The City Council of Toronto, Canada, has voted to curb the powers of embattled Mayor Rob Ford. Over the past several weeks, Ford has admitted to smoking crack cocaine, buying illegal drugs, and driving while under the influence of alcohol. Ford has also made vulgar remarks about oral sex and has been linked in press reports to domestic abuse. On Monday, the City Council voted to limit Ford’s budget and transfer most of his authority to the deputy mayor. Ford lashed out at the council during a public hearing.

Rob Ford: “In one year, I received 3,000 letters through the mail, 46,000 CMS messages, 138,000 emails, 123,000 phone calls, and between my home number and my cell number and my Onstar number in my car, I received 22,000 numbers. Are you aware of that? 22,000 phone calls. Are you aware of that, Madam Clerk, or whoever is moving the motion?”

Ford has vowed to challenge the limiting of his powers in court. At Monday’s hearing, he caused a new stir after knocking down a female councilor. Later in the day, Ford appeared on television to debut his new weekly program, “Ford Nation.” Ford said he is being targeted for his fiscally responsible policies.

Rob Ford: “I’ve made mistakes, but I don’t think, you know, that anyone else is any different. It’s hypocrisy at its best, and I’m not proud of what I’ve done. It’s very humiliating. But, you know, being fiscally responsible down at City Hall — and let’s call a spade a spade here — the majority of councilors down there are left-wing tax-and-spend socialists. That’s what they are. And there’s a handful of us that are fiscally responsible. And if I was one of them — as you know, there’s some councilors down there that have been criminally charged. Nothing wrong with that. I haven’t been charged.”