Rob Ford's Toronto

[CanadianNational]

The Union situation is slippery, and curiously positive. True, the Ford administration got the Union in a corner, then pulled the rug out from under them, which is being hailed by Ford supporters as some kind of never-before-seen show of tactical intelligence. But, I think it's very smart of the Union not to have pushed back to assure a catastrophic lockout or strike. Public opinion is soothed, Ford's "glorious victory" is not yet inked and signed off on, and there's three more city Unions to deal with in the future. The city's position was so overwrought anyway, and in bad faith, that it would have been low and harmful for the Union to try and match it in vehemence. The Union has avoided looking like the bad guy, and can use that to it's advantage down the line.
What will be interesting now is how things proceed in the longer haul. I have a feeling that this slight burble in the way of things will be drowned out by larger events in the months ahead.

Meanwhile, this is pretty amazing:

From the Globe and Mail, Feb 5, 2012:

"Monday morning, moments before councillors took their seats for a regular council meeting, TTC chair Karen Stintz approached the city clerk and handed her a petition with signatures from 24 councillors requesting a special meeting on transit.
At that meeting, to be held Wednesday, Ms. Stintz said she will present a motion for council to reaffirm its 2009 agreement for light rail lines on Eglinton, Sheppard Ave. East, Finch Ave. West and replace the existing Scarborough Rapid Transit line.

...If the group holds together to vote against the mayor, it will mean a stunning defeat for Mr. Ford on a central plank of his administration."

Wow. Good for Stinz re-affirming council and moving clearly and honestly with this. She's been waffling a lot up until now, but this is strong stuff. In the face of losing her chair, it's practically heroic.

 

[Voltz]

I never would have though that Stintz would be the one the call for the special meeting of council, and if anything it would have only been about Eglinton and not the rest of the transit city lines.

 

[JasonParis]

I'll admit to this being the only positive thing I could think of when Ford was elected. A Mayor like Ford was needed to bust up the unions' death grip on our city's budget. I guess I'm unusual in that I'm pretty left wing in most of my political thinking but I'm anti-union. They're a relic of the past and have become like bullies, at least the ones that deal with the city.

I don't see how organized labour should be called a "relic" by "progressive" people, especially in in an era of a shrinking middle class and where corporations continue to play bingo with millions of people's futures.

 

[MetroMan]

Wit this, it's clear that Ford can no longer count on Stintz to vote his way. With the razor thin margins that has been propping up his policy, that's the end for Ford. He's not gaining any new friends and the ones he had are turning against him.

He can definitely kiss goodbye to eliminating the Land Transfer Tax or any future attempts at cuts to services.

With regards to the TTC, Doug Ford said there would be a re-shuffle, meaning that the Ford's are going to stack the commission with more loyal friends. But who? Is Doug Ford going to try to become chair? The good news is that council has the power to approve. If Ford tries to sack Stintz, I wouldn't be surprised to find the most qualified councillor on the transit file, Joe Mihevic, heading the commission shortly.

 

[Marcanadian]

Wit this, it's clear that Ford can no longer count on Stintz to vote his way. With the razor thin margins that has been propping up his policy, that's the end for Ford. He's not gaining any new friends and the ones he had are turning against him.

He can definitely kiss goodbye to eliminating the Land Transfer Tax or any future attempts at cuts to services.

Also the elimination of the plastic bag fee looks like a no-go. Josh 'Stalin' Matlow and the other centrists will no longer be friendly to Ford.

 

[Blovertis]

Wow. Good for Stinz re-affirming council and moving clearly and honestly with this. She's been waffling a lot up until now, but this is strong stuff. In the face of losing her chair, it's practically heroic.

Heroic? I don't think so.

She was a Ford loyalist until the day before yesterday. Now that the wheels are so obviously falling off the Ford bandwagon (i.e. two weeks after Council adopted all those Colle-sponsored budget amendments), she's jumping off it.

Classic finger-to-the-wind "leadership".

 

[EMP1729]

Heroic? I don't think so.

She was a Ford loyalist until the day before yesterday. Now that the wheels are so obviously falling off the Ford bandwagon (i.e. two weeks after Council adopted all those Colle-sponsored budget amendments), she's jumping off it.

