03.26.2014 05:00 PM

Olivia won the first hour of the first debate!

Don’t just take my word for it:

IN THEIR OWN WORDS: OLIVIA BEGINS FIRST MAYORAL DEBATE ON A WINNING NOTE

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 26 2014
In the opening 23 minutes of CityTV’s first mayoral debate, journalists, columnists and pundits across party lines agree: Olivia has already demonstrated to Toronto that she is the only candidate that can beat Rob Ford.

Here’s what they said:

“First zinger of night. Chow tells ford his gravy train has become a train wreck.” – Elizabeth Church, Globe & Mail

“I grew up taking #TTC and I still do. @oliviachow immediately differentiates herself from the crowd.” – Joanne Deer, CTV Truth North political panelist

“Martineau begins with a “full disclosure” note that Tory sits on Rogers board – which is something the Chow campaign wants people to know.” – Daniel Dale, Toronto Star

“Olivia Chow questions John Tory’s courage to stand up to Ford’s positions.” – CBC Toronto

“Chow hitting Tory, saying the city hasn’t even put in an application for the federal funding Scarb subway advocates counting on.” – Oliver Moore, Globe & Mail

“Ford says the Scarborough extension costs “$5” per household. Incorrect. It’ll be $40 per year as of 2016 for about 30 years.” – Daniel Dale, Toronto Star

“John Tory is referring to Ford as Rob.” – Jon Lorinc, Globe & Mail

“@oliviachow leading CityTV’s viewer poll of trust on transit with 40 per cent.” – Laura Kane, Toronto Star

“Most viewers of [the] debate rank Chow [as] the person they trust most on the transit file.” – James Armstrong, Global TV

“It’s pretty obvious – the only person who has the facts and not the anger is @oliviachow.” – Joanne Deer, CTV Truth North political panelist

“Why do John Tory and Rob Ford hate buses? Poor sad buses.” – Antionia Zerbisias, Toronto Star

“Mr. Ford is actually right.” – John Tory, 5:23 p.m.

“Tory agrees with Ford that TTC service hasn’t been cut. Which, again, is wrong.” – Jonathan Goldsbie, NOW Magazine

As the debate continues, Olivia will continue to show her challengers – and the people of Toronto – that she is the top candidate for a better city.

13 Comments

  1. !o! says:

    Tory looked overpolished, like a mannequin. His post-debate interview wasn’t bad though, I wish he’ take more shots at Ford.

    Ford sure has a lot of soundbites. gad.

  2. Coelocanth_Jones says:

    Anybody know where/when I could catch this? I wasn’t able to see it live and it’s not on the CP24 site

  3. Mike says:

    Speaking of soundbites, Olivia simply has to use the phrase “proven crack record” in the next debate.

  4. Feyenoord says:

    680 News , John Staal: ” Rob Ford won the debate.”

    • Matt says:

      Yeah, quite a few people have said that since he got away without any major damage and got to fire off his bullshit unchecked. He still has time to hang himself, so we have hope there.

  5. Iris Mclean says:

    Why was everybody afraid of nailing Ford to the wall re his well documented behavior over the last few years? I don’t get it. Were they worried that his feelings might get hurt?

    • !o! says:

      Exactly.

      I think conventional wisdom is ‘well, everyone KNOWS about his behaviour, so lets talk about ‘real’ issues, lets inform the voters about xyz’

      but that’s a mistake. Debates aren’t about informing people, to me, (and I’m just some guy with an opinion) they’re much more about framing what a candidate (you or opponent) or an election is about, and repeating his crack record makes the election about moving on from it.

      • !o! says:

        people should confront Ford on his stupid sound bites (in a more politically correct form ofc): you just repeat shit because you’re hoping 1) your lies will stick, 2) you’re too bull headed to actually discuss what people are saying, this comes across at city hall, 3) you want to distract people with shinies so they look past your crack record. (full credit to mike above, ‘crack record’ is damn catchy).

        • !o! says:

          I guess though, this’d only work when people are AWARE that he’s a walking taperecorder with a collection of 2 second tapes…. anyhoo…

  6. Chris says:

    Warren. Get that you have to hoist the banner but Chow looked pretty weak. Ford was totally at ease and in control. He won which is a huge loss for Toronto. Next time have Olivia do some debate prep and attack Ford on his credibility, character and crack smoking. Then move to his false fiscal record. Robbie made the field look like amateur hour. SAD.

    • Liam says:

      Completely agreed, much as it pains me to say so. Rob Ford’s voice literally makes me sick to my stomach, but even though 95% of what he was spouting was either exaggeration or outright lie, that won’t matter to most of the people watching.

      In a simple eye test, all of his “You guys couldn’t do this, look what I got done” resonates stronger than anyone else’s attempts at rebuttal. Every other candidate fell back into anecdote or “principles” (Stintz’s specific crutch).

      I am, however, shocked that it seemed not a single candidate had a simple crib sheet to combat, with chapter and verse, any of his traditional false accomplishments and talking points.

      “Saved the city a billion dollars!” – “No. You didn’t, and here are the FACTS that prove it” – Soknacki came closest by screaming “fiction” at him, but couldn’t back that up. Ford just fell back on the “city manager’s numbers” line, which is also a lie.

      I suppose the debate format was probably mostly to blame. By not allowing specific timed rebuttal, Ford was allowed to just keep yelling his lie back at the person trying to correct him, creating a situation where no one is actually heard. Here’s hoping the next six months allow a clearer, surgical dismantling of all the bullshit Ford keeps spouting, because in a format like that, I don’t think any of these candidates can out-holler Ford.

Leave a Reply to Iris Mclean Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published.