Toronto council votes in favour of reducing Mayor Rob Ford's powers

[brooklynite]

Source: Toronto Globe and Mail

Toronto city council has voted 36-5 to curb Mayor Rob Ford’s power and reduce his budget by more than half for the remainder of his term.

The vote followed a tumultuous council debate that at one point saw Mr. Ford bolt across the council floor and accidentally bowl over Councillor Pam McConnell, giving her a fat lip that she nursed with ice as she listened to the debate.

The unprecedented vote came during special session of council that featured an emotional debate that stretched for five hours and included many councillors asking the mayor to take a leave and ended with Mr. Ford comparing the action to the invasion of Kuwait by Saddam Hussein.

Read more: http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=post&forum=1014

[Tripper11]

1. And before the vote. ol' Robbie had this final threat for council....

http://o.canada.com/news/rob-ford-faces-further-loss-of-mayoral-powers/

Video at link

snip :

Ford elicited laughter with his bizarre closing remarks, saying that council is attacking democracy and compared them to Iraq when the country invaded Kuwait, prompting the U.S. to intervene.

“This, folks, reminds me of when Saddam attacked Kuwait,” he said. “President Bush said ‘I warned you, I warned you, I warned you do not.’”

“You guys have just attacked Kuwait.”

He also plugged the debut of his new Sun News Network show.

“I want people to listen to me tonight, eight to nine on Sun News,” he said. “You will get my side of the story. Unfiltered.”

=============================================================================================

I shit you not...this guy, I will give credit for one thing, his "imagination" and always finding something new and controversial to say.

[Scairp]

2. What is it with mayors?

First we had the criminal pervert in San Diego and now Toronto has this buffoon. They get caught doing unethical and illegal deeds but just hang on for dear life to a stupid mayoral office. I really am not getting it. And has this guy done anything except see a subway line built in Toronto? He has got to go. The inability of the other leaders of the city to get rid of him makes Toronto the laughing stock of North America and beyond. Surely all of the people of Toronto must see that and want him gone. I feel bad for his family. They must be humiliated beyond belief by the spectacle he has made of himself.

[progree]

3. He knocked down a petite councilwoman as he charged at one of the hecklers (video)

Last edited Tue Nov 19, 2013, 04:29 AM - Edit history (1)

http://news.yahoo.com/toronto-council-strips-mayor-most-powers-222516321.html
VIDEO AT ABOVE LINK (if anyone knows how to embed it...)

After a tempestuous debate, Toronto's City Council has stripped Mayor Rob Ford of the last of his substantive powers because of multiple scandals, ... The mayor ... is vowing "outright war" to take on his critics in next year's election.

... The council session was one of the stormiest in memory as the burly mayor argued with members of the public and at one point knocked down a petite councilwoman as he charged at one of the hecklers. Cries of "Shame, shame" came from the gallery.

The council voted overwhelmingly in favor of slashing Ford's office budget by 60 percent.

On Edit 328a ET Nov 19 - This is a different video than the above story's video. However, it clearly shows the knock down. Just 19 seconds. And its embedded!