Crack cocaine

Friday May 2, 2014

Friday May 3, 2014By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday May 3, 2014

Rob Ford taking leave of absence, seeking help for substance abuse

Toronto Sun, Globe and Mail report details of new, separate alleged recordings of Toronto mayor

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford is taking a leave of absence to seek help for substance abuse amid reports that two new recordings — one of unruly behaviour, the other of apparent drug use — have surfaced.

“I have decided to take a leave from campaigning and from my duties as mayor to seek immediate help,” Ford said in a statement released shortly before 11 p.m. ET Wednesday.

“I have a problem with alcohol and the choices I have made while under the influence. I have struggled with this for some time.”

Later in the statement, the mayor said, “I know that I need professional help.”

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Ford does not plan to drop out of the election, according to his lawyer, Dennis Morris, who spoke to CBC News earlier in the evening.

The news comes amid reports that two new recordings of Ford have surfaced. The Toronto Sun reported late Wednesday it had obtained a new and “raunchy” audio recording of Ford “ranting and swearing” in a Toronto-area bar on Monday night.

The Globe and Mail claims to have seen a second video, shot last weekend, of Ford smoking what the paper said “a self-professed drug dealer” described as crack cocaine.

The news comes amid a rocky re-election campaign in which Ford has repeatedly described himself as a changed man who has learned from the mistakes of his first term as mayor.

His leave of absence appears to leave Deputy Mayor Norm Kelly in charge, though city council already handed Kelly many of Ford’s mayoral powers last fall. (Source: CBC News)

SOCIAL MEDIA

REPUBLISHED in iPolitics, The St. John’s Telegram, and the Brandon Sun.

 

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Wednesday, November 6, 2013By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Toronto Mayor Ford to Stay in Job After Using Crack

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford vowed to continue as head of Canada’s biggest city and said he will run in the next election after admitting he used crack cocaine.

“I want the people of this great city to decide whether they want Rob Ford to be their mayor,” he said today at a media conference at city hall that was broadcast by CP24 television.

Ford, 44, said he has “nothing left to hide” and these “mistakes” would never happen again.

“I love this city, I love saving taxpayers money and I love being your mayor,” he said at the conference.

Ford’s vow to press on followed his admission today at an earlier media conference that he smoked crack cocaine, likely in one of his “drunken stupors.”

Pressure is mounting for Ford to resign after Toronto police said last week they had found a video that showed him appearing to inhale from a glass pipe. The Toronto Star and U.S. website Gawker were the first to report on the video in May, sparking a five-month police investigation that included airplane surveillance and cameras mounted on poles tracking Ford’s movements.

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Ford, who apologized on Nov. 3 for being “hammered” at a street party in August and for being in his office at 2 a.m. on St. Patrick’s Day with a half-empty bottle of brandy, vowed to curb his drinking and get a driver. He has repeatedly said he wouldn’t resign.

“I feel like a thousand pounds have been lifted off my shoulders,” Ford said at the second media conference today. “I can’t explain how difficult this was to do.”

Several city councilors and at least three Toronto newspapers had urged the mayor to step aside before today. (Source: Bloomberg)