One good place to discover what mayors want is the crowded site of The U.S. Conference of Mayors. Each and every session of the past decade of annual conferences, plus special conferences on national security, job creation and green initiatives are available through streaming video. The Web site also contain database access to most of America's mayors and information on mayoral initiatives. The Conference is in the midst of dealing with the mortgage crisis — but in addition has made climate change a top priority. Investigate their list of '08 priorities: "Strong Cities, Strong Families for a Strong America."

We talked with Andrea Batista Schlesinger of the Drum Major Institute about the project they have undertaken with THE NATION to help add urban issues to the presidential race — MayorTV. On MayorTV you'll find interviews with mayors from around the country — and find out what they really want for their cities — and from the candidates.

Q: Is thus campaign different in minimizing urban issues?
This campaign isn't noteworthy in specifically disregarding urban issues but it is disappointing in that we expected more from this campaign. You had a former mayor running, Obama who is closely tied with urban organizing, and Clinton, who is tied to the president named by many mayors as the best president ever for the cities. It's disappointing in the we expected so much more from this race.

Q: Did they mayors say anything that really surprised you?
I was surprised that none of the mayors mentioned Nixon as a good president for cities — when, in fact, he had done a lot for the cities. But what was also surprising was that mayors noted that the cities need to be looked at as innovators, not just as always looking for federal subsidies. Even the mayor of Rochester, a city that is really struggling, said his city isn't looking for a handout — which is the way cities have been portrayed for quite a while. I was surprised and pleased at the context in which they placed themselves — that the cities are an investment and places of innovation.

Q: Are there regional differences in priorities?
Different cities have different struggles. There are cities like Denver struggling with infrastructure deterioration. Miami has special problems related to climate change. Rochester and Buffalo are not concerned with dealing with growth but just trying to see if there is a way for their cities to survive. They are both examples of the many problems faced by a cities in a changing economy. Then there are cities like Minneapolis — where the mayor talks about what happens when a city embraces new immigration populations, their LGBT populations and works on innovations in transportation.

Q: What role is the media playing in making urban issues a campaign issue?
The press is absent when it comes to urban issues. You can talk until you are blue in the face but if no one wants to talk about them it won't make a difference. We pitched hard when we launched MayorTV and I was told by one veteran journalist that unless crime increases in the cities it won't make it on the national radar.

Q: Is there more in store for MayorTV?
We launched this project with THE NATION in about six weeks. We plan to add interview with other mayors and continue to raise urban issues with the press and the candidates. Even when you talk to campaigns about whether they are covering urban issues you can see the problem. They tell you to look under "poverty" in their platforms or on their Web sites. They have a section for "rural" but urban is under poverty. We'll keep trying to push for more attention as the campaign continues.

Published on March 28, 2008.