In this Presidential election year, the mayors of the nation can be proud of the fact that both Presidential candidates participated in our 68th Annual Conference of Mayors in Seattle. Vice President Gore came in person as he has in years past to both our Washington Winter Meeting as well as our Annual Conference in June.

After he addressed the mayoral delegates in Seattle, he went directly to a "political rally" which took place during the Democratic Mayors Meeting in our headquarters hotel. It was a spirited meeting and Vice President Gore was much more animated in the Democratic Mayors session than he was in our bipartisan plenary session. Detroit Mayor Dennis Archer, Chair of the Democratic Mayors for the past 4 years, ran the show. Former Philadelphia Mayor Ed Rendell, now Co-chair of the Democratic National Committee took the stage to talk strategy and fundraising. All Clinton federal appointees were asked to come up on stage to take a round of applause. Then at the end, New Orleans Mayor Marc Morial took the stage and transformed the room into an interactive Louisiana political event full of cheers and chants. Those mayors that commented that Vice President Gore was "flat" as he spoke to the plenary session should have seen him at the Democratic Mayors Meeting. It was a totally different atmosphere and most observers concluded that he must use the Democratic Mayors more often when he appears before the American people. The mayors produce a different kind of energy that could prove to be an asset in his quest for the Presidency.

Governor George W. Bush hooked up with us via live satellite from Kennebunkport, a place in Maine that we learned about when his father was our President. And it was at the Bush homestead on the coast of Maine that the Bush family had gathered over the week to celebrate the 75th birthday of our former first lady Barbara Bush. They also celebrated the 76th birthday of former President George Bush the next day.

Governor Bush talked to the nations mayors for the first time. He spoke of mayoral priorities and specifically referred to items contained in our "New Agenda For America’s Cities" – the 10-Point Plan that has been adopted by the U.S. Conference of Mayors and The National Association of Counties. Governor Bush also offered himself up to a question and answer session. The Bush/Mayoral Q.& A. session is printed in its entirety on page 24.

Following the Bush talk, there was a Republican Mayors press conference for the purpose of thanking Governor Bush for talking about our issues. Most of the Democratic Mayors, last year at our New Orleans Annual Meeting, endorsed Vice President Gore. Boise Mayor Brent Coles, our incoming President, felt the Republican mayors should be given the same opportunity and they convened a press conference to praise Governor Bush. The Seattle press conference, coupled with Governor Bush’s remarks, were the beginnings of active participation for mayors and local officials in the Bush campaign.

Then, after Republican mayors and the Bush endorsement press conference, HUD Secretary Andrew Cuomo and New Orleans Mayor Marc Morial led a press conference as a "response" to the Bush speech.

All of this partisan activity took place at our Seattle meeting even though we have a rule against partisan press conferences from the time our meeting begins on Friday until our meeting ends. That rule was adopted when Ernest "Dutch" Morial, the then mayor of New Orleans, was our President in 1985. But that rule went out the window when the Republican Mayors and Democratic Mayors reached an agreement, along with our President, Denver Mayor Webb, that it was in the best interest of the Conference of Mayors to allow these press conferences so that the bipartisan policy message of the Conference would not be lost.

It was the Conference of Mayors working its "wonder." Partisan messages in a most bipartisan meeting and each group leaving Seattle enthusiastic and energized by their candidates. They were also united in the Conference of Mayors policy and determined to get both Mr. Bush and Mr. Gore to support and implement our adopted 10-Point Plan. Full texts of the Gore and Bush remarks can be viewed at our web site: usmayors.org.

While mayors were pleased that both candidates participated in our meeting, many mayors want both candidates to support and work with us on the basic tenets of the 10-Point Plan adopted by The Conference earlier this year. At our special and first ever Leadership Meeting at our Annual Meeting in Seattle on Saturday morning, three days before he took the Presidential gavel, it was incoming President Brent Coles, the Mayor of Boise, who stressed the need for mayors to work in a bipartisan way to "drill down" on our 10-Point Plan and produce a number of agreed-to initiatives that could be supported by both Mr. Bush and Mr. Gore.

In his inaugural address on Tuesday morning, Conference President Coles announced he is forming ten (10) Transition Teams:

• Drug Control/Public Safety

• Human Dignity/Diversity

• School Programs Supporting Families

• Smart Growth

• Smart Cities/Technology Infrastructure/Digital Divide

• Parks and Open Space

• Technology in Schools

• Workforce Technology Training

• Rail System Restoration

• Airport Enhancements

President Coles will charge the 10 bipartisan teams to meet in July in Chicago to produce documents and strategies to be used in the transition period after the November 7th election.

Mayor Cole’s goal, along with the nations’ mayors, is to have a Presidential campaign and Presidential transition that takes into account that there are some domestic challenges before USA cities and metro areas that call for a bipartisan response. Mayors are responding to their new President from Boise, Mayor Brent Coles as he goes forward to lead us through this election/transition year. Outgoing President Wellington E. Webb pledged his support to help lift our issues as high as possible in both Presidential campaigns. Other officers, New Orleans Mayor Marc Morial and our new Advisory Board Chair Boston Mayor Tom Menino have pledged their support for the candidates to listen to the mayors, as they formulate their issues and initiatives to present to the American people.

President Coles’ vision to lift our issues higher and higher was buoyed by the participation and interest shown by Governor Bush and Vice President Gore to our mayors at our 68th Annual Meeting in Seattle. It gave all of us new energy for the campaigns ahead.

Democratic and Republican mayors feel that they will be involved and, above all, listened to about strategies and issues for their candidates.

Mayor Coles goes forward from Seattle as our new President, with new political energy. Because of what happened at this Seattle meeting, he feels strong in urging mayors to be involved for the sake of our cities and every man, woman and child who lives in them. With your help, his vision will be a reality and on election day our new President will be stronger for our cities. Join with us. It is an exciting time to be a mayor of an American city and we are much stronger in a bipartisan political way than ever before.

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