friendship matches. we played in three cities -- and fortunately, very fortunately for me, the mantra over and over again was friendship first, competition second. i would like to brag here today that i won three matches out of four in china. and it was only do -- and i'm very well aware it was only due to the philosophy, "friendship first, competition second." [laughter] i am also grateful for the wonderful hospitality that the chinese association and chinese people have extended in my subsequent ping-pong diplomacy visits to china, and i thank the chinese association and the people of china for keeping alive the spirit of ping-pong diplomacy. today, we are celebrating ping- pong diplomacy and the role it played in normalizing relations

between u.s. and china. however, pingpong diplomacy does not justify -- just apply to the u.s. team trip to china in 1971 and the chinese team trip to the u.s.a. in 1972. ping-pong diplomacy also applies to the role of sports in bringing people together in peaceful interactions. in sports, we have a common language that transcends national boundaries and cultural differences. we gain perspective and understanding, and we learn appreciation for each other. through the legacy of ping-pong diplomacy, we carry forward to the new generations a new people's revolution. it is one that carries a world wide message of peace, love, and cooperation. [applause] >> thank you. now, i would like to ask mayor lee to come back to the podium because we have some presentations to make to the

delegation. and we are going to be helped, too, with the pronunciation of the names so we make sure that we get them all correct. [applause]

>> [inaudible] whene'er [applause]

[reading names]

>> before the exhibition, i have one announcement to make, and i know supervisor mar will appreciate this. this summer -- in fact, in the month of september, there will be sunday streets in san francisco's chinatown north beach. through the great work of our

program and rose and the chinese chamber, part of the sunday street on september 18 will be a dedication to a citywide ping- pong tournament that each district of our city will field a team of people to play, and we will pick up in an alleyway in chinatown. there will be 11 ping pong tables, and we will determine the best ping-pong player from the city and county of san francisco. how about that in september? [applause] >> now, we are going to play. before we do, i would like to ask peter to come up from the united states table tennis association.

they have a gift for you that will help you maybe this afternoon. so peter, can you make this quickly? mayor lee? >> on behalf of usa table tennis, we would like to present to the mayor this anniversary paddle. 40 anniversary ping-pong diplomacy, july 1-8, 2011, milwaukee, san francisco, richard nixon library from usa table tennis and suitable for autographing on the back so you can get some signatures while your there. thank you. mayor lee: thank you. >> thank you for hosting. >> now, what we have all been waiting for. i think we are ready to play. mayor lee, are you ready? are you going to play? ok, great.

and this is a veteran of the 1971 exhibit. [applause]

>> we are going to add the doubles. [applause] yes, you, too. this is the future now. the future and the past. >> [inaudible]

[applause]

[cheers and applause]

[applause] [cheers and applause] >> very nice, thank you. that will be the end of the press conference. you are all welcome to join us at the library. [inaudible] 7:00.

thank you all very much for coming. >> i think if you're going to continue with your intellectual honesty, i hope you vote against every project from here on out that includes below market rate units. because the same legal argument you're making to argue that this development agreement is invalid is the same one you should be making to the ordinance. >> next is the senior member of

the board of supervisors, not so much in terms of age but in terms of terms of service, and a man who nominated the mayor who is about to be sworn in. sean elsbernd. >> i was born and raised in district 7, montessori school right up the block. a grade school right down the street. my mom owned a children's clothing store right down the block, and i am lived here all my life, 30 years, and i have every intention of raising my family here. went down to a small school in los angeles, claremont mckenna, and came back here for law school and graduated. went to work here in city hall immediately upon passing the bar on the first drive. and work here in city hall for a few years. then lightning struck and i was appointed as a member of the board of supervisors in august of 2004 and have been here ever since. most people would call me a moderate.

