By Kevin McCarty
January 31, 2011

Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley was presented The United States Conference of Mayors Award for Distinguished Public Service, honoring the longest serving mayor of Chicago and the 54th Conference of Mayors President at a special session held during the 79th Winter Meeting.

In his acceptance speech at the January 19 session, Daley said, "I am glad my father gave me the passion and interest for public service." In accepting the award, he asked his wife, Maggie, to be recognized as the one "who truly helped me."

"We mayors, as my father taught me, are closest to the people," said Daley whose father served as mayor of Chicago from 1955-1976 and as Conference of Mayors President from 1959-1960.

Daley praised his mayoral colleagues throughout his remarks, noting the special relationship of mayors to the people. "There is something about mayors. We get right to the heart of the issue and are able to discuss it and present our answers as quickly as possible. There is no BS. Our people demand that we make these tough decisions," he said.

In comments on the Conference of Mayors, he said, "This organization has never been divided by partisan politics." Acknowledging its role in advancing the mayors' agenda, Daley said, "What this organization has done over the years is to present a platform for all of us."

"Mayors look farther ahead than anyone else. We always realize there is another mayor that is going to take our place so how can we present our city to the next mayor and help our city to the future. We respect the past, we live in the present, but we always look into the future. These are the real issues confronting us," Daley said.

Daley praised Tucson Mayor Bob Walkup for his leadership in bringing mayors together around the Conference of Mayors Civility Accord, which was formally presented to all mayors at the opening of the 79th Winter Meeting. "Civility has to take place in your homes, in your places of worship, and in your community, not just in politics but everywhere," he said.

In his remarks on gun violence, Daley said, "There is no civility with that person who has a gun that is talking to you. Tragedy in America by gun violence is overtaking us, with violence continually and not just in Tucson but in every one of our cities — in the large cities, in suburban and rural cities."

He called for more debate on common sense solutions to gun violence. "We should discuss the issue of people arming themselves in our cities all over America, arming themselves to feel protected by a gun and not by words. I don't care where you are on gun violence. I don't care where you are on gun regulation. There has to be common sense about this. It is not an attack on any constitutional protection," Daley said. "We fought for freedom and democracy; we should not be killing our own on a daily basis."

Daley also talked about job creation and infrastructure, urging his colleagues to find solutions, such as tax credits at the local, state and federal levels, to engage the private sector more fully in meeting these critical challenges. "The federal government doesn't have any money until we rebuild our economy," he told his colleagues.

"To me, you mayors and your families represent real democracy in America because of your closeness to the people," Daley said in concluding his remarks.

A special tribute video, produced by the Conference of Mayors, was shown prior to the presentation of the award. Conference of Mayors Vice President Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and several Conference of Mayors Past Presidents joined Conference President Burnsville (MN) Mayor Elizabeth B. Kautz and Conference of Mayors CEO and Executive Director Tom Cochran for the official presentation, all of whom made remarks at the session.