By Evangelina Garcia
July 2, 2012

During a speech to hundreds of mayors attending the annual meeting in Orlando, outgoing Conference of Mayors President Antonio R. Villaraigosa made the case that while Washington remains ineffective, mayors are leading the way.

He began by praising incoming Conference of Mayors President Philadelphia Mayor Michael A. Nutter, a rising star on the national stage and said that, "He is passing the torch from West to East."

"From the city of Angels to the city of Brotherly Love, The U.S. Conference of Mayors will remain the voice of intellectual and moral authority when it comes to the nation's cities and metro regions. And we will not waver in our fundamental commitment to the jobs our people and our cities desperately need," he said.

"Colleagues, I can think of no better leader, no more effective fighter with a bigger heart than our incoming president, Michael Nutter. He has demonstrated leadership, vision and imagination. I have no doubt that he will bring this same style to the helm of The U.S. Conference [of Mayors]," he added.

The mayor emphasized that our economic recovery is still fragile and we need a concerted and comprehensive effort to get Americans back to work.

"One thing is clear. We won't achieve prosperity through austerity. We need to remember how we achieved our greatness. By making the strategic long-term investments in our infrastructure and in our people," he said.

He added that if Congress cannot propose a commonsense balance of revenue increases and spending cuts, we face one trillion dollars in across-the-board cuts that will devastate jobs and wreck the American economy. "These are cuts that threaten to erase programs like CDBG, cops on the street, neighborhood schools, you name it," he said.

The mayor continued by stating that it's cities, not states where the real work and solutions are taking place. "When it comes to finding imaginative solutions to our most pressing problems, it's our mayors who are doing the heavy lifting!"

Highlighting specific example of cities where true and innovative action is taking place, Villaraigosa said that in Jacksonville, Mayor Alvin Brown is charting the economic future of his region by spearheading an impressive expansion of the Port of Jacksonville and growing the local export sector.

And in New Orleans, where Mayor Mitch Landrieu has recognized that cultural tourism is one of the most dynamic industries and an important source of jobs, he is making strategic investments to reestablish his city as a premier destination.

He also pointed to Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson for raising millions of dollars and working in partnership with the national non-profit City Year, to place tutors in Sacramento schools.

Villaraigosa added that in Beaverton (OR), Mayor Denny Doyle is pushing the envelope of sustainability with his Solar Beaverton program.

The mayor also praised Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel where — without raising taxes — has created a $ 7 billion fund that will fill potholes, build new parks, repair aging sewer pipes, pay for a host of other community improvement projects and put 30,000 Chicagoans to work in the process.

Speaking to the unique spirit of bipartisanship found among mayors, Villaraigosa pointed to The U.S. Conference of Mayors annual meeting in Baltimore last year, where mayors stood together, spoke up and called for an end to the war in Afghanistan.

"We did so because we wanted our troops — after building nations oversees — to come home to a prosperous America full of opportunity for them and their families. Now Congress should invest those war savings in rebuilding our infrastructure and paying down our national debt. We've built bridges in Kandahar, it's time to build them in Kansas City."

And speaking for the need to strengthen our nation's infrastructure, Villaraigosa said, "We can't keep pace in the coming decades with the new economic of China, Brazil and India if our bridges are crumbling and our rails are rusty.

That is why mayors have sounded the clarion call for critical infrastructure investments."

As a leading advocate for education, the mayor said that good schools plant the seeds of success. "They provide our children with skills they need to advance in today's highly competitive, knowledge-based economy."

In closing, Villaraigosa emphasized that mayors, have led the way because they have put purpose before partisanship. "While DC has been gripped by gridlock, we have come together and showed the way. We have collaborated, compromised and created coalitions. In short, we have done what our constituents rightly demand of us. We have governed."

To listen to his full speech, visit the website: usmayors.org.