Rob Ford: Distracted driver, distracted mayor

You know the story by now: Last week, on the way to a city hall press conference, Mayor Rob Ford was spotted reading some papers while behind the wheel on the Gardiner Expressway. A photo of His Worship was posted to Twitter where it, of course, spread like wildfire.

The mayor’s escapade-in-an-Escalade grabbed massive amounts of attention and prompted a truly ridiculous debate about whether Ford should hire someone to drive him around, something the notoriously stingy politician has refused to do. At the height of the insanity, Doug Ford suggested that city politicians could somehow force the mayor to get and use a chauffeur. (Not sure how that would work — maybe they could hide his car keys.)

It’s ridiculous that we’re even talking about this.

Yes, the leader of Canada’s sixth largest government should probably have a driver. That’s a sensible use of public funds. But more to the point: should the people of Toronto really have to care about how Rob Ford gets himself from place to place?

The mayor is a functioning adult in charge of a $10-billion operating budget, and still we’re concerned that he’s incapable of driving himself around without doing dumb and dangerous things.

Ford’s headline-grabbing driving last week served to almost completely bury any actual news coming out of city hall. The mayor’s planned trade mission to Chicago was overshadowed, as was the continued saga of the city’s nascent garbage privatization efforts. An emerging plan by budget chief Mike Del Grande to again freeze or cut spending across several city departments, including Toronto Police Services, was also bumped off the top of the news list.

These are the stories that the mayor should be a part of. He needs to show leadership and help shape the message if he ever wants to regain control of the political agenda.

This isn’t a new phenomenon. Just as he seemingly can’t keep his focus while behind the wheel, Ford has continuously let himself get distracted from the real business of running the city. If it’s not his various mishaps while driving, it’s 911 calls about comedians in his driveway or almost-violent encounters with reporters near his backyard.

He’s got a knack for attracting the wrong kind of attention — and it’s not only his opponents who think so. Last week, it was reported that the mayor’s new chief of staff Mark Towhey actually expressed concern about Ford’s personal and professional conduct prior to accepting his new position.

Ford’s problems go beyond his habits while behind the wheel. Driver or not, this mayor needs to learn to eliminate the distractions and keep his eyes on the road.

**CLARIFICATION:**This column originally referred to Ford's "near-violent encounters with reporters in his backyard." But, to my knowledge, reporters have never entered the mayor's backyard without invitation. For what it's worth, The Toronto Star'sDaniel Dale was on public land near Ford's house when the mayor approached  and demanded the reporter give him his cellphone.