Bill Clinton comments on Rob Ford, the breaker of every Canadian stereotype

President Bill Clinton on Jimmy Kimmel Live commenting on Rob Ford:

Rob Ford voted against 6 of his own accomplishments

The following is a list of Rob Ford's proclaimed accomplishments... including 6 that he actually voted against. The list was researched and written ...

By Matt Elliott of Metro News

Two months after registering for re-election, Mayor Rob Ford finally has a campaign website.

There was what seemed to be a mad rush to get it ready it over the weekend, prior to the mayor’s appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live. Ford did manage to get in a quick plug for the site while talking to Kimmel. You probably missed it because you were cringing and hiding your eyes.

It’s probably good that the website isn’t getting a ton of attention, because it’s packed with inaccuracies. In addition to a biography that claims Ford is still coaching football at Don Bosco Catholic Secondary School — he was banned from coaching by the school board almost a year ago — the site also has an “accomplishments” section that plays very loose with the facts. So loose, there’s no choice but to do an exhaustive fact check on every single item — my biggest fact check ever.

The following are the list of accomplishments taken off Ford’s website on Monday, March 3. Don’t blame me for the weird capitalization — it was like that when I got there.

But it’s not just the presentation that feels haphazard. The list itself actually leaves out or glosses over a few things that Ford probably should be at least attempting to present as accomplishments.

Of the accomplishments the list does include, several of them are based on bad data. Some are so vague as to be almost meaningless. And at least six of the mayor’s accomplishments relate to things that Ford actually voted against, either as mayor or as councillor.

Here’s the list:

Introduced a Customer Service Reception Desk in City Hall

I can’t find any record of Ford bringing an item to council to create this desk, but there does seem to be a desk near the entrance of city hall where people can ask questions.

Made Nathan Phillips Square Safe and Inviting for Citizens

Ford may be referring to one of two things here. Either this is about a Sue Ann Levy column that complained about too many homeless people in the square, which prompted Ford to complain to the city manager and apparently step up enforcement. Or it’s about the Nathan Phillips Square Revitalization project.

If it’s about the latter, Ford doesn’t have much room to brag. The project began long before Ford became mayor and in 2007 he voted against it. (Page 95) Later, as council debated the 2009 capital budget, Ford moved to remove all funding for the project. (Page 6)

Improving Communication with the City through 311 and mobile apps

311 was a project of the previous administration. Ford was against it. On December 8, 2009, Ford moved to eliminate all funding for plans to implement it.

Improving TTC service

On January 10, 2011, Ford announced his first budget would cut service on dozens of TTC routes. Since then, the fare subsidy for the TTC remains below 2010 levels and the system is wracked widely-reported instances of crowding.

Made TTC an Essential Service

Yep.

Improving Toronto EMS and Toronto Fire Services

Too vague to verify.

Renewed public faith in TCHC

Ford is likely referring to his move to replace the TCHC Board following a 2011 spending scandal. Sure, many felt that action was necessary, but that was also three years ago. Is there still reason for the public to have faith in TCHC? The waiting list for social housing in Toronto has grown from 78,187 in early 2011 to 90,157 last fall. Meanwhile, the TCHC CEO appointed under the Ford administration has been dogged by issues relating to HR practices. The board has since forced him to get more management training.

Made Council more Transparent & Accountable

It’s unclear exactly what this means. In 2010, Ford did propose a series of reforms designed to increase transparency but many of them were not implemented. Most never even came to council or committee for debate.

Posted More Expenses Online

Councillors were already posting their expense online when Ford took office. Under Ford, staff do post expenses made with city-issued credit cards, though the usefulness of this data can be questioned. Still, we’ll give him this one.

Adopted Whistleblower Protection By-law

A true fact.

Eliminated the Personal Vehicle Tax (PVT)

Yep. Though, contrary to Ford’s common refrain, doing so didn’t save the city $240 million somehow.

Reduced Council Expense Budgets

He did. Though council later instituted further reforms that included the creation of a general expense budget shared by all councillors.

