From the print edition, my new column ponders the meaning of that big picnic in Toronto mayor Rob Ford’s mom’s back yard, at which the surprise guest was Stephen Harper.

A point I, uh, forgot to mention in the column is that Harper has begun referring in speeches to “that Conservative fortress of Toronto.”  I suspect that’s still a bit tongue in cheek. But if the 2011 results solidified or if the Conservatives were able to extend their gains in the GTA, Toronto would start to play a big part in Conservative election hopes. And as I say in the column, this comes after everyone’s already seen so much of Harper that he might reasonably have been expected to be waving goodbye to parts of his voter base, not adding to it.