Does Rob Ford make a credible witness? An unofficial probe into the matter

Does Rob Ford make a credible witness? An unofficial probe into the matter

(Image: Christopher Drost)

Over the past week, pundits have been speculating and opining and salivating over the fact that Mayor Rob Ford will testify in open court on Wednesday about conflict of interest allegations. (A refresher: the mayor spoke to, then voted on a council motion that saved him from paying back $3,150 in donations improperly solicited from lobbyists using council letterhead. It’s possible, though unlikely, that he could be chucked out of office for the infraction—not that that would keep him down.) Though the matter sounds dry and procedural, the mayor’s presence in court has city hall watchers excited because the case has grown into a public test of Rob Ford’s credibility. With that in mind, we decided to weigh Ford’s track record as a teller of truth. 

• To his credit…he knows when to ’fess up
When someone snapped a photo of him reading while driving on the Gardiner Expressway, Ford freely admitted to doing so…though there’s still the issue that he was reading while driving on the Gardiner Expressway.

• To his discredit…he sometimes needs to be convinced to tell the truth
After Ford got drunk and belligerent at a Maple Leafs game, he first denied being at the game before eventually admitting to making “a major mistake” after reading a complaint by fellow spectators at the game.

• To his credit…he is reasonably open to sharing personal details about his life
The mayor’s weight-loss challenge was a flop, but it did illustrate a degree of willingness to open up about his personal life (he got pretty blunt about things by the end).

• To his discredit…he has been known to choose which facts suit him best
On more than one occasion, journalists have taken Ford to task for misstating or misrepresenting the facts, whether about budget numbers, the completion date for the Eglinton Crosstown or how much his freebies are worth.

Corrected: In a previous version of this post, we attributed an action of Doug Ford to his brother, Rob. We regret the error (sometimes it’s hard to tell those Ford brothers apart).