Contracted out Garbage Collection

Partial credit. Ford technically only contracted out garbage collection service in one of the city’s four districts. One district was already contracted out prior to this term. Half the city continues to receive city-run service.

Stopped out-of-control spending growth at City Hall

I’m not sure it’s possible for this to be any more vague. Most of the city spending growth over the last decade has been to the gross operating budget, while the net operating budget has grown slowly. This is an important distinction, as the gross budget includes services funded by user fees and transfers from other orders of government. I’ve written lots about this.

Lower Debt- Reduced planned debt by $808 Million

The city’s debt has actually increased under Ford, though that’s due to prior commitments. Planned debt has in fact decreased under Ford, but some of that is because of offsets from a financing strategy introduced in 2012 that banks on operating surpluses and the sale of city assets.

Recently, though, Ford OK’d a plan to increase city debt to build the Scarborough subway extension.

Found over $600 million in permanent efficiency savings

Gee, I thought it was a billion dollars? What happened?

There are many ways to quibble with these figures. It’s important to note these kinds of efficiency savings are not new. Mayor David Miller’s final budget achieved $167 million in savings alone.

Balanced the operating budget, for the first time ever, without using any prior year surplus

Sure, but it’s worth noting that Ford has yet to balance a budget without using one-time revenues. This year, he used just under $70 million in reserve funds — which were funded at least partially through prior-year surplus money in previous budget years — to balance the budget.

Total reduction in City staff of 1,346 since 2011

I get slightly different numbers, but this appears to be accurate enough. The city offered staff buyouts in 2011.

New Surplus Management Strategy: Adopted new financial management strategies

This feels more like a statement than an accomplishment, but yes, the strategy does exist. But it was adopted in 2004.

New Collective Agreement with full and part-time workers

Yes, but again, this is the political equivalent of me bragging about putting my shoes on in the morning. Of course a new collective agreement was put in place — the old one expired. Ford is missing an opportunity to brag here.

Eliminated the 5-cent bag tax: Ensures that retailers have a choice in charging for plastic bags.

A couple of problems here. First, it was never a tax. It was a mandated fee. Second, Ford only managed to eliminate the fee after council made a surprise decision to ban plastic bags altogether but then were forced to back off after city lawyers got involved.

Focused public debate on building subways as Toronto’s long-term rapid transit strategy

True enough, I guess. We’ve had lots of debate about subways over the last three years. But even with Ford’s focus, the TTC and Metrolinx are still in the process of building three LRT lines. I’m not sure Ford’s got much to brag about.

Investing in the TTC: The 2013 budget included over $500 million in new TTC funding

This is a weird one. It’s a very specific claim, but it’s hard to know what it refers to.

It’s definitely not about increasing the TTC’s operating budget. In 2012, the TTC’s operating subsidy from the city was $411 million. It was exactly the same in 2013. So no increase there.

On the capital side, the 10-year capital plan in 2012 included $6.184 billion for the TTC. The 2013 plan boosted that to $6.392 billion. That’s an increase of $200 million, which you’ll note is significantly lower than $500 million.

Station Modernization Program: Existing station upgrades, including Pape and Dufferin stations

The TTC’s plan to modernize subway stations predates Ford’s term by several years. The program was first discussed in 2007. Funding for the project became available through the 2008 city capital budget and plan. Ford voted against that budget. (Page 14)

Signal System Replacement: Signal System replacement will improve subway system capacity and reliability

This, on the other hand, did happen during Ford’s term. The TTC authorized $90 million in expenditures for signal system replacement on March 30, 2012. However, it’s worth pointing out that this happened after Ford lost all influence over the TTC, so it’s fair to ask if he or his office had anything to do with the decision.

Resurfacing hundreds of kilometres of roads and filling around 200,000 potholes every year

Putting $500 million into maintaining the Gardiner Expressway- a key transportation artery

Putting money into maintaining and upgrading roads, bridges, sidewalks and expressways

We’ll take these three together. The 10-year capital plan approved in 2010 included $1.699 billion for state-of-good-repair projects relating to the city’s transportation department. In 2014, that figure jumped to $2.435 billion. Much of that increase is related to the Gardiner. But Ford can take credit for spending more money on road repair.

