Coun. Doug Ford continued to defend his brother’s trip to Los Angeles over the weekend and lashed out at the media for their “biased attacks” against the mayor.
In a sit-down interview with CP24 Wednesday morning, Ford called Jimmy Kimmel “a classy guy” and said Mayor Rob Ford was prepared for the public shaming he was handed by the late-night talk show host Monday night.
“We had an idea,” Coun. Ford said when asked whether the mayor knew Kimmel would replay a handful of videos showing the leader in one embarrassing situation after another. “(Kimmel) threw him a couple of curve balls but like Rob said, he walked into the lion’s den.”
Coun. Ford said they don’t regret the appearance because of the amount of publicity it created for Toronto.
“Toronto has never gotten this much attention, good or bad,” he said.
When asked how the mayor’s re-election campaign would rise above the negative chatter surrounding Ford’s antics, Coun. Ford said they would remain focused, despite the media’s “campaign” against his brother.
“Let me tell you, Rob’s responsible for 50 per cent (of the negative attention) and the local media is responsible for the other 50 per cent,” he said.
The outspoken politician, who is acting as the mayor’s election campaign manager, said his brother is doing his best to move past the scandals that have made him infamous across the globe.
“Again, our campaign is going to be spent on keeping taxes low, having a fiscally responsible leader, making sure he holds everyone accountable and again it’s all about respecting the taxpayer,” he said.
He continued to blast the media, saying the coverage on the mayor has been “unprecedented,” and that American journalists he has spoken to think Toronto reporters “are a joke.”
“They’ve told me personally, each and every one of them that they’ve never seen anything like it, the biased attacks against the mayor,” he said.
“Rob’s a mayor of the people, he’s an average guy,” he added. “We had the so-called dignified mayor David Miller with the Harvard degree and he ran up the debt.
“The public wants to talk about the issues, the media does not want to talk about the issues,” Coun. Ford continued. “You think Rob Ford wants to talk about that? He wants to talk about the issues. But the media keeps bringing it back and back (to the scandal.)”
Coun. Ford, who has acted as the mayor’s mouthpiece for most of the last four years, said he has no interest in running for the city’s top office himself.
“Rob’s the best mayor in the world,” he laughed. “He holds people accountable. Rob understands city hall. He’s been there for 14 years. He has a proven track record.”
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