When Doug Ford stepped up to the microphone on Tuesday morning to declare a state of emergency in Ontario because of the coronavirus outbreak, he did so in a manner he hasn’t displayed since becoming premier almost two years ago:

He looked like — and acted like — a real leader.

Ford was decisive and looked to be in charge, considerate, compassionate, understanding of the issues and the consequences.

Gone was his normal bombast, his political cheap-shots, ego-fuelled bragging and personal attacks on critics and the media.

“We’re facing an unprecedented time in our history. This is a decision that was not made lightly. COVID-19 constitutes a danger of major proportions,” Ford said in a serious tone that suggested he now understands the gravity of this health crisis and is acting accordingly, with forced closures of restaurants, bars, schools, recreation centres and more.

What a difference from how President Donald Trump has acted throughout the COVID-19 crisis!

Indeed, this crisis may sink Trump and save Ford.

It may also be Ford’s best and only chance to redeem himself in the eyes of Ontario voters, many of whom now openly boo and mock him at public events.

It’s been easy to be critical of Ford for most of his term as premier. But in recent days the premier has performed surprisingly well in handling his government’s response to the coronavirus crisis — even to the point of looking downright “leaderly.”

Almost from the day he was sworn in, Ford has been a disaster as premier. He’s run personal vendettas against former political foes, allowed a wave of stunning patronage appointments for friends and allies, approved huge spending cuts aimed at vulnerable residents, intimidated his own cabinet ministers and overseen a government so incompetent it can’t even replace licence plates without scandal.

And Ford has done it all with his bull-in-a-china-shop style of governing that sees him attacking anyone who dares criticize him while at the same time ludicrously bragging about how great his government is doing despite clear evidence to the contrary.

Now, though, Ford is a different leader — albeit possibly temporarily

As the severity of the COVID-19 outbreak finally dawned on him, Ford has taken decisive and necessary action, culminating Tuesday in the declaration of a state of emergency and the announcement that his government is setting aside $304 million to help the health-care system with an extra 75 critical-care beds, 500 post-acute care beds and another 25 COVID-19 assessment centres at hospitals around the province.

True, like Trump, Ford took a long time coming to the realization that COVID-19 posed a real and serious threat.

Earlier this month in Kitchener, Ford joked about hand sanitizers, advising a crowd to look for the stuff with high-alcohol content. “If it’s the cheap stuff, it doesn’t work,” he said.

It was the same Ford who later told Ontarians not to worry about the virus and go ahead with March Break vacation trips and “have a good time” — just two days before his own government started to close schools and advise against travelling to the U.S. or elsewhere abroad.

In recent days, though, Ford appears to be trying his best to deal with a tough situation. He’s been calling business leaders to solicit their views on how to proceed. He’s listening to the advice from health-care experts. He’s met with the Ontario’s other political party leaders. He’s come across as reasonable, going so far as to praise Ottawa lately for its handling of the crisis after initially criticizing the Trudeau government for not doing enough.

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Importantly, he has shown a willingness to spend money to deal with COVID-19 despite his normal mantra about being a deficit slayer. “We will spare no expense to help Ontarians,” he says.

While Trump’s refusal to see the outbreak as serious until thousands of Americans were affected could spell his political demise, Ford’s performance lately may offer him some hope for re-election in 2022.

Still, Ford is not out of the woods. There’s lots of time for him to revert to his old blustery, flip-flopping self. But, for now, he’s finally a leader.

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