Upgrading decades old playground equipment and building new community facilities

This, on the other hand, is a harder claim to make. Just this past September, back when Ford still had procedural powers, he made a point of attending a meeting of the Parks & Environment committee just so he could vote against a series of motions. One of those motions asked staff to look at increasing the number of playground refurbishments.

Upgrading 26 Municipal Child Care Centres and constructing a new facility

Ford’s record on child care is disastrous. In 2012, he voted against a motion that would have increased the operating budget by $670,000 to restore child care centre programming. In 2013, he voted against a motion that would have increased availability of subsidized child care.

Recently, Ford voted against using Section 37 money to upgrade a child care facility in Ward 19.

Building new community centres in York and Regent Park

The Regent Park community centre is part of the ongoing Regent Park revitalization, a project that started more than a decade ago. The York Community Centre has been planned since the 1990s, with funding held in reserve since amalgamation. Construction on both facilities did begin while Ford was in office, though.

Upgrading and maintaining 16 homeless shelters and building a new facility

The only recently opened city-run facility I am aware of the Peter Street Homeless Shelter. In December 2007, Rob Ford moved to remove the development of that shelter from the 2008 capital budget (page 11) in an attempt to kill the project. It didn’t work.

Last year, Ford was one of 20 councillors who voted against looking at increasing the number of shelter beds available following a rash of homeless deaths. Council did eventually vote to increase the number of beds available. Ford was the only member of council to vote against it.

Investing $10 billion, over the next 10 years, to maintain aging infrastructure in a state of good repair

In 2010, the city was planning to spend $9.8 billion over the next 10 years on state-of-good-repair. In 2014, the plan is to spend $11.4 billion. Ford hasn’t invested $10 billion in new money, but planned spending has increased a bit.

Investing $2.5 billion over the next 10 years into water mains, sewers and other vital water infrastructure

This, on the other hand, i couldn’t verify. According to Toronto Water’s latest budget, capital spending on water infrastructure peaked in 2010 and has declined since.

Fighting Gridlock: Traffic Management Strategy to keep Toronto moving:

Created a plan of action to improve the flow of traffic at over 1000 intersections, across every corner of the city

Council did approve a congestion management plan in December 2013, so I’ll give him these ones.

Launched a comprehensive bicycle strategy

The mayor’s bike plan does include lots of off-street trail improvements, but I’m not sure I’d call it “comprehensive.” It proposes just four on-street routes. Three of them are upgrades to existing bike lanes. The only entirely new bike infrastructure included in the strategy called for lanes on Richmond or Adelaide Streets. But when a plan to study those lanes came before council in December 2011, Ford voted against it.

After a prolonged period of moving sideways, the unemployment rate in Toronto is very noticeably dropping

Nope. Latest report had Toronto’s seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate at 9.7 per cent, up from 9.2 per cent a year ago.

Collaborating for Competitiveness – Toronto’s Economic Development Plan

A plan with this title was written and voted on, yes.

Chicago Business Mission: Led the largest delegation of Toronto leaders on a business mission

Ford did indeed go to Chicago. There’s photographic proof. Nobody really keeps records on mayoral delegation sizes, but Ford seems to have a decent claim to saying his was the biggest. Miller took 40 people with him to Ukraine in 2005 and just 25 to Europe. Mel Lastman once took 50 people to Italy. Ford’s delegation had 62 people in it.

So, yes, the mayor did go to Chicago with a lot of people. That’s an accomplishment I’ll give him.

40% off Rob Ford books at Chapters

Get 40% off Rob Ford books at the Chapters on Richmond Street. Just a 10 minute walk from City Hall!

:)

Rob Ford's Facebook Look Back Video

 

Below - Rob Ford's Facebook Look Back Video

Rob Ford trivia on Jeopardy

Toronto and Rob Ford's reputations continued to nose dive yesterday as the TV game show "Jeopardy" took a crack at Rob Ford's crack cocaine / pot addiction.

Rob Ford Drunk on Video, AGAIN!

