Rob Ford Says He’s Had a Come-to-Jesus Moment and Is Done With Booze and Crack

The scandal-shellacked Toronto mayor says he's getting cleaned up

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Toronto Mayor Rob Ford says he’s finished with alcohol and drugs and that he’s had a “come-to-Jesus” moment leading him to reform his lifestyle.

The mayor of Canada’s largest city, who has been the subject of nearly daily headlines and the butt of Saturday Night Live jokes since he admitted a few weeks ago to using crack cocaine while in office, told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation that he has drank to excess and used drugs, but that he’s not a drug addict or an alcoholic.

The interview came just minutes after the Toronto City Council voted overwhelmingly to strip Ford of much of his governing powers. In a chaotic scene on the floor of the City Council chamber, Ford rushed to stand by his brother, Councilman Doug Ford, and knocked a councilwoman to the floor. Ford and his brother have called the motions to curtail his powers “a coup d’état.”

Ford made the case that while he has had some “fun times” on the weekends, his problems are all personal, and he has performed his duties as mayor. “I’m getting punished for the Friday and Saturday nights when I’ve decided to have a few drinks,” he told CBC news. “This is personal.”

[CBC]