# Toronto's alleged crack smoking mayor. Why is he still in office? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 26, 2013, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410 "2013-05-26T15:45:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Ibanez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a4c791/32.png) [@Ibanez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibanez)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2013, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/41 "2013-05-28T14:58:36Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > All I am suggesting is that reporters quietly follow this guy around for awhile. Weeks or even months. If he’s a crackhead then there’s no way he can avoid visiting his dealer for very long. Reporters can then get their own video footage and photographs. That’s pretty much a given. Considering the relationship he has with the Toronto media they’re doing that, but haven’t come forward with the “gotcha” proof yet. He’s not my mayor, not my city. So I have no dog in this fight, but it’s obvious to me a small cabal of people have been trying to get him ousted from day one. At any cost, some of the issues they bring up are so trivial it makes them look like idiots. The left don’t like him very much at all. When he was elected the very first thing the media brought up was his health, in particular his weight. Some felt he wasn’t healthy enough to be mayor because of it. This sort of thing flies for fat white guys, but if it was a woman. I don’t think it would go over too well. So far Gawker has raised the 200K that the drug dealers had requested for sale of the video, they’re no where to be found. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2013, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/42 "2013-05-28T15:13:09Z")
> [@Ibanez](#): > > He’s not my mayor, not my city. So I have no dog in this fight, but it’s obvious to me a small cabal of people have been trying to get him ousted from day one. At any cost, some of the issues they bring up are so trivial it makes them look like idiots. The left don’t like him very much at all. That’s the frustrating thing: there indeed have been obvious hatchet jobs against him ([like a phone call where he was entrapped into saying he’d help a man find illegal painkillers](http://www.citynews.ca/2010/06/17/rob-ford-speaks-out-after-report-claims-he-offered-to-buy-man-oxycontin/)) which just make him end up looking more sympathetic. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2013, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/43 "2013-05-29T00:52:18Z")
Okay, this is getting weirder. The Globe and Mail (not a gutter paper by any means) is reporting that one of Ford’s staffers, David Price, got a tip about the location of the video last week; went to Towhey, who was still chief of staff and told him; Towhey told the police; and the homicide squad came and questioned a staffer about it, because of a possibility that the video may be connected to a murder of someone connected to the video. The police say that the homicide squad did the interview because they’re more skilled at interviews than other cops. Somehow, that doesn’t sound very convincing… [Toronto police spoke to Mayor Ford’s senior staffer after tip linked killing to alleged drug video](http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/toronto/toronto-police-spoke-to-mayor-fords-senior-staffer-after-tip-linked-killing-to-alleged-drug-video/article12163629/) [See also the CBC article: Rob Ford’s office reportedly tipped to location of video](http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/story/2013/05/28/toronto-mayor-rob-ford-alleged-video-reports.html) ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2013, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/44 "2013-05-30T21:22:41Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > It is further worthwhile to note that Rob Ford is a gigantically obese man, and so there is pretty solid evidence that he can’t possibly be a crack ADDICT, even if he did try it once. Crack addicts are generally not known for their appetites. So we don’t even have that to go on. This is something I wonder about. I always thought that coke and heroin made you lose your appetite until you were a skinny pale thing. Then I remember what John Belushi and Chris Farley looked like at the time of their deaths… I agree that the evidence against Ford is flimsy but this isn’t the first time that issues with a substance problem have come up and where there is smoke there is often a fire. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2013, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/45 "2013-05-30T23:09:04Z")
Two more of his staffers have jumped ship today. Like rats from a sinking ship! ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2013, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/46 "2013-05-30T23:25:40Z")
Everything is fine. Business as usual. Cutting back on staff is just part of ending the gravy train. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2013, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/47 "2013-05-30T23:31:36Z")