Another video of Toronto's crack smoking mayor Rob Ford has surfaced, this time showing a drunk (and probably high) Rob Ford talking to some men in a fast food restaurant (Steak Queen) while speaking in a fake Jamaican accent.

The photo from the right and further below are from the new Rob Ford drunk video, which shows the Toronto mayor ranting about conducting "counter-surveillance" against the Toronto police.

The new Rob Ford drunk video has reignited calls for Rob Ford to resign as mayor and seek rehab for his drug and alcohol addiction. Such calls are nothing new and no doubt Rob Ford will continue to pursue re-election as mayor - not because he wants to accomplish anything, but because he is an egotistic buffoon who loves being the center of attention.

I cannot wait to see when he makes a drunk video containing lots of homophobic remarks. That will really bury him in controversy.

We must warn you, much of the language used by Rob Ford is considered offensive as he makes several racial comments. The video below is uncensored.

Recap of Ford Nation Episode 1

8:00: And we’re live! Except not really, because it’s taped. Sun News plays a montage sequence explaining how our hero got to this point—returning phone calls and hating the fact that garbage was in parks. What a guy!

8:03: The show suddenly shifts to the whole crack thing, with old clips of the mayor calling the media pathological liars. The people of Toronto will accept your apology any time, your worship.

8:05: Rob assures us he’s changing his behaviour, and he’s working with professionals, although he won’t say who. To date, he really hasn’t outlined how his habits will change—other than that he’s working out in the gym two hours a day. (Which I believe is also a lie.)

8:07: Rob repeats his lie that he has saved taxpayers a billion dollars. He absolutely, definitively has not. The latest article to debunk this claim is in the Toronto Star, and it’s the most thorough yet.

8:11: Rob says he’s not perfect, but the only thing he’s perfect at is saving taxpayer’s money. Really, he said that.

8:14: A self-described member of Ford Nation asks Rob how he will put these issues behind him. Rob says, “The past is the past; it is what it is.” Apparently, he is borrowing phrases from the former catcher of the New York Yankees.

8:15: Rob claims he hasn’t had a drop of alcohol in three weeks. However, he was spotted at the LCBO a couple of days ago. He also claims that he has never missed a day of council, which is likewise false.

8:24: The Fords have their first guest on the show, and it’s their Toronto Sun stenographer Joe Warmington. The Scrawler says, “It’s not an interview—we’re just chatting.” Journalism!

Ford says that he has saved more money than any mayor in Toronto’s history, that he has built subways, and that council is spending $500,000 on an environmental assessment on Bloor. Pop quiz! Which of those comments are false?

A) Saved more money
B) Built subways
C) $500,000 for Bloor bike lanes
D) They’re all false

Ding ding ding! If you answered D you get a cookie.

8:27: Doug Ford, hater of constitutional rights, says there should be drug and alcohol testing across the country for governmental officials. What a libertarian.

8:29: Rob is whining about the cost of Project Brazen 2, because clearly that’s the issue here. Pro tip to the cost-conscious mayor: if you don’t have a laundry list of vices, the cops won’t spend millions investigating you.

8:33: We are promised that up next, measured and sensible journalist Ezra Levant will “hit back at the haters.” Earlier, the term “journalistic jihad” was used—because that’s obviously what asking the mayor about his alleged criminal connections and habits is.

8:38: Ezra has only been on air for one minute, and has already mentioned Jack Layton being in a massage parlor that he refers to as a “whorehouse.” His diatribe is one long false equivalency that tries to cast Ford as a victim because he’s a conservative.

8:39: Ezra claims Rob gets criticized because he is fat, doesn’t drive a Prius, and is not a hipster. Is Ezra a real person, or is he some kind of algorithm that scrapes the worst internet comments?

8:42: Ezra: “I’d take [Ford} on crack over his predecessor sober.”

8:44: Ezra repeats the false claim that Toronto Star reporter Daniel Dale took pictures of Rob Ford’s backyard, and Rob seems to say it was in his backyard. This is patently false.

8:46: Ezra compares Rob to Princess Diana, presumably because Rob is the people’s princess. Levant goes on to say that Ford, who bowled over diminutive councillor Pam McConnell today, is being bullied.

