Tired of being a chump?

This past Tuesday, the Premier of Ontario had an opinion column in the Toronto Sun as well as the National Post online versions. It was a pre-emptive strike for news expected the following day that Ontario would indeed be going to the polls.

That is the first time in our memory that an election plea, guised as an opinion piece, was published in a daily newspaper. “Ford: Strong mandate needed to protect Ontario,” the headline read.

As odd as that was to start the day, our reporter passed along her news story, confirmed the night before, that a planned nomination meeting for Feb. 15 to replace Ted Arnott was canceled.

Local PC officials were actually informed  a week before, according to our sources.

The membership was formally informed on Tuesday at 12:57pm by a regional party organizer, that the event was canceled, but a PC candidate announcement was forthcoming. 

Two Wellington County men, Kyle Coffey and Ross McKenzie had been vetted and approved to run.

Joseph Racinsky, a current councillor in Halton Hills went through the same process and was also approved.

From the periphery it appeared local party members had their hands full making a choice between two very young ambitious men and a seasoned bureaucrat with many notable life experiences that would assist in his work at Queen’s Park should he be ultimately successful. 

Before grassroots democracy could unfold, the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party appointed Racinsky as their candidate for the riding.

For clarity – the Wellington Halton Hills PC members were denied the right to choose their local candidate before the election writ was even dropped.

To many the significance of this move is of little consequence. There is nothing illegal about appointments, but for those of us concerned about the waning days of democracy in a modern world, this is a big deal.

Not to mention, Racinsky will never be viewed as having earned the privilege to represent the party based on a local member vote. He will always be labelled Ford’s guy with this appointment. 

Democracy and the process should never be seen as an inconvenience. An emergency meeting could have been held and a local vote tallied. It could have been done and should have been done.

The whole notion of an early election to us is beyond the pale. The previous 2022 election cost taxpayers over $145 million.

This election will likely cost more and add to the already outrageous provincial debt that now exceeds $420 billion.

When we speak of debt, in 2023/2024, the Ontario government spent more than $13 billion on interest payments. That is more than it spent on education. Think about that. The provinces’ finances are out of control.

With over a year left until the next scheduled election in June, voters are being told this is all about a mandate.

As quoted on the CBC website “We need the largest mandate in Ontario’s history to move this province forward” Premier Ford said.

In his Tuesday National Post column Ford noted, “Responding to this challenge will demand extraordinary action: the need to invest tens of billions of dollars in unplanned spending and make tough choices to ensure Ontario’s economy is the most competitive place to invest, create jobs and do business.”

He clearly wants a blank cheque to spend billions on top of the billions he has spent to date, and a four year stretch to do it in. 

This election is about one thing: feeding a blowhard’s ego. 

Treating people like chumps has a way of backfiring – Mr. Ford needs a lesson this election.

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