching for a fight.
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Help yourself to an orange croissant, as usual, and continue below.
Rob Ford was mayor of Toronto from 2010 to 2014. His term ended last November, when he did not run for re-election as mayor, but instead ran for a seat on city council, which he won.
Ford started to gather international attention during the course of 2013, as a crack-smoking scandal slowly unveiled. In May of that year, the Toronto Star reported the existence of a cell phone video showing Rob Ford smoking crack. Toronto police said they were in possession of that video in October, as the result of an investigation of drug gangs. Ford variously denied that he was in the video, that the video even existed, or "that I have never seen or does not exist". Look, if you have to resort to weasel words without simply saying "yes" or "no", then the answer is "yes".
It exists.
Just days later, Ford admitted that "probably in one of my drunken stupors" he had smoked crack, but refused to resign as mayor. A second crack-smoking video surfaced in April 2014. He took a leave of absence from May 1 through June 30 of 2014, and entered a drug rehab program.
Meanwhile, comedians of all stripes had a field day. The "crack-smoking mayor" of Toronto became a regular topic on the U.S. late night shows. Ford kept the feeding frenzy going by making more and more outrageous statements, shoving a councillor on the floor of the council chambers, and many other antics. Still, he refused to step aside or resign from office.
Ford did originally declare that he was up for re-election in the October 2014 elections, but eventually withdrew for medical reasons. His brother Doug took up the challenge and ran for mayor at the last moment, but lost. Rob instead ran for a seat on city council, and won that election with 58.9% of the votes.
What's he been up to since then?
According to the Toronto Star, Rob Ford is itching for a fight. He wants to be re-elected mayor in the 2018 cycle, and he's in full combat mode with the current Toronto mayor, John Tory:
Indeed, Ford has signalled by his words and actions over the last two weeks that he has unofficially kicked off his 2018 mayoral bid. Ford has made no secret of wanting to run again if his health holds up.
In doing so he has sent a strong message to Tory that he will be pandering once again to his Ford Nation fanatics, dogging the new mayor on everything from taxes to buses, garbage collection and “wasteful” city hall spending.
Rob Ford's health is not in the best state these days. He has a tumour in his abdomen, and has had five rounds of chemotherapy, with 27 days of radiation treatment to follow. Still, he thinks that the city needs him, and only him, to lead it. And he appears to have a solid base of support:
While it would be nice to ignore Ford, it would also be foolish to dismiss his chance in the 2018 election if his health permits him to run.
And yet:
Also, he has fallen back into his old pattern of being a lone wolf on city council, voting against virtually everything and rarely working with other councillors. These days he is more isolated than ever at city hall now that his brother Doug is no longer on council.
And it's Tory vs. Ford in a
heated debate in city council:
[Tory]: ... and the fact is, I won the election.
Rob Ford can't seem to get over the fact that somebody else is occupying
his entitled chair.
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February 10, 2015
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