8:47: Rob claims he was fired from his beloved high school football coaching gig because of “political reasons.” If by “political” he means that “My brother and I kept on saying how these kids would be in the gutter if it wasn’t because I’m such a saviour, and they can’t help themselves,” then that’s accurate.

8:53: Sun News plays the Jon Stewart clip of Rob Ford saying how much he likes to eat cats. He and Doug snicker along as they watch in the split screen.

8:55: Rob and Doug says that the people should decide in an election on October 27. Of course, today Doug Ford put forward a motion to call on the province to have a snap election. So, let’s just have an election whenever is convenient for the Fords.

8:56: Doug says “God bless Ford Nation,” and the show is over.

Funny how Rob Ford and his brother Doug managed to make a whole TV show about themselves and skip the fact that they are wife-beating, drug-using, drunk drivers that belong in prison and certainly don't belong in city hall.

Rob Ford Video Jokes, Crack Jokes and More

In the video below is a selection of American comedians making fun of Rob Ford.

Rob Ford pushes press off his driveway

Rob Ford pushes press off his driveway, coming close to losing his temper.

Murdered man had possession of crack video

Murdered man had possession of crack video of Rob Ford.

Anthony Smith had the crack video of Rob Ford, but has now turned up dead. (Update November 2013: Tape now in possession of Toronto police.)

Crackstarter raises $201,254

The Rob Ford Crackstarter has raised $201,254 to buy the Rob Ford Crack Smoking Video.

However the two men who own the video, shown with blurred faces in the photo below, have since gone missing.

The police are currently investigating a possible connection to the video and the murder of Anthony Smith on March 28th.

The video of Rob Ford smoking crack was made the same night Anthony Smith was shot and murdered by an unknown shooter. The iPhone used to make the video of Rob Ford smoking crack was allegedly owned by Anthony Smith.

Yesterday an informant inside the Mayor's office was interviewed by two officers from Toronto Police's homicide squad about possible evidence linking Toronto Mayor Rob Ford to the homicide investigation.

Rob Ford denies existence of video

Today Rob Ford denied the existence of the video showing him smoking crack cocaine.

As if sticking his head in the sand will make it any less factual.

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford vehemently denied allegations that he can be seen on a cellphone video smoking what appeared to be crack cocaine.

"I do not use crack cocaine," Ford told a jam-packed news conference at Toronto City Hall. "Nor am I an addict of crack cocaine."

The crackhead mayor said it was "business as usual at city hall" and gave no indication that he has any intention of leaving the job.

Which is true, even if the video turns out to be him smoking crack cocaine, they really have no power to push him out of office even if we could prove if its actually crack he is smoking in the video.

Rob Ford has been avoiding questions and talking about the crack video for over a week now, denying its very existence while simultaneously denying that it was crack he was smoking in the video.

That is a bit like claiming

"I didn't steal anything from the cookie jar." and also saying "I did eat some cookies, but you can't tell whether they were from THAT cookie jar."

Ford also said he could not comment on a video "that I have never seen or does not exist."

Umm... saying that counts as a comment. And the way he said it, with the or implies that it probably does exist, and that he is simply refusing to talk in detail about the events in the video because he a) hasn't seen it and b) doesn't remember everything that he did during the making of the video.

Ford refused to answer questions at the end of his short statement and left the room.

Notes

At the start of the press conference Rob Ford seemed to be smiling a lot at the beginning. Nervous habit maybe? Or did he come up with $200,000 to buy the video and has already paid for it?

In a note posted on the Gawker website, Gawker editor John Cook said his confidence in completing a deal to buy the video has "diminished" because the dealer who has the video has been incommunicado in recent days. So either the dealer is waiting for the $$$ being raised to reach $200,000 or is it possible they have already sold the video to Rob Ford??? In which case, did they keep a copy of the video and are planning to sell the backup copy to Gawker?

Because lets face it, if you could make $400,000 instead by selling the original copy to Rob Ford (who destroys it) and selling a backup copy to Gawker, why wouldn't you take the $400,000 instead? Especially since it minimizes your losses and doubles your profits.

