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As someone who considers themselves firmly on the progressive side of politics, I would like to cut through the political spin for a moment.
I don’t doubt Doug Ford's patriotism — he’s clearly a proud Ontarian and Canadian, and I’ll give him respect for that. What truly bothers me about his leadership is the hypocrisy, that it’s all surface, no substance.
I will hand it to him. He is a skilled populist, but behind the folksy persona, there’s no actual plan and there never has been.
I beg voters not to be fooled. He is not a competent financial steward.
The absolute hypocrisy of his new slogan, “Canada is not for sale,” would be hilarious if it weren’t so infuriating. This coming from the premier who threw open Ontario's doors with his “Ontario open for business” slogan from the last election campaign.
For example, the latest Financial Accountability Office (FAO) report exposes the real cost of his plan to expand alcohol sales to convenience stores: a staggering $612 million hit to taxpayers (triple his governments estimates), ballooning to $1.4 billion by 2030.
That includes $215 million in lost tax revenue and $172 million stripped from LCBO income. All to pad the profits of U.S. retail giants like 7-Eleven, Walmart, Costco, and Circle K.
Canada is not for sale, eh?
The pattern is impossible to ignore: he handed over Ontario Place in a 95-year deal to a foreign corporation to build a freaking spa (including committing $200 million in taxpayer dollars on a parking lot for said spa) through a process so shady the Auditor General condemned it as neither fair, nor transparent.
What about his last campaign promise to lower hydro rates? Families are paying more than ever while corporate profits soar.
Canada is not for sale? Give me a break.
Perhaps the most appalling was his $3-billion, vote-buying scheme, sending $200 cheques to voters right before calling an election. Let's call it what it clearly is — a bribe.
Sure, it’s always nice to have an extra $200 in my pocket, and I am sure many Ontarians really needed that help (I know I do), but really, how much more financially irresponsible could he be?
That $3 billion could have funded thousands of desperately needed medical residency positions in a province where 2.3 million residents can't find a family doctor.
It could have built affordable housing, invested in our education system, or even made good on his promise to lower hydro rates for Ontarians.
Instead, that $3 billion bought Ford a few positive headlines while health-care wait times continue to rise, housing costs crush families, and the cost of living crisis deepens.
Barrie residents have to be able to see through this, right?
This isn’t about personality politics or one-off $200 handouts. It’s about the direction and future of our province.
Ford may excel at playing the relatable every man, but his track record tells a different story: he’s selling out Ontario’s future piece by piece for short-term political gain.
We can’t afford two more years of this shortsighted mismanagement, let alone another term. Ontario deserves leadership that prioritizes everyday Ontarians over corporate CEOs and developers, investing Ontarians over selling us out, and planning for the future over auctioning it off to the highest bidder.
Our province needs a vision grounded in progress and accountability, not empty slogans and failed promises.
Jacob Hodgins
Barrie
