Mayor John Tory (open John Tory's policard)’s political brand has always been as a consensus-builder — occupying the broad Toronto-establishment mushy middle, going out of his way to seem reasonable and always looking for a “hybrid” solution that can appear moderate. But this week, many of the civic leaders who define the broad Toronto-establishment mushy middle came out stridently against Tory’s position on the two most controversial issues in the city, making clear that on the Gardiner and police carding, the mayor is not in the middle but on the fringe. Many of those rejecting his positions have been prominent allies and supporters of him and his mayoral campaign.

David Crombie Then

There may be no more beloved an elder statesman in Toronto politics than the Tiny Perfect Mayor of 1970s Toronto, that rare Progressive Conservative as respected by progressives as by conservatives. The Star called Crombie’s support for Tory for mayor “the most high-profile endorsement of the campaign.” At the time, Crombie said of Tory, “I am here just to underline one really strong reason why we need John Tory and that is that this city, city council need to be brought together. We need to make sure that after four years of not walking together, we’re going to walk together, work with the province, and move the city forward.”

David Crombie was swept into office in 1972 as mayor at the head of a reform movement whose signal victory was to have Premier Bill Davis cancel the construction of the Spadina Expressway. Tory worked in Davis’ office in his first political job, and considers him his main political role model.

David Crombie Now

This week, Crombie participated in the press conference rejecting Tory’s so-called “hybrid” option for the Gardiner Expressway East, and favouring the roads removal. “I just think (Tory)’s wrong on this issue, as its stands so far — tragically wrong — because we have such an extraordinary opportunity to create a boulevard,” Crombie said. “He’s a good man and I hope he listens to what we say.” Crombie also joined the group that demanded an end to police carding on Wednesday, making twice in one week he’d publicly opposed Tory.

Back in the 1970s, Crombie opposed the Allen Expressway, but his otherwise-ally Premier Bill Davis continued to support its construction. More than 40 years later, Crombie finds himself at loggerheads with Davis’ protégé over another highway.

Bob Richardson Then

The longtime Liberal organizer was, in almost everyone’s telling, among a small multi-partisan group that convinced Tory to run for mayor — visiting the then-talk show host at his cottage in order to draft him as the consensus candidate to replace Rob Ford (open Rob Ford's policard). Richardson served as the co-chair of Tory’s successful mayoral run, and was credited with recruiting strategist Nick Kouvalis to the campaign. He said at the time “there was a hunger for an adult in charge at city hall.”

Richardson, who was once Lynn McLeod’s executive assistant when she was leader of the provincial Liberals, angered Doug Ford on the campaign trail when he said election day was “take out the trash day.”

Bob Richardson Now

At a press conference at city hall demanding an end to the practice of Police carding, organizer Gordon Cressy announced that Richardson had signed on to support the anti-carding message. On Twitter he wrote, “I agree with this group. Time to end carding.”

Though they opposed each other at Queen’s Park, Richardson’s municipal ties to Tory go back further—he worked on Tory’s 2003 mayoral campaign against David Miller.

Anne Golden Then

A former head of the United Way, Golden is to civic activism in Toronto what that charity is to philanthropy, a name that represents the big tent everyone wants to get under. She’s also the woman everyone calls on to lead a task force when they need a tricky issue solved. Golden served with John Tory on the steering committee of the group that became CivicAction (which Tory went on to lead), and according to his mayoral campaign she was one of many experts who “incubated” the plan that became SmartTrack. Shortly after the election, Tory showed up at Ryerson to launch the City Building Institute Golden is a director of.

Toronto Life listed Golden as one of the influential Torontonians in Tory’s “high-powered Rolodex” in a story this spring, calling her “A director at Ryerson’s new City Building Institute and a key ally in Tory’s plan to solve Toronto’s transit woes.”

Anne Golden Now

Golden was one of the biggest names to appear at the anti-carding press conference on Wednesday. She said there that carding was “wrong” and “unproductive,” and that if Tory thinks the practice needs to be changed, this public criticism was Tory’s chance to come forward and specify what those changes would be.

Among the task forces Anne Golden has led was one on transit revenue tools commissioned by Kathleen Wynne, one on homelessness under former Mayor Mel Lastman, and the famous “Golden Report” GTA Task Force in the 1990s.

Michael Thompson (open Michael Thompson's policard) Then

Michael Thompson is a longtime member of city council’s conservative wing, who served until the crack scandal as a key member of Rob Ford’s team. Sparks flew behind the scenes at City Hall when Tory decided not to reappoint Thompson to the police board after he was elected mayor, and to take the spot on the oversight body himself. One key issue then was thought to be Thompson insistence on ending the practice of carding. However, Thompson was appointed to Tory’s cabinet-like Executive Committee, and is chair of the city’s Economic Development Committee.

Thompson has changed his position on police interactions with black men drastically over the years — back in 2005 during the “summer of the gun,” he explicitly suggested police should be allowed to “target” young black men.