MEANWHILE!

Rob Ford has been fired as head coach of the Don Bosco Eagles senior football team.

 Yesterday / Thursday, Mark Towhey, Rob Ford’s chief of staff, was fired after he urged the mayor to "get help". Presumably with his crack addiction, otherwise why else was he fired?

Jimmy Kimmel uses Rob Ford as a comedy punching bag

Jimmy Kimmel uses Rob Ford as a comedy punching bag.

Rob Ford Crackstarter up to $97,000 already

As of Tuesday the 21st at 7 PM Rob Ford's Crackstarter has already reached $97,000.

There is only 6 days and 5 hours remaining to reach $200,000 to buy the video of Rob Ford smoking crack.

According to my calculations the average person so far is chipping in $24.76 (roughly $25). The exact amount will likely vary going forward, but its nice to know so many people are willing to chip in $25 to see the video.

Have you chipped in your $25 yet???

Use the link below!

Rob Ford Falling Down

Rob Ford trying to throw a football and falling down instead.

According to spectators he may have been drunk at the time.

Rob Ford on 22 Minutes

Plus for fun, here is Rob Ford's 911 call when he was confronted by Marg Delahunty outside his home.

Rob Ford tempted to quit

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford says he asked his family if he should step down after a tense altercation with a reporter behind his home.

The reporter in question was snooping around the nearby preserved land which Rob Ford wants to purchase and not doing anything illegal when he decided to try taking photos of Rob Ford's home by standing atop a cinder block (also not illegal).

The mayor said his family is upset after the incident in which he confronted city hall reporter Daniel Dale behind Ford's property in Etobicoke between 7:30 and 8 p.m. Wednesday.

"I said, 'Do you want me to step aside?' They said no way. You keep doing what you're doing," Rob Ford claimed on Thursday.

However we see two possibilities.

Either Rob Ford was A) seriously tempted to quit or B) making up the whole story about being tempted to quit just so he can spin the media attention.

Either way the stress must be getting to Rob Ford. If he is tempted to quit, by all means he should quit.

One thing is for certain. There is no way Rob Ford or his brother Doug Ford will ever get re-elected.

Tasha Hearts Rob Ford

A funny music video mocking Rob Ford.

The Rob Ford Fat Fuck Video

Rob Ford is a bully and he doesn't like people making fun of his weight because then the tables are turned on him. But he doesn't let it end there. He doesn't turn the other cheek. Instead he chases after people, shouting at them like an insane lunatic.



Why the Rob Ford “fat fuck” video was put online

By Jonathan Goldsbie of Spacing Toronto.


On Tuesday, March 11, 2008, the anonymous Ceyla16 uploaded the video "Councillor Rob Ford in action" to YouTube.  Originally devoid of any contextual information, it sat there for two and a half weeks before being discovered by Toronto Life's short-lived Preville on Politics blog.  Two days later, it was posted here.  And then a day after that, I tracked down both its origin (the documentary Hogtown: The Politics of Policing) as well as the specifics of the argument at its centre (the details of the in camera Police Board vote on whether to renew then–Chief Julian Fantino's contract).

In the course of my digging, I also uncovered the identity of the user who posted the clip on YouTube and emailed him to ask if there was any particular reason he put it online; at this point, my Torontoist piece had already gone up, and I was just considering adding an update.  The fellow did in fact get back to me the next day, but I never got around to appending his explanation, and then kind of forgot about it. (I also later learned that the person I referred to as "Unidentified reporter" was in fact the Star's Catherine Porter.)

But as the clip has not only gotten renewed play in recent months but has also inspired a sitcom, I've found myself wanting to tell the last little bit of the story, which in turn resurrects another long-past Ford controversy:

I posted the clip on behalf of my friend [, Hogtown director] Min Sook Lee, that was the primary reason. but I also wanted to put more out about Councillor Ford in light of his "Orientals" comment. I'm originally from the San Francisco Bay Area and find it incredibly hard to believe that a goon like Ford who tries to pass his hate off as ignorance and skirts issues when he's under fire can be an elected official (then again the US has the ultimate in GWBush). I've observed that Ford has a reputation for being outrageous but it's dangerous if that becomes accepted— especially out of an elected official, I'd like to think that in Toronto we'd have higher standards. Furthermore, after his "apology" yesterday it's clear this guy doesn't get it and it's because he doesn't think he has to be accountable and that's scary.