Staffers report that [Ford knew the exact address where the video allegedly was](http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2013/05/30/rob_ford_video_scandal_mayor_ford_said_he_knew_where_video_was_sources_say.html). :dubious: The video he’s claimed doesn’t even exist so obviously he can’t talk about it. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/48 "2013-05-31T13:12:44Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > If he’s into heavy drugs it shouldn’t be hard to prove. Financial records are a start. Large withdrawals of cash. What financial records? You can’t just start looking through someone’s bank statements. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/49 "2013-05-31T13:31:51Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > The video he’s claimed doesn’t even exist so obviously he can’t talk about it. No, he said " I cannot comment on a video that I have never seen **or** does not exist", not “that I have never seen **and** does not exist”. So he left himself plenty of wiggle room for the scenario where the video exists but he hasn’t seen it (yet). ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/50 "2013-05-31T16:46:20Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > What financial records? You can’t just start looking through someone’s bank statements. Well as long as they don’t come across the large fellow’s $90,000. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/51 "2013-05-31T17:46:35Z")
> [@](#): > > Once you realize that Rob Ford is in the same category as a guy willing to run for mayor after sending dick pics, [Cracked, originally posted by **aceplace57**](http://www.cracked.com/quick-fixes/how-torontos-totally-deranged-mayor-stayed-in-office/) I don’t get this. Is the other of that article seriously arguing that _smoking crack with Somali drug dealers_ is on the same level as someone Tweeting a lady a picture of his erection under his boxers? Really? Is the western world seriously _that_ uptight about sex still? While I think what Anthony Weiner did is stupid on about 50 levels, it certainly wasn’t _illegal_. Considering we don’t know what he and his wife agree to in their relationship, it may not have even been immoral in their framework. Stupid politically, absolutely, but it’s not _smoking crack with Somali drug dealers_. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/52 "2013-05-31T20:00:09Z")
Minor difference between Rob Ford and Anthony Weiner: Weiner resigned from Congress after his scandal and is now running for office a few years later. _Rob Ford is still the mayor of Toronto._ Whether the guy is a crackhead or not he seems to have some major personal problems. I hope someone’s getting ready to make a movie about this. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/53 "2013-05-31T23:01:31Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > I hope someone’s getting ready to make a movie about this. I hope to god that there is no sex scene. ---
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2013, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/54 "2013-05-31T23:02:54Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > … I hope someone’s getting ready to make a movie about this. I guess it won’t be a stoner comedy. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2013, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/55 "2013-11-05T19:34:23Z")
Just a bumpdate: [to no one’s surprise, he admits smoking crack](http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/mayor-rob-ford-yes-i-have-smoked-crack-cocaine-1.2415533). But it’s just one of those things you do when you’re in a drunken stupor, so it’s okay. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2013, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/56 "2013-11-05T19:36:19Z")
He says he can’t remember the circumstances in which he smoked crack - which is not really surprising I guess - but says it was “probably in one of my drunken stupors.” That’s a hilarious phrase on its own, and coming from the mayor of a large city it’s incredible. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2013, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/57 "2013-11-05T19:51:49Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > He says he can’t remember the circumstances in which he smoked crack - which is not really surprising I guess - but says it was “probably in one of my drunken stupors.” That’s a hilarious phrase on its own, and coming from the mayor of a large city it’s incredible. Indeed. I had no idea that “I get into drunken stupors on a regular basis that are so bad that I couldn’t be expected to know what I was doing when I tried crack while in the midst of one” was supposed to be _reassuring_ compared to “I tried crack once.” I think I’d be way less ashamed to own up to the latter than the former. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2013, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/58 "2013-11-05T19:53:43Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > I hope to god that there is no sex scene. For sure. I wouldn’t want to see _his_ crack. :eek: 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2013, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/59 "2013-11-05T19:58:38Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > Indeed. I had no idea that “I get into drunken stupors on a regular basis that are so bad that I couldn’t be expected to know what I was doing when I tried crack while in the midst of one” was supposed to be _reassuring_ compared to “I tried crack once.” I’m pretty sure the only people who think this way have severe substance abuse problems. What Ford says is that he doesn’t remember when he tried crack or under what circumstances, but he really wants to see the video so he knows what kind of shape he was in at the time. Nobody else cares, but I think that kind of distinction seems important when you have a drug or alcohol problem. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2013, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410/60 "2013-11-05T20:08:10Z")
Once he sees the video he’ll decide whether or not to state: “I never inhaled and I never tried it again.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/torontos-alleged-crack-smoking-mayor-why-is-he-still-in-office/659410.md?page=4)