A mayoralty debate on youth issues at the University of Toronto Thursday night, Sept. 2, turned nasty before it even started, as mayoralty candidate Rocco Rossi accused his opponent, former Ontario Deputy Premier George Smitherman, of cussing out a campaign worker.
The Youth Priority Symposium debate, which took place in Hart House’s Great Hall, was intended to discuss youth issues – and during the debate, that is what six front-running candidates did.
But in a news release, the Rossi campaign said before it all began, a young woman volunteering with the Rossi campaign ran afoul of Smitherman when she tried to hand Smitherman campaign literature.
“Mr. Smitherman, upon seeing the campaign flyer angrily confronted the young woman and verbally abused her. The incident has caused the volunteer considerable distress,” the release alleges. “Mayoral candidate Rocco Rossi and his entire campaign team stand, without hesitation or reservation, behind their volunteer.”
In an interview, Rossi maintained that Smitherman uttered an obscenity to the 24-year-old volunteer.
“She came up to me afterwards near tears, and I believe 100 per cent of what she said,” he said. “It was very inappropriate language – very inappropriate verbal abuse against a young 24-year-old woman volunteer and not befitting someone who aspires to be the mayor of this city. I’d much prefer talking about the issues but I’d be a very poor leader if I allowed one of my young volunteers to be bullied.”
Smitherman spokesperson Erika Mozes said that’s not so – there were no obscenities uttered in the exchange.
“(Smitherman) said, ‘She came at me aggressively, and I responded back in that manner,’” said Mozes.
“Did he swear at her? No. That’s from what I’ve heard from the three different people I talked to that were with George. We’re talking about 30 seconds. He was on his way to a debate. It wasn’t a huge issue, one where he started swearing. He got a piece of literature, and said, ‘I have done programs for youth. Did you ever see the website called ‘stupid.ca?’ She probably took that in a different context.”
Mozes said three campaign volunteers witnessed the encounter and have sworn affidavits saying that nothing untoward happened.
“He absolutely did not swear at this campaign worker, he did not use language what they’re saying that he did. Again, this is a campaign. We want to go back and focus on the issue instead of an incident that the Rossi camp said happened. We have three witnesses,” she said.
The debate itself did focus on issues relevant to Toronto youth. The six candidates – Rossi, Smitherman, Rob Ford, Rocco Achampong, Joe Pantalone and Sarah Thomson – spent about 90 minutes talking about issues relevant to youth in the city.
Ford, who recent polls have pegged as the front-runner in the race, stuck to his message that Toronto needs to get its spending under control – so it can spend more effectively on youth programs and the city’s priority neighbourhoods.
“We have to spend money more wisely – spending $45 million on Nathan Phillips Square was a spending issue,” he said, promising to use resources to help youth groups publicize themselves using the city’s website and brochures, promising improved access to affordable housing through subsidy – and greater access to city hall, by among other things allowing the public to speak at Toronto council’s marathon meetings.
Rossi became the aggressor, taking oblique shots at Ford throughout the structured event.
At one point, referring to a comment by Ford, he quipped: “My mother is in the audience and one thing she believes is there should be a background check for candidates.”
At another point, he took on Smitherman’s plan to use tax incentives to find work for young people, creating by Smitherman’s estimate 7,500 jobs.
“He’s a nickeling and diming mayor,” scoffed Rossi, who said the plan amounts to a tax grab.
“It won’t create jobs – it will maybe get a few McJobs.”