So, thanks to Smitherman and Dieter D-H, everyone remembers the AIDS remarks, but who remembers the details of Ford's "Orientals" remarks?  Raise your hands.

On Wednesday, March 5, 2008, City Council was debating the perennial subject of holiday shopping.  Ford was of the opinion that the concepts of holidays and rest are a competitive disadvantage in a globalized world.  The National Post transcribed his comments thus:

Go to the Orient. Go to Hong Kong. I've been there. You want to see workaholics? Those Oriental people work like dogs. They work their hearts out. They sleep beside their machines. That's why they're successful in life.... Oriental people, they're slowly taking over. There's no excuses for [them]. They're hard, hard workers.

The Globe noted he added, "This is capitalism, ladies and gentlemen. ... This is what we need."
Mayor Miller, who wasn't present at the time, soon after demanded Ford apologize on the floor of Council at the next meeting.  Ford refused, and insisted his remarks were intended as a compliment; he was genuinely perplexed as to why people might be offended.  Ford is not so much malicious, you see, as he is unfathomably ignorant, and seemingly lacking the capacity to possess empathy for people he has not directly met in person.

The next day, he clarified to the Star "that by 'taking over' he meant Asians are further advanced in business than a century ago." But although he bristled at the suggestion of a public apology, he told the Post that same day that he was open to saying sorry to individual Asian Canadians who were hurt.
And further down in the Post's article (written by Kelly Grant, now the Globe's City Hall bureau chief) we see the genesis of his mayoral ambitions:

Yesterday, Mr. Ford showed off a stack of e-mails from supporters calling his Oriental speech harmless. Several of the messages entreated Mr. Ford to run for mayor.
"People have asked me, a ton of people have," said the Etobicoke councillor, who earlier mused about running for the top job before his inebriated turn at the Leafs' game in 2006.
"Now I'm definitely considering it."

If Mr. Ford does run, speeches such as the one he made this week could hurt his chances, some councillors said.

"Anybody could run for mayor, but as long as he makes this kind of remark, his chance of getting elected mayor is very slim," said Raymond Cho, a Scarborough councillor originally from Korea.

But the shit really hit the fan for Ford the following week, when on March 14th, ten Asian Canadians protested outside his office by lying on the floor next to a prop sewing machine.  The group, led by Kristyn Wong-Tam — a previous president of the Chinese Canadian National Council Toronto Chapter — demanded a public apology.  (Wong-Tam is currently the Adam Vaughan–backed candidate in the ward 27 race to replace Kyle Rae.)

Ford wasn't in his office that day, but by this time, he had more or less clued in that he'd done something wrong — even if he didn't fully grasp what that was.  "I have publicly apologized to the newspapers, on the radio," he told the Globe.  "I will publicly apologize to you if I have offended anybody by my comment.  I did not know [the word] Oriental was a racist word and I did not know [the phrase] working like a dog was a derogatory statement."

The next Council meeting was Monday, March 31st, and came less than a week after Ford was charged with assault and uttering death threats in a dispute with his wife.  (The charges were dropped two months later.)
There were dueling petitions submitted to the City Clerk: on one side was Adam Vaughan, with 260 signatures calling for an apology from Ford.  On the other was Ford himself, with 151 of something.  The Star and Globe said he had a 151-name petition from the Asian community asking that he not apologize; the official meeting minutes, on the other hand, recorded it as "151 e-mail communications he had received from individuals, expressing their support" [PDF, page 3].


Not only did Ford maintain that "Asian people do work very hard, and are very, very aggressive," he also produced a No Frills flyer advertising "Oriental flavour 100% pure cornstarch." Oh yes he did. (If I had been his adviser, I would also have suggested he brandish the sheet music for "A Hard Day's Night," in order to justify his use of "working like a dog.")
Let's go to the minutes for the subsequent comedy:

Peter Kuitenbrouwer described: "...Mr. Ford stood up and, in the manner of a schoolkid whose teacher has ordered him to say something he does not believe, he said, in a tiny voice: 'Sorry.'"

