Update: The video of Ford, Harper and Flaherty appears to have been pulled off YouTube. Tim Harper from the Toronto Star points out that it's likely the Prime Minister's Office, a body known for its strict message control, probably wasn't too happy with the recording.
"You may support their goals — a majority of voters in Toronto and across the country apparently did — but there’s something unnerving about the two of them trading thigh slappers and appearing to have such a damn good time while cutting jobs and gutting services," he wrote.
A new copy of the video has been embedded below:
Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty, who Stephen Harper took aim at during his speech, deflected the Prime Minister's attack and said that he has worked well in the past with both Rob Ford and Stephen Harper. "But it's no secret from time to time we have our differences," he said Thursday after touring the Celestica plant in Toronto.
"We are of a different political stripe. We are from different parts of the country. So I won't hesitate, I won’t shrink from standing up for Ontarians when I think that's the right thing to do," he told the Canadian Press.
Thanks to @goldsbie for the video link.
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Toronto mayor Rob Ford got a boost from his federal Conservative counterparts at a recent barbecue held for Finance MInister Jim Flaherty.
The barbecue, which was held on Tuesday night at Rob Ford's Etobicoke house, hosted some 700 Conservative volunteers and supporters. Prime Minister Stephen Harper was a surprise guest and joked that the mayor was his new fishing buddy.
"He did catch some good size fish, including one - and I measured it, I can authenticate it - 39 centimetres," the Toronto Star reported the Prime Minister as saying."He didn't live up to his reputation as he refused to kill it and eat it."
Harper also had words of praise for Ford and his family. Calling the family a "Conservative political dynasty."
He also tried to get Tory supporters to think forward to this fall's provincial election.
"We started cleaning up the left-wing mess federally in this area, Rob is doing it municipally and we got to complete the hat trick and do it provincially as well," Harper said to cheers and applause from the crowd.
The evening had another light-hearted moment when the Fords presented Flaherty with a novelty "World Finance Minister Championship Belt."