Premier Ford or Prime Minister Ford? Doug Ford is doing all the right things to make a federal run: expert
Is Ontario Premier Doug Ford gunning for federal Conservative leader Andrew Scheer’s job?
When the subject came up during a media scrum in Toronto on Oct. 30, Scheer brushed the suggestion aside. Asked by reporters whether his or Ford’s brand was stronger, Scheer responded that they were both working toward the same end.
“The brand that I’m closely associated with is the brand of lowering costs for Canadians, making life more affordable, and standing up to new taxes,” he said.
Scheer was in Toronto for a meeting with Ford at the Ontario Legislature, where the two discussed their shared opposition to the Trudeau’s government’s carbon-pricing plan, among other issues.
That opposition, however, is the area in which some reporters at the event suggested Ford is outshining Scheer. Ford is an outspoken critic of both the carbon tax and the cap-and-trade program, and campaigned on a promise to lower gas prices in Ontario.
He axed Ontario’s cap-and-trade program in July, and, since then, has discussed fighting the carbon pricing program during meetings with premiers in Saskatchewan and Alberta.
In a media conference alongside Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe in Toronto on Oct. 29, Ford called the plan “nothing more than a complete scam,” although numbers provided by the federal government, and backed up by an independent analysis from Ontario’s budget watchdog, show the average family in Ontario will come out ahead.
In its first year, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in an announcement on Oct. 23, the average household of 2.6 people will incur $244 in new costs from the tax, but receive $300 back in a rebate.
The Angus Reid Institute reported on Nov. 1 that the announcement seems to have sweetened the deal for Canadians, tipping national opinion in favour of the plan by a slim majority.
However, it also found just over half, 55 per cent, of Canadians surveyed said they think provinces should ultimately have the final say, and that two third of those who oppose the carbon pricing plan do so because they consider it to be a “tax grab,” aligning with Ford’s own criticism of the plan.
Could Doug Ford be a Prime Minister?
Between his progress making inroads with other Conservative premiers and his success positioning himself as a vocal critic of the federal Liberals, political analyst Jim Warren says it’s clear the municipal-turned-provincial politician wants to establish himself as a federal player.
Besides his impact on cap-and-trade, there are all the other changes Ford has ushered in, which, for better or worse, show he is serious about executing the platform he was elected on.
Since the Ontario election, the Doug Ford’s Tories have:
Cancelled Ontario’s basic income pilot
Reintroduced buck-a-beer,
Placed new vaccine reporting requirements on hold,
Repealed the updated sex-ed curriculum in favour of the 1998 curriculum,
Fired Ontario’s first ever chief science officer, forced out Hydro One’s CEO and board of directors, cancelled writing sessions to revise Indigenous curriculum,
Cancelled the Green Ontario Fund,
Pledged $25 million over four years to the Toronto Police Service for fighting Guns and Gangs
Scaled back OHIP+ coverage
“A year ago he was being reprimanded by the city clerk,” he said, referencing Ford’s premature mayoral campaign events in Toronto early in 2018, for which he was chastised by Toronto’s city clerk Ulli Watkiss.
“Now he’s premier and people are talking about him running for prime minister…He definitely has national aspirations.” – Jim Warren
Warren said whether or not Ford makes a run for the federal leadership position will depend on the outcome of the 2019 federal election. He said he believes that if Ford were to campaign within the party under the right circumstances, “it’s very possible” he could win.
“It would depend on does Scheer lose [the federal election]? How badly does Scheer lose? And then does Ford still take a run at it?” he explained.
Ford himself has not publicly indicated he plans to campaign within the federal Conservative Party. But with a cabinet stocked with experienced Harper-era MPs and staffers, a recent history of cross-country campaigning and a newly established reputation as a federal Liberal critic, Warren says he has quickly positioned himself in a good place, should the right opportunity arise.
“What we do know for sure is he is doing the things now that someone who wants to be prime minister to do,” Warren said.
Fans and critics of Doug Ford had lots to say about the Ontario premier’s prospects:
