2014 Municipal Election: Toronto Mayoral Race

[Gavin]

I doubt any of the candidates want to make safe-injection sites or prostitution an election issue. However, these issues might emerge over the next four years. I'd prefer a mayor who would put social justice (and facts) ahead of crime and punishment when it comes to things like drugs and prostitution. Based on her past career, I trust Chow would be on the right side of these issues even if she doesn't make it a centrepiece of her campaign.

I don't know if he's addressed safe injection sites directly, but Tory has argued "pay now or pay later" and that evidence-based strategies are the financially conservative approach...even when it means spending the money now. I know that he's made this case for mental health care, so I would expect that it would extend to other health issues as well.

 

[Silence&Motion]

I don't know if he's addressed safe injection sites directly, but Tory has argued "pay now or pay later" and that evidence-based strategies are the financially conservative approach...even when it means spending the money now. I know that he's made this case for mental health care, so I would expect that it would extend to other health issues as well.

That may be true. I definitely agree with Tory on many issues. However, he also ran in 2003 on a law-and-order platform. Even reasonable conservatives are quick to throw away logic and evidence when it runs into strongly held moral views about law and order.

When it comes to social issues, I suspect Tory is like Art Eggleton who didn't present himself as a social conservative, but still rejected the idea of LGBT rights when it was the "safe" political position back in the 1980s.

 

[ShonTron]

The faith-based schools and saying creationism should be taught alongside evolution was political suicide! Also recently he said some incredibly stupid things about women too. John's a nice guy and a lot more into the centre than someone like Hudak, so he might get some of the more moderate liberal voters but he does suffer from Foot-in-mouth. Which will hurt if not kill his campaign if he isn't careful.

John Tory is pretty much Toronto's answer to Mitt Romney - a credible, moderate conservative, but an inability to "get" things that the average person deals with. Tory's silly remarks about women not asking for more money and learn to play golf - aren't really misogynist. Presented with more tact, they actually might be part of some useful advice for younger women working their way up in the mid-level business and law sectors – but those are not in the industries that most women actually work in, nurses, PSWs, teachers, retail workers, office admins, etc. They don’t negotiate their own salaries and wheeling, dealing, networking aren’t part of their jobs. The Fords at least *appear* to many to “get” it with the average person deals with.

Mitt Romney never struck me as a bad person. I figure on a personal level that he was a very nice guy, actually. But he was insulated to what his decisions at Bain Capital did to people on the ground. The son of a very successful businessman and politician. And clearly didn't get it running for President.

 

[Gavin]

For what it's worth, my impression has always been that, if anything, Tory is more socially liberal than he's sometimes presented.

 

[Gavin]

...but an inability to "get" things that the average person deals with.

Yeah, I'm inclined to agree with this.

 

[Grimace]

Most people see that there is desire to keep the City fiscally responsible by keeping a conservative Mayor in power but not one who is an embarrasment or causes gridlock at City Hall with Council. Having multiple candidates running for the right doesn't mean that there is any desire to bring in an NDP government here. Why would the left think that they are going to save the City? Just elect someone who actually wants to improve upon the current base not destroy it and go back to Miller times.

So basically you're saying that because the right put forward, and got elected, a complete idiot for mayor last time around, and all sensible people of left and right should agree that we want to get rid of this guy, the left should sit this one out and let the right have a do-over?

 

[Silence&Motion]

Most people see that there is desire to keep the City fiscally responsible by keeping a conservative Mayor in power but not one who is an embarrasment or causes gridlock at City Hall with Council. Having multiple candidates running for the right doesn't mean that there is any desire to bring in an NDP government here. Why would the left think that they are going to save the City? Just elect someone who actually wants to improve upon the current base not destroy it and go back to Miller times.

You seem to treat conservative and fiscally responsible as being synonymous. They aren't. Miller was arguably the most fiscally responsible mayor we've had since amalgamation. He made spending commitments, but he paid for them. His spending commitments were also things that had the potential to pay off in the future. Both Lastman and Ford were incredibly destructive with their "tax freeze at any expense" mentality.

 

[King of Kensington]

You seem to treat conservative and fiscally responsible as being synonymous. They aren't. Miller was arguably the most fiscally responsible mayor we've had since amalgamation. He made spending commitments, but he paid for them. His spending commitments were also things that had the potential to pay off in the future. Both Lastman and Ford were incredibly destructive with their "tax freeze at any expense" mentality.

Yeah, no kidding. Anti-tax conservatives aren't "fiscally responsible" at all.

 

[King of Kensington]

Isn't John Tory the one in the white Rolls-Royce?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_pGT8Q_tjk

 

[tariqata]

You seem to treat conservative and fiscally responsible as being synonymous. They aren't. Miller was arguably the most fiscally responsible mayor we've had since amalgamation. He made spending commitments, but he paid for them. His spending commitments were also things that had the potential to pay off in the future. Both Lastman and Ford were incredibly destructive with their "tax freeze at any expense" mentality.

I wish we could shout this from the rooftops. We need a mayor and council who are committed to raising and spending money wisely, not simply spending as little as possible.

 

[Midtown Urbanist]

Repeating what I said in the DRL thread:

I don't know if any of you caught it but John Tory was on CityTV just now.

Paraphrasing but he basically said that he has plans to pay for the Yonge Relief Line Subway, it is his number one priority, he will lower taxes but has a plan to pay for the Relief Line regardless, when asked about new additional revenue tools he gave a non-specific answer other than repeating that any revenue tools he looks at won't be raising taxes, and he concluded with saying that he will disclose his transit funding plan in the future and that it was still Day 1 of his election campaign.

He also said that he is not touching the Scarborough B-D extension because it is already 'funded' for.

Overall Tory left me with a good impression tonight.

 

[TheTigerMaster]

Paraphrasing but he basically said that he has plans to pay for the Yonge Relief Line Subway, it is his number one priority, he will lower taxes but has a plan to pay for the Relief Line regardless...

I'm puzzled by this. The province has committed to funding 100% of the Relief Line. Unless he's planning to built something more than the 13km Relief Line that the province has committed to building, there's no need for any plan at the municipal level to pay for it.

 

[Palma]

I'm puzzled by this. The province has committed to funding 100% of the Relief Line. Unless he's planning to built something more than the 13km Relief Line that the province has committed to building, there's no need for any plan at the municipal level to pay for it.

Where di you hear this? If it was fully funded, then why have things not started?

 

[innsertnamehere]

its in the spring budget, so it hasn't exactly been "committed" yet. It will be if the budget passes however.

 

[Silence&Motion]

This is why I'm supporting Soknacki. He's very socially progressive, but he believes in the tenants of fiscal conservatism. Take a look at his hired campaign team. Supriya Dwivedi is a self-proclaimed feminist.

I sometimes wonder if we are seeing a new age of Red Tories in Canada. A point of view that consists of fiscal conservatism, and a socially liberal view that takes into account feminist narratives, the politics of intersectionality, and structural violence (concepts often taught in equity classes in university, and concepts that I as a political science student consider to be grossly unexamined).

If Chow doesn't run and I'm forced to choose between a field of conservatives, I think I'd go with Soknacki based solely on the fact that he's willing to call out the TPS for what it is: a bloated, inefficient money pit that needs some major restructuring (throw the fire service in there as well - why are we paying for fire trucks to show up when someone's having a stroke or a heart attack??). Just like it took Nixon to open relations with China and Thatcher to become the first woman Prime Minister, we may need a conservative to take on the TPS (a conservative who is himself not subject to an ongoing investigation, that is).