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“I think it is necessary for people to know that the bar is going to be reset. The standard is going to be reset. Not to something that is altruistic and impossible. To the simple kind of standard that anybody would face in their own job… if they were consorting with criminals, if they were telling lies, showing up late or sometimes not showing up at all to work, what would happen to them? They’d be out the door. And the same with respect to parents and kids. This is the kind of stuff parents tell their children: don’t hang around with bad people. Show up on time. Tell the truth. These are basic things,” he said.

Mr. Tory told reporters that the city simply can’t get things done with a mayor is behaving in a way that “loses confidence” of the council and has others “running the other way” from doing business with him.

Asked if he will quit if he breaks his code, Mr. Tory said it’s a hypothetical question. “I’m telling you I’m going to abide by this, I’m going to respect the law.”

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But it wasn’t an entirely smooth launch for Tory as his campaign issued a press release at the launch quoting an “XXXXX” praising his latest policy push.

“What a refreshing idea, a candidate who believes it ought to be the responsibility of the mayor to be accountable to the citizens who elected them to office,” said “XXXXX,” according to a Tory press release issued at the Thursday launch.

A spokesperson for Tory said the quote came from Ontario former attorney general David Young and the press release issued at the launch was a earlier draft awaiting approval on Young’s quote.

But Olivia Chow strategist Warren Kinsella accused the Tory campaign of making up quotes.

“Among other things, it helps to explain why John Tory’s campaign started badly, and has gotten worse: his supporters all want to remain anonymous! Not a good sign, big guy,” he wrote on his blog.“Either that, or John makes up quotes.”

https://twitter.com/emozes/status/451707144954335232

Twitter, including the David Soknacki campaign, was quick to mock Tory for the PR gaffe.