Ford a one-man army in battle against the snow

Torontosun.com
Jan. 18, 2022
Joe Warmington

Why call in the army when you have Ontario’s premier out on snow patrol?

Certainly, there were no complaints from Etobicoke resident Edwin Kandic about this kind of personal service from Doug Ford.

“I was stuck on Wincott Dr. for about two hours, and it was getting cold,” said the 26-year-old, who was trying to get to his warehouse job.

Then he noticed someone stop.

“It was a guy in a Ford pickup truck. I said, ‘Oh my God, it’s Premier Doug Ford,’” recalled Kandic, who had never seen the politician in person before. “I was shocked. He told me to get in the truck.”

Kandic left his car on the side of the road, so he could accept the premier’s offer to drive him home about 15 minutes away.

“He was a nice guy,” added Kandic. “I thanked him for helping me.”

For Ford Nation, this was the familiar retail style of politics that the premier and his late-mayor brother, Rob Ford, have become famous for.

Within minutes there was cynical commentary, but as anyone who knows Doug Ford will attest, this was not contrived.

This is what Doug Ford does. Getting out to help -- whether it’s a flood, ice storm, or major snowfall -- is part of Ford’s brand. It’s letting Doug be Doug and not the guy who sometimes looks like he’s been taken hostage by the Pandemic Industrial Complex.

It certainly looked like the premier was enjoying every minute of shovelling cars out of snowbanks. In his own way, it appears he was reminding his caucus of just what they are supposed to be doing.

“I am the taxi driver today, the snowplow and everything else,” the premier told Kandic.

Move over, Batman, Spider-Man, and Superman. This was Fordman to the rescue.

Of course, there are people who will dump snow on this story and complain about everything a leader does.

But for me, it was just fun to see Ford Nation alive and well. Certainly, when you are two years into a never-ending pandemic, sometimes you just require a reminder of a time when it was OK to smile or be able to see one.

The only thing missing was a lineup for free Fordfest hamburgers instead of a vaccine or rapid test.

Who would have thought a snowstorm would bring out so much humanity and warmth?

“Just helping out” and “making sure people are safe in their cars,” Ford told CP24’s George Lagogianes in a live TV hit. “Anything I can do to help them, you do what you have to do.”

Many others were given such assistance from a premier whose “For the People” campaign slogan was being dusted off once again during a shutdown that has crippled the province even more than the snowstorm.

Lagogianes declared Ford a “one-many army” some 23 years after Toronto called in the Canadian military to help deal with the snow. The premier, who is seeking re-election on June 2, was downplaying the whole thing.

“Premier or no premier,” people are “here to help their neighbours right now,” Ford told CP24.

Kandic said he can vouch for the premier who assisted him when he sure needed it.

“As he dropped me at home, Premier Ford said ‘Let me know if there is anything else I can do to help you.’”

As a matter of fact.

“My car is still stuck in a snowbank,” teased Kandic, who will need a drive back to get his car once the plows come through.

But the premier is pretty busy right now. Ford was still out making road calls on Monday afternoon.