06/26/2001 - Updated 09:44 PM ET
Bush surprises and impresses at mayors' meeting

By Richard Benedetto, USA TODAY

DETROIT — President Bush left the annual meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors having made a good impression on Democratic mayors, most of whom campaigned for Al Gore.

"The talk has been good," Boston Mayor Thomas Menino said a day after the president's appearance. "Now let's see if he can deliver."

Interviews with dozens of Democratic mayors as the meeting ended Tuesday found several reasons for optimism:

Deputy Housing Secretary Alphonso Jackson told the group he intends to make the Department of Housing and Urban Development a "user-friendly," decentralized agency that will respond more quickly to city needs. "If this guy can deliver ... he'll turn HUD around," Menino said.

Philadelphia's John Street said he was "astounded" to hear Bush propose in his speech on Monday that low-income people who get federal housing aid be allowed to use their rent credits for a down payment on a house. "Bush can be a surprising guy, but that really surprised me," he said.

Bush sent several high-level aides to the meeting. Along with Jackson were Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson, Labor Secretary Elaine Chao and Joe Allbaugh, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Oakland's Jerry Brown said he wants to work with Bush on the president's plan for government funding of religious charities. Brown wants to establish charter schools in church-owned buildings.

"He's got a lot of charm and some good ideas," Brown said. "I'm hopeful that he will partner with the mayors." Before the meeting, Bush had invited leaders of the mayors conference to the White House, dispatched two Cabinet secretaries to a mayoral meeting in Florida and had his top domestic policy advisers meet with mayors in Washington.

"So far, we've had as much access to this administration as we had with the Clinton administration, and that was pretty good," San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown said.

Bush was the first Republican president since Richard Nixon to speak to the Conference of Mayors' annual meeting. The group is non-partisan, but its membership is 2-1 Democratic.

During the presidential campaign, Bush did not endorse the group's goals for housing, crime, health care, recreation and neighborhood development. Gore endorsed them.

-- One who knows how to (punch@a.ballot), June 27, 2001

Answers

Bush is a big dog. The mayors are little dogs. Bush has his hands on lots of money. The mayors want all the money they can get.

Smart little dogs don't bite big dogs. They'd say he was the second coming of Jesus Christ, if that seemed like the right thing to say.

-- Little Nipper (canis@minor.net), June 28, 2001.