Classic finger-to-the-wind "leadership".

This is a great test to see which councillors have the potential to be mayor. Strike Karen Stintz off that list. She knows how to play the game, but her motivations to save "transit city" comes off as insincere.

 

[MetroMan]

Ford's plan to get support on the TTC commission with a decreasing pool of council supporters is to get citizen appointees: http://app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgendaItemHistory.do?item=2012.EX16.8

It shouldn't be too hard for Ford to find a group of Sue-Ann Levies to sit on the board for him.

Hopefully council sees right though this and ends it once it leaves the executive committee.

 

[adma]

Good for Stintz... really impressive. She will likely be kicked out as TTC chair, but she has just become a major contender in the next mayoral election.

Which could be a mixed blessing--after all, she may look good next to Ford, but she's still firmly a right-of-centre standard-bearer...

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

At least she isn't insane.

AoD

 

[Admiral Beez]

Which could be a mixed blessing--after all, she may look good next to Ford, but she's still firmly a right-of-centre standard-bearer...

What's wrong with that? A councilor that wants to actually build city infrastructure while making sure the city gets the best use of the financial resources, while strategically building consensus with councilors from all political leanings to get it done; surely everyone wants that? Stintz has moxie, I like that. Stintz for mayor!

 

[Towered]

She knows that her position as TTC chair is toast, so with nothing to lose, she's sticking it to Ford and doing what's best for the city. Some of you accuse her actions as being insincere, but then why did she initiate a transit plan that she knew Ford would never agree with? I applaud her. This might even be a prelude of her running against him in the next election...

 

[toraerach]

This is a great test to see which councillors have the potential to be mayor. Strike Karen Stintz off that list. She knows how to play the game, but her motivations to save "transit city" comes off as insincere.

I'd generally agree, although I'd suggest that she's not so concerned with a potential mayoral bid as she is with holding on to her council seat. Ward 16 is hardly Ford Nation. She cannot remove herself too far from the centre without putting her future electability (not only as mayor, but as councillor) at risk.

As for a future mayoral run, Stintz strikes me as too right for the mushy middle, and too mushy middle for the right. If Ford decides to run again (or even in the case of a Ford-annointed successor), I doubt that she could take away the suburban fringe from him, nor could she break into the core against a viable leftist/centrist candidate (and you can bet that neither the centre nor the left will allow Stintz to become the anti-Ford vote).

Relatively speaking, it's still pretty early to discern patterns in the post-amalgamation political dynamic. Pressed to do so, however, I would argue that Stintz does not have the over-the-top personality that seems to be necessary for any rightwing mayoral victor (as opposed to Lastman or Ford). Besides, removed from the Ford machine, she may just simply fade away at City Hall as other, stronger voices begin to assert themselves (again, both from the centre and the left). Few will remember the particulars of this episode by the time the next election rolls around.

 

[adma]

(and you can bet that neither the centre nor the left will allow Stintz to become the anti-Ford vote).

Such was my point in advising caution.

Relatively speaking, it's still pretty early to discern patterns in the post-amalgamation political dynamic. Pressed to do so, however, I would argue that Stintz does not have the over-the-top personality that seems to be necessary for any rightwing mayoral victor (as opposed to Lastman or Ford). Besides, removed from the Ford machine, she may just simply fade away at City Hall as other, stronger voices begin to assert themselves (again, both from the centre and the left). Few will remember the particulars of this episode by the time the next election rolls around.

In practice, as a mayoral candidate, Stintz'd be like Jane Pitfield II--maybe a little less prickly-prim'n'proper...

 

[MetroMan]

So now, councillor Norm Kelly is telling the Province to ignore council, even if they vote to overturn the Mayor's transit plan. Dictatorship much? Is he flippin insane??

“The only advice I could give Metrolinx is that this is their project and if they see merit in going underground the whole way, then do it.

That's just the thing Norm. Metrolinx doesn't think that there is any merit to burying the Eglinton LRT. Ignore council? No, let's just ignore you and the Mayor.

If Ford and his cronies don't like that the Province is following the will of council, then why doesn't he just sick Ford Nation on McGuinty... oh wait.