Michael Thompson Now

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

At the press conference opposing carding at City Hall, Thompson spoke first, introducing the group and their message, saying “carding is a discriminatory, socially corrosive practice that demeans the people it targets” by intimidating the very people police should be serving. He said the group represented a “broad consensus” in the city that the policy was contrary to Toronto’s values. Notably, the mayor has not yet joined that consensus.

As a police board member and then as a city councillor, Thompson was known to back Deputy Chief Peter Sloly for the top job, against new Chief Mark Saunders. Sloly was known to be an opponent of carding within the force, Saunders a defender of the policy.

Pam McConnell (open Pam McConnell's policard) Then

McConnell has long served as a pillar of city council’s left wing, and her appointment as one of Tory’s deputy mayors shortly after the election was a clear attempt to bolster his non-partisan, consensus-building credibility. Back then, after I wrote something dismissive about her appointment, McConnell told me, “I’m nobody’s window dressing.” Tory seemed to agree, telling CP24, “To appoint a veteran and somebody very committed to the best interests of the city as Councillor McConnell as deputy mayor is very significant in my eyes”

McConnell has hinted that the long-delayed decision on the Gardiner — due to take place next Wednesday — could be deferred to allow a consensus opinion to emerge.

Pam McConnell Now

McConnell organized the press conference this week to publicly oppose Tory’s plan for the Gardiner expressway, assembling Crombie, Sheldon Levy, and respective former chief planners of Toronto to make the case for the removal option. At the press conference, former planner Paul Bedford said Tory’s preferred option would make Toronto “a laughing stock of the world.”

McConnell was famously physically tackled during a council meeting by Rob Ford. This week she made news for politically tackling Tory.

Sheldon Levy Then

The president of Ryerson is the highest profile academic administrator in the city, largely because his architectural transformation of the university’s campus has made him a key city builder in downtown Toronto. It was that renown, perhaps, that led Tory to appoint Levy to his transition team after he was elected mayor. At the time, Levy told the Ryerson Eyeopener he was “honoured” by Tory’s request, and that he would “do my best to contribute.” He was specifically asked to help advise the mayor on transportation and transit issues (as well as housing).

So large is Levy’s reputation that his planned retirement from Ryerson was postponed two years because the school couldn’t find anyone they thought would be able to fill his shoes.

Sheldon Levy Now

Levy was at the press conference to publicly support tearing down the Gardiner East, taking aim at Tory and his allies’ language on the issue. “Some people call it hybrid versus removal, but I changed that in my mind, to is it about people or is it about cars? Or … about access to the waterfront. And I think my choice and all of our choices should be about people.”

Levy currently sits on advisory council of Toronto Region Board of Trade, an organization that clearly doesn’t always agree with him: they have come out in favour of the hybrid option Tory favours.

Roy McMurtry Then

A retired judge, an imminently respected conservative politician who served in the provincial cabinet of Bill Davis (who Tory considers a key mentor) and as Chief Justice of Ontario. He was the co-author of a report on the “Roots of Youth Violence” in 2008 that took particular note of police interactions with young racialized youth. McMurtry donated money to Tory’s election campaign.

McMurty has never been afraid of strong public positions — as Attorney-General of Ontario he had NHL players arrested for brawls on the ice at Maple Leafs games.

Roy McMurtry Now

McMurtry spoke emphatically at the press conference calling for an end to carding. “At this point, it should just be abandoned,” he said, calling it a threat to “diverse communities” and saying in his view the practice violates the charter rights of those it targets — an important opinion from an esteemed judge who wrote the Charter opinion that legalized same-sex marriage in Ontario.

McMurtry has said that when he was Attorney General, he told the chief of Toronto police that the raids of gay bathhouses they conducted in 1981 were akin to “dissolving into a police state.”

Alvin Curling Then

A retired provincial Liberal cabinet minister and speaker of the Ontario Legislature, Curling was the other author of the “Roots of Youth Violence” report. Curling endorsed Tory for mayor during the campaign. “I am supporting John because when I was the House Speaker and it would sometimes get raucous; the only pacifying and comforting face I could find was John,” Share News quoted him saying then. “His respect for institutions is something that we want in this city.” Curling went on to serve on Tory’s transition team.

Curling’s Order of Ontario citation specifically noted his role in addressing youth violence.

Alvin Curling Now

Curling was among those publicly calling for an end to the carding policy at City Hall Wednesday — there were 50 community leaders in all at the event who signed on. Afterwards, John Tory said of the group, “I’ve got the message,” but did not alter his position that the practice of carding was a complicated issue that needs reform, rather than abolition.

Curling clearly doesn’t consider carding a game-breaker for political support. Last month he told NOW magazine he supports Bill Blair as a Scarborough champion despite the former chief’s long-standing support for carding.

Correction – June 5, 2015: This article was edited from a previous version that mistakenly said Sheldon Levy sits on the board of the Toronto Region Board of Trade

Read more about: