involved. as "time" protect it, the yoer it's the end of the illusion that the country is going to be transformed from the white house. before you're a liberal or a conservative, a democrat or a republican, isn't it time we realize that the countries are going to be transformed from our communities? the people know that, which is why, according to the latest gallop, only 17% of americans were satisfied with the way things are going. and i look forward to hearing the majority leader. lut, you know, 2011 ended with

congress having an 11% approval rating. so this is your moment. more than ever. this is your moment. and i really believe that as we are looking at what you can do, we are looking at 20 million vij table gardens were planting vegetable gardens or helping each other in innovative, bringing peck where it's called see, click, fix.com. a street lamp that's not

working. there's so much innovation, so much creativity, so much ingenuity. and this is really the moment to come together and create that critical mass of cities, municipalities, towns, communities, coming together and transforming our country. and we are looking to you to lead us, and i'm really excited to be here to offer a partnership with us to amplify all the great work you're doing. thank you so much. >> mayors and i thought we might take an opportunity to take some questions from arianna. so any questions?

>> do you have one? >> i have one. yeah. you mentioned the innovative things that mayors are doing around the country. share with us some of the things you think the congress ought to be doing right now to put people back to work. our number one goal is focusing on the economy. and as you said, they haven't done a whole lot in that regard. >> well, absolutely. and another thing that's very dear to your heart, antonio. but i believe there's absolutely no excuse for not having a great public/private infrastructure problem. i mean, our bridges, our infrastructure is crumbling. even if we were employment, we would have an infrastructure problem. so there's absolutely no

justification for not having one, including the manufacturing sector. i was recently flying to brazil because we are launching the huffington post there. and with me were two hedge fund managers. they said, what are you doing? i said going to sao paulo. they said why? i said what's wrong with participating and you know what is interesting in brazil is that whether you talk to the richest brazilian, eric batista, or a labor leader, they have an objection which is to move people out of poverty into the middle class because they believe this is the way to build a stable prosperity, an economy that's really working for everybody. and a stable democracy.

so i don't understand why these issues in our country are seen as left versus right. that's another thing at the huffington post we don't use as a way of describing what's happening. left versus right because it's another way to polarize us. instead of recognizing that so much of what we all want, strengthening the middle class. good schools for our kids. being able to ensure that our children do better than we do. are things we all want. whatever we were in the political spectrum. that's what congress needs to understand. but at some point, i believe we need to realize that we need to look in the mirror, discover the leader in the mirror as you all d did. because there's only -- there's a greek philosopher. he used to go around begging from statues.

and at one point, somebody stopped him and said, what are you going, begging from statues? and he said, i'm practicing disappointment. we can actually change the climate in this country. and then others will follow. others here in washington, d.c. >> the mike is on its way. mayor palitto from santa ana, california. >> thank you, mayor. you are offering us something absolutely extraordinary today in terms of, you know, how we can use this to lend back public opinion and share good news, et

cetera, et cetera. one of the areas that many of us deal with is energy and the fact that unfortunately it's gotten coupled with global warming. and everybody immediately starts saying well, do you believe, and i believe. those of us just trying to make a difference. we're just trying to install solar in our communities, trying to get community gardens, trying to have mass transit. we're trying to do all sorts of good things. and very often we're just told no because here in washington, you know, this whole global warming has just killed everything. there's no energy bill. there's no climate bill. there's no green bloc grant. there's a whole bunch of things that around there. i was wondering how we can read with you, that we could decouple some of these things and focus on projects that we know that work, that we know that create jobs. that we know that make a difference and get that out to folks so that we start turning

public around. there's obviously a disconnect and you are the connector. >> we can do that. we can do it at the level. these are journalists who are about 40,000, 50,000 people. and then we can move to los angeles and san francisco and then nationally and even internationally because a lot of these issues affect everybody. and then putting the spotlight on the projectser zmu. and people can see, whatever they may think theoretically, here is something that is working. and when people see results, i think we can really change public opinion. i really believe fundamentally

that we can change minds. we've done that throughout history. how did we move? >> i believe that as well. and just one special question, we are on the committee talking about how you can go to the supermarket and there can be apples from all over the world. none of them from california. you know, if we could coordinate such that we could bring local products to market, that. any thoughts on that. >> i love that. anything that can demonstrate the power, and also, namt, we can play hardball. there is the shelter crisis.

and why not use these laws to declare an emergency when you have shelters overflowing. i just did research because we'll be covering this causatively athe steng us boxes in school school. if a sick number of comes up, you can declare a still live in -- but really we're thought -- he would care.

i profoundly believe that. look when happens. we were obsessed for days. here's the arctic boy. i have an idea. what about if we construct a big balloon. and we don't have to put a the point is that we need to use all the means at all, which is becoming like a reality show with another contestant dropping out every week, to actually what is the real crisis that people

are experiencing and that you know about firsthand because you are seeing it firsthand every day. >> i want to thank you very much, arianna huffington. >> well, ms. huffington has made a call. all of us can link up with our neighborhood patch and blog and tell our stories and the story of america's cities on huffington post. thank you very much. arianna huffington.

i'm now very pleased to introduce -- i understand she's in the house, my good friend, the friend of cities all across the nation, nancy pelosi, democratic leader of the house 37 now, i don't use friend lightly. every single time we come to washington, d.c., we ask for a meeting. with nancy pelosi. we get it. every single time that we've come to washington, d.c., with a problem, nancy is working with us to find a solution. every single time we've said it's time for the congress to act on the issue of jobs and economic development, she has been there right along our side.

please help me in welcoming my friend, our friend, a woman who was with us in baltimore whose dad was a mayor of baltimore, tommy d. alessandro, a grit leader for america, nancy pelosi, the democratic leader of the house. >> good afternoon. thank you very much, mayor villaraigosa, for your generous introduction, for your service to the city of los angeles, for your great leadership as president of the u.s. conference of mayors.

you know, when i come here, when we were in baltimore last year, i said it was like coming home. i know -- i hope that the great mayor of baltimore is here. i don't know -- stephanie? stephanie rollings blake. good to see you again. we're very proud of our mayors of the city i'm from. tom cochran knows that not only was my father the mayor of baltimore but my brother. my brother serving with tom for many years. isn't tom wonderful? aren't we blessed to have his service? it really is great to be here for all of you. this says really an important time. i want to thank villaraigosa for his leadership in worked with to the fore. it outlined the challenges

making the entire nation. the urgent need to create jobs, restore the middle class and restore fairness and growth to our economy. you have brought to the u.s. conference of mayors, mr. mayor, your advocacy and our transit systems, highways, roads, infrastructure, americans to work. thank you, mr. mayor, at the inauguration of our new mayor, ed lee. >> he is here. >> the first chinese-american mayor of san francisco. this is quite a remarkable thing. we're very proud of him. i was just with him, so he's probably taking the longer route into this room. but at that time, and you will

tell him i said this, that day summed up all san franciscans. he spoke of taking challenges, embracing risks and embrace to all those gathered today. when you come to washington, you bring with you the hopes, the aspirations and the priorities of the american people. when you speak, congress and the president listens. because mayors confront our country's challenges at the ground level. as was mentioned, my father and my brother were mayors. ha there is no buffer between a mayor and his

or her con stastate. pay the bills and put food on the table. every day you see impacts made on the lives of working families. mayors recognize that investments in our cities and education and job training and clean energy, intrastructure, community development are investments in our community. and you know what's best for america's cities, large and small, is best for -- that's why when i talk to people, i say

talk to america's mayors. they have a vision and a plan to get things done. the most enduring theme in america, people we're willing to work hard, play by the rules and take responsibility. we must rebuild our nation's thriving middle class. and we can do that by rebuilding america's infrastructure. right? >> that's right. >> we have work to do. i know from last year many of you wrote to me after i saw you,

after i was involved in the infrastructure. i'll talk more in a doemt strengthening and expanding small that means right now as you gather here, right now, that means tighting to expend the pay k kol. for millions of americans who have lost their job through no dault of their own, who instead the republicans have resisted. they have a double standard. they have resist the paying a tax cut for the wealthiest

people in our country, but they insist that middle classes for right by that continue so 160 million americans can inject into the economy by spending that money and created jobs. we have to make that fight or else that surcharge is going to have to pay for that as well. because we're not going to give to the middle class with one another and taking you're going to get the tax cut, but seniors are going to have to pay more for medicare or whatever. and then the seniors and their own doctors under medicare, this is really important. and we want to solve this issue once and for all. it's really important to the to

come ares, to the families of our sisters. to pay for it entirely and intends the discussion. what we bull if the republicans don't like a surcharge on the wealthiest in our country which, by the way, it lowered their drug prices. but the juat's the fight that we in. the u.s. conference of mayors has laid out its vision and its

priorities. as always, it starts with jobs. we recognize that our national recovery depends on the if p so that we're not only putting people back to work but we have many more abcs. >> abc's. it's not to be protectionist. it is "b," blds america. let the recovery from the

whoefworst so that our workers and family can make it in america. we must stop it from our protectionist, but to be refu l refusal, the engine of her conomic growth providing workers and ensuring that those biases can drive we reach out to thousands of business owners in our to reorganize government which focuses square on new opportunities and markets to our small businesses. the creator of jobs, creator of

capital. to build our middle class, again, we must build the inf infrastructure of america with key investments in high-speed rail, broad canned, roads and binge systems if and, of course, our highways. mayor villaraigosa has led the way in 203 "america fast forward." we know that supporting these initiative initiatives laying the we

foundation. we might fight for critical support, for housing, economic development and job training in our neighborhoods to the level for funding to take it to the next level. now, we have fought and won some of the battle pushing it up but 180,000 young people in cities and communities across the country. but we just if the health and well-being to our children.

thank you for your leadership. it's very important in that regard. legislation in congress where build the infrastructure, community recovery, and in time and time again. americans said we can't wait any longer. we must no longer enlist our support is. today we must fight for quality, not only because of the you represent against the power of

special interest. that's why we must continue our drive for clean campaigns. we must fight for a new politics free of exposure. to get unpimt edunpimtedunwante. it has a wholesome, to allow small donors in the grass roots to have a great deert bock

disclosed? reformed with the majority and amend the constitution. we must fight to remove obstacles with voter tarpgs. we must protect the rights and every tingle every time. this isn't about the 11% 99% or 1%. thank you, mayor villaraigosa. very important. and everything that we'd do, whether it was hild care about that last year.