i have a knack and a love for the law. i saw a way to combine that love with service to the political process. i think having watched campaigns not as a candidate, i do not appreciate the kind of thick skin you need is a candidate. being a candidate, it is not the easiest thing in the world. i have come since then to really appreciate my opponent, in the sense that while i may disagree with them, we have policy disagreements, they are putting their foot on the line. they're stepping into the arena. this is a lot about them. being a candidate is not an easy endeavor, and you have to respect anybody who does that. >> you are all about to get an introduction to the fairly daunting numbers that the city is about to face. that the city is facing right now. the mayor, the way the process works, the mayor introduces his budget, the first part on may 1 at a the second part on june 1. then it gets handed off to the board of supervisors.

this single most important issue is the budget. whether your concern is homelessness or transportation, parks, public health, fundamentally, it all comes down to how much money we have and how we are going to spend it. and looking forward, unfortunately, it is getting worse. the amount of money for spending is far outpacing the amount of money that is coming in. and getting our hands around that and how we're going to bring that into line is the biggest challenge. >> this is real reform. this is a real proposal that every single san franciscan can be brought to support come november. it is also important note, as much as we see real reform and a tattered million dollars to $1 billion over the next 10 years, that is also real sacrifice, real dollars from our public employees. >> i am trusting myself into what i think is the biggest challenge within the budget, and that is the cost associated with

our city employee pensions and health benefits. those are the single biggest drivers to our expenses, far exceeding our revenues. we're talking literally hundreds of billions of dollars, this upcoming fiscal year approaching on pension and benefits alone, spending just shy of $1 billion. >> i was hoping not to have to stand up. i do not think there would have to second the motion that is frankly so irresponsible, the notion that cost neutral is not defined -- all due respect, i do not need a definition to tell me what cost neutral and means. money comes in, money comes out. if it is neutral, it is neutral. i do not need a definition and a chart to tell me what cost neutral list. this is not a smart program. it needs to go away. extending it any wonder, spending any more money on this would be just a waste. >> i think the district has always been home to a voice of

passionate common sense. that is how i like to phrase it. and it has been for decades. it is the voicecenter to bring to the board of supervisors. >> three ballot measures were placed on the ballot at the very last minute by four members of the board of supervisors. i think in the last 48 hours, we have seen that those ballot measures were written rather hastily. they're all kinds of unintended consequences. this charter amendment fixes that problem. frankly, it gives it a bit of a lifeline to those four supervisors and to the mayor if they ever descending like this again. -- if they ever go through this again. >> the fact that we're taxing employers on how many jobs they create scenes of the counterproductive. we want to encourage people to create jobs. i do not think asking employers to pay a tax on how many they create makes a lot of sense. i think it is my job to be as responsive to the businesses in the district as it is to be to the constituents.

i am their face of city hall. i need to be accessible, open, and responsive. and i can help clear up a lot of this red tape for them. >> if you try to use a knife, you run the cheesecake. and he knows that, because when he sells the cheesecake, it comes with a piece of fish wire. and that is what you need used at this cheesecake, because it is so soft. it is so frothy -- [laughter] it is amazing. >> we have to think of san francisco 10 to 30 years from now and we have to prepare ourselves for what the economy will be. whether or not it is biotech, which i think will be a key piece, but information technology, can we be the hub of that? we have to put in place, whether it is addressing our payroll tax, whether it is addressing it land use decisions, put in place a conducive atmosphere to attracting those economies.

we do that, and it helps with our basic budget. it helps develop new jobs. there is a lot we can do to catch that new economy. >> briefly, this is your day, to those of you who have been elected. congratulations just duty off on what president chiu said. the little but i would say is it is going to be over before you know it. i am is sitting here, and it is dawning on me that it is my last time here in an inaugural meeting. take advantage of every moment you have here. go after every goal you want to pursue. do not shy away from the challenges. keep fighting, keep working for those who sent you here. and i guarantee, it will be a rewarding experience and the city of san francisco will be better off for the work that you do. congratulations. [applause] ♪