Seems that John Tory listens to people but perhaps he needs a hearing aid as he sometimes gets people's names incorrect. Tory is beginning to sound a bit desperate in his attacks on McGuinty.
PCs sharpen attack on McGuinty 'bubble'
Hoping to shift voter attention from his misstep on schools, Tory accuses the Liberals of being out of touch
KAREN HOWLETT AND PAUL WALDIE
With a report from The Canadian Press
October 4, 2007
OTTAWA, TORONTO -- The starkly different campaign styles of the two contenders for the top political job in Ontario were on display yesterday, with Progressive Conservative Leader John Tory accusing his rival of operating in a bubble and Liberal Leader Dalton McGuinty giving a low-key speech.
With just one week before Ontarians head to the polls on Oct. 10, Mr. Tory launched his most pointed attack against Mr. McGuinty, describing him as being out of touch with ordinary Ontarians.
"Those people don't get inside Dalton McGuinty's political bubble, the real people that have the real problems," Mr. Tory said during a spirited address at a morning rally in Ottawa. "He goes from one sanitized photo opportunity to the next."
Mr. Tory mentioned Mike Brady, a terminally ill cancer patient who rebuffed Mr. McGuinty during a campaign stop at an Ottawa hospital. Mr. Brady, 63, interrupted Mr. McGuinty's carefully scripted event by refusing to shake his extended hand, telling him he has cancer and "you're not helping any."
"That's not true," Mr. McGuinty responded before continuing his tour of the hospital.
Yesterday, Mr. McGuinty cited his meeting with Mr. Brady as proof that he is interacting with voters.
"Maybe you weren't there when I met Mr. Brady in Ottawa and mainstreeted in a hospital corridor," he told reporters after a speech to a business audience at the Empire and Canadian clubs in Toronto. "I've had a great opportunity to meet with Ontarians to get a better sense of where they are at and where they want us to go."
Yesterday was the second time Mr. McGuinty has mentioned Mr. Brady by name, even though he did not stop to interact with him. The first time was at a Liberal barbecue rally in Ottawa last week.
When reminded yesterday that he actually brushed aside Mr. Brady's comments about cancer treatment, Mr. McGuinty replied: "Let me tell you about what we are doing on the cancer front." He then cited a list of actions he said the Liberals have taken to invest in cancer.
Fred Fletcher, a political science professor at York University, said the Liberals are running a typical front-runner campaign.
"The front-runner, as is typical, sticks more closely to the script than the other two. The others are willing to take more of a risk because they have less to lose."
To demonstrate his willingness to listen to the stories of voters, Mr. Tory telephoned Mr. Brady at his Ottawa home yesterday afternoon. He said during an interview on CTV that Mr. Brady is still upset that the Liberals do not fund certain cancer drugs that are available in other provinces.
At a rally in Ottawa last night, Mr. Tory repeatedly referred to Mr. Brady as "Mike Bradley." He apologized when reporters pointed out the mistake and blamed it on his handwritten notes.
Mr. Tory has spent much of the campaign going out of his way to find out what's on the minds of voters. On Tuesday, he spent the afternoon strolling along the main street in Stouffville, north of Toronto, then talking to commuters at the GO train station in Ajax and then knocking on doors in an Oshawa suburb that evening.
"You only hear what really matters to people when you listen to them," Mr. Tory said.
Mr. McGuinty denied that he is avoiding direct contact with voters, saying he has met with many Ontarians.
"I think I just spoke to 500 people in that room alone," Mr. McGuinty said after his speech.
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