Rob Ford’s latest media strategy: dodge questions about the Sheppard subway

In addition to promising to scrap the land transfer tax, hire 100 additional police officers (but who’s counting?) and generally wage war against excessive spending, it’s easy to forget another one of Rob Ford’s campaign promises: to run a transparent and accountable government. It’s tough to reconcile this promise with the news, broken by the Toronto Star, that Ford has spent the last year suppressing a report that ends up totally undermining any justification for extending the Sheppard subway. Ford had a chance to address the document on Wednesday, when a reporter asked why he hadn’t released it. But because the press conference was technically about the city’s new deal with CUPE, Ford’s press secretary stepped in, saying “Stay on topic. This is about the labour,” while the mayor stayed mum. In other words, there’s a time and a place for questions about Sheppard. We’re just not sure when and where that might be. Read the entire story [Toronto Star] »