There’s quite a frenzy swirling around Rob Ford after he admitted Tuesday that he has smoked crack during his tenure as mayor. Ford told reporters he wasn’t sure exactly when, because he was in a "drunken stupor" at the time.
Humour us for a moment, and let’s put the focus back on his policies and record as mayor.
Here are five reasons why the Ford mayoralty, in lock-step on matters of policy with Ford allies in the Conservative government in Ottawa, has been a disaster.
1. Cutting services
Ford’s platform promised “No service cuts.” That’s not how it turned out. In addition to drastic reductions in transit services, other areas hit have included social services, planning and heritage, parks and recreation, street cleaning and snow removal.
2. Pushing privatization
Like the Conservative government in Ottawa, Ford is a big fan of privatization. This headline sums it up pretty well: "Privatized garbage pickup a disaster from day one."
3. Dropping the ball on transit
Canada’s largest city needs a mayor who has a vision for public transit. Ford is no visionary. See: ”Rob Ford’s 1,000-year plan to build transit in Toronto.”
4. Demonizing cyclists
Just google the term along with Ford’s name and check out how many hits come up.
5. Shunning gay pride
Ford always heads to the cottage when the annual Gay Pride Parade rolls through town. This is hardly the leadership people should expect in this decade (or the last few decades) from the mayor of such a diverse and vibrant city.