Rob Ford’s financial numbers don’t add up

Marcus Gee
From Saturday's Globe and Mail - Jul. 15, 2011

It was a hairy week at city hall, a foreshadowing of the tumult the city is likely to face as it seeks to cut hundreds of millions of dollars in spending. The city rolled out an employee-buyout plan aimed at cutting thousands of staff, launched task force investigations on daycare, homelessness and arena construction and released consultants’ reports that floated the idea of cuts on everything from daycares to zoos to fluoridation of the water supply.

With so much at stake, it would be nice to think that there is someone in charge who seems to know what he is doing. Instead, we have His Worship Mayor Rob Ford.

Mr. Ford kept a low profile for most of the week, leaving it to titans such as Giorgio Mammoliti, the York West councillor famous for proposing a red-light district on the Toronto Islands, to field most of the questions. On Tuesday, a day when the efficiency consultants fingered a program that helps elderly people buy medical supplies, Mr. Ford found time to kick off the annual Caribbean festival. The mayor, who pointedly declined to raise the Pride Week flag last month, even did a little dance with a woman in a feathered headdress. Apparently he has no trouble cavorting with scantily clad revellers just as long as they aren’t gay.

With city council meeting for its monthly session, Mr. Ford had a perfect chance to speak about the city’s financial fix and to explain to residents how he planned to get out of it without cutting cherished services. Instead, he focused on graffiti and traffic lights.

Two city councillors wanted to put in new stoplights on Dufferin Street and Queen’s Park Crescent to protect pedestrians. Mr. Ford, a famous champion of motorists, was opposed. When he lost the votes, an unusually agitated and apparently angry mayor stormed around the chamber trying to find out how it happened.

Earlier, he distinguished himself by voting against programs that hand out money to community groups supporting seniors, the disabled, immigrant youth and minor hockey. As a penny-pinching Etobicoke councillor, he always opposed the grants as a waste of money. But now that he is the top man, holding a big cleaver over the city budget, it is not exactly comforting that he believes things like that are gravy. Even his conservative allies weren’t with him. He lost one of the votes on the grants 43-1.

It was not until Friday that Mr. Ford gave his first interview on the burning issue of the week: cutbacks. He chose a friendly venue, the John Oakley Show on AM640 radio, where he announced his mayoral bid last year.

Although those KPMG consultants have yet to find a dollop of gravy in their exhaustive floor-by-floor search of city hall departments, the mayor told his friend “Johnny” that city hall has positively “tons” of the stuff. Just look, he said: in his first six months in office, “we have saved over $70-million.”

“And so if we can find 70 million, I’m sure we can find 700 million” – the amount the city needs to close its annual budget shortfall. There is only one small problem. When he says he has “saved” $70-million, he does not mean he has cut that amount from what the city spends. In fact, most of it comes from what the city collects in taxes.

Included in the $70-million figure is $64-million from the cancellation of the vehicle registration tax earlier this year. That is a plus for taxpayers, but a minus for the city treasury, which must make do with $64-million less each year to pay for the services it delivers. Mr. Ford’s tax cut has made it harder, not easier, to balance the budget. So the mayor is way off base to claim he has found $70-million in budget savings in six months.

Either Mr. Ford is misleading the public or he simply does not understand the apples-and-oranges difference between money taken in and money saved. To make matters worse, he told Mr. Oakley that the city spends 80 per cent of its budget on labour. The real figure is 48 per cent. “The last thing we want to do is lay off, Johnny, but when it makes up 80 per cent of your budget, there’s a lot of gravy there,” he said. Oh dear.

The sad thing about all of this is that most people probably support Mr. Ford in his drive to get city spending under control. But if they are going to go along with big cuts, they want to know they will be done sensibly and humanely. Mr. Ford’s performance this week did not reassure.

SOURCE: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/toronto/marcus-gee/fords-financial-numbers-dont-add-up/article2099511/