Scott Stinson: Mark Carney’s airport plans get a gushing endorsement from Doug Ford

There cannot be many better examples of “the enemy of my enemy is my friend” than the scene that played out on Wednesday morning at a medical building on the northern edge of Toronto.

When Mélanie Joly, the federal minister of industry, took to the podium to celebrate the opening of Sanofi’s new vaccine manufacturing facility, backed by money from all three levels of government, she did the usual thing of noting the dignitaries present, which included, as she nodded toward the Ontario premier, “my dear Doug.”

When it was dear Doug’s turn to speak, Ford called Joly “my favourite minister,” then joked about the other federal ministers who would be calling him to complain that he had used that particular adjective about Joly. He name-dropped a couple: Dominic LeBlanc. François-Philippe Champagne. Great pals, the lot of them.

It bears repeating at this point that these are Liberals, a party that Ford has suggested has been overrun by pinko hippies at other moments of his political career. But evidently when you find yourself in a trade war — and sovereignty fight — with your large and powerful neighbour, the usual alliances are tossed aside. There are no partisans in foxholes, it would seem.

The Conservative premier wasn’t done there. Before he began his prepared remarks, Ford shouted out Mark Carney, who hosted his Canada Investment Summit in Toronto on Monday and Tuesday as Ottawa seeks to attract infrastructure money from around the globe.

“The prime minister did a spectacular job,” Ford said of the conference, and gushed about how he had met potential institutional investors from a number of countries. “Team Canada was united in our pitch,” he said. Ford had specific praise for the federal announcement of a significant tax break on capital spending, which he claimed was built on similar moves made by Ontario. “I want to thank the prime minister for doing that,” Ford said.

Later, when the premier was asked about Carney’s announcement that Ottawa will seek private investment in the operation of four of the country’s largest airports including Toronto Pearson, he didn’t hesitate. “I think it’s fabulous,” Ford said. “I’ve got to give credit where credit is due, the prime minister is on fire.”

Ford has long been complimentary of Carney, but even for him this was laying it on a bit thick. And it suggests he is confident enough in his position, buoyed by a couple of byelection wins, that he isn’t worried what someone who voted both for him and Pierre Poilievre would think of such talk.

But mostly I think it demonstrates that Ford, at this moment in time, very much sees himself on the side of anyone who is also fighting Donald Trump. Or, really, who is not Donald Trump or one of his cronies.

As if to illustrate the point, when a reporter asked Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow about progress on a new funding deal with the province, Ford chimed in to declare that he had “a phenomenal relationship” with the left-wing mayor. “We’re going to continue to support the mayor. She’s doing an incredible job.”

It wasn’t an endorsement, exactly, with Chow in the middle of a mayoral race in which her two closest challengers are more politically conservative. But it was close. “Read between the lines,” Ford said.

Another question about airport privatization came up, and the premier said he  “supports it one thousand per cent.” He couldn’t speak to the specifics of the federal plan, he said, so he handed it off to Joly. Or, “Mel,” as he called her.

At this point an observer could be forgiven for looking around for the secret cameras that indicated this was all one big prank, where would-be political foes were pretending to get along famously.

But, nope: “Isn’t it phenomenal how we are all working together,” Ford asked, rhetorically. Also kind of confusing.

“There are basically three political colours here,” he continued. “I’ve always said I don’t give two hoots about political stripes.”

He asked one more rhetorical question: “Isn’t that what the people want?”

Ford might be on to something there. Tariff and trade issues are repeatedly shown to be top-of-mind for many Canadians, and Trump’s occasional annexation musings only give those concerns added urgency. There almost certainly is a large constituency of voters who care more about a unified response to America’s antagonism than their usual partisan preferences.

This could, obviously, all fall apart. It might even have come close to doing so last month, when Ford was urging Carney not to take a bad trade deal with the United States.

But the Conservative premier and the Liberal prime minister are aligned now, and Ford isn’t shy about saying so.

“We’re in the battle of our lives with President Trump,” Ford said. And so, he’s not being too choosy about his allies.