"I promise you, I will be a mayor for all the people," Villaraigosa said, speaking confidently from the steps of historic City Hall.

A beaming Villaraigosa, 52, took the oath of office from Judge Stephen R. Reinhardt of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals at 10:45.

The new mayor called reforming public schools the centerpiece of his administration, vowing to name a committee to work to improve education. But he offered a wider vision, and a greater challenge.

"I'm asking you to dream with me," Villaraigosa said, inviting listeners to envision a place where children can learn in quality schools in "a great global city" where "every Angeleno has a stake in the city's future."

He also asked residents to join in the fight against crime and gang violence, pledging to give police "the tools they need to get the job done." He called on residents to join him in improving traffic and making LA "the greenest city in America."

"Los Angeles is back," said former state Assembly Speaker Bob Hertzberg, chairman of Villaraigosa's transition team. "There's a lot of energy. A city that really doesn't pay attention to politics is starting to pay attention."

Villaraigosa, for his part, said he will use the pageantry of today's inauguration to send a straightforward call to Angelenos: dream big and work together. Residents can do more, he said, to help each other with such nagging problems as traffic, gang violence, pollution and underperforming public schools.

"Our biggest challenge is what we do to improve the schools, because we have so much ground to make up," he added.

Even though his first day in office starts today, Villaraigosa began his honeymoon period early, in large part by seeking to resolve pressing citywide problems. Weeks after his election victory, he pulled an all-nighter while negotiating an end to a protracted labor dispute at the city's hotels, testified on education reform and stepped in to deal with interracial tensions within high schools.

"What he's done in the last month is incredible, and he hasn't even taken office yet," said San Fernando Valley attorney David Fleming, who served on Villaraigosa's transition team.

At 12:01 a.m., Villaraigosa completed a long, circuitous journey that took him from a troubled high school dropout to UCLA graduate to teachers' union activist to powerful politician. The son of a single mother, he spent six years in the state Assembly -- two as Assembly speaker -- before running for Los Angeles mayor in 2001, losing to then-City Attorney James Hahn.

Antonio Villaraigosa formally took his oath as the city's 41st mayor on Friday, becoming the first Hispanic to hold the office in more than a century.
"Angelenos, we need to start thinking big again," he said in an address that contrasted the city's standing as a "the undisputed commercial and cultural capital" with "a darker truth" of declining quality of life and problems with education, safety and transportation.

Random favorite TV scenes: Al Gore going unacknowledged by many of the Democrats milling on stage before the ceremony...Jim Hahn idling by himself at the podium, eyeing somebody's notes...

Now, Villaraigosa comes face to face with one of the harsh inevitabilities of politics: It's easier to make grand pronouncements than to carry them out.

The solution is so simple, I am not surprised no one on Spring Street--or for that matter across First at the Times building--has thought of it. It's called priority-based budgeting. Want to hire new cops? Is that more important than, say, Cultural Affairs or the Commission on the Status of Women? If forced to choose between the two, where would you put the money?

That simple process would be revolutionary at a City Hall where once a program is created it gets funded in perpetuity. But it may take a bold leader like Villaraigosa to say, "we must have priorities and fund them."

Though he has a track record as Speaker of the State Assembly and as a city councilman, some of the eagerness with which Villaraigosa has been greeted locally comes from the contrast of his energetic footsteps and pats on the back with reserved James Hahn's perpetual monotone. It's only reluctantly that we acknowledge that charisma, which does not in itself guarantee any kind of results, is often a key quality in a politician.

The times we've crossed paths with him, Villaraigosa has demonstrated that, in addition to the charm, he knows how to get things done. At a 2001 event for nonprofit organizations, held during the last campaign, he was the only candidate who showed up, and he proceeded to answer detailed questions from the audience about their particular fields, from environment to education. Last year when the Cultural Affairs Department was nearly eliminated, he found money that was going unspent elsewhere and helped get it transferred over. Now, as mayor, he'll have many more people and systems to try to balance. Can he persuade voters to accept more taxes in order to pay for the services they want, or find programs to cut without causing uproars and pain? Can he make unpopular decisions if he has to and regain his popularity? It's inauguration day; there's nothing to say but the cliché: it remains to be seen. Welcome, Mayor Villaraigosa.

Los invito a que sueñen conmigo”, dijo Antonio Villaraigosa en un inspirado discurso inaugural, hablando en español, poco después de juramentar como el 41 alcalde de Los Ángeles.

“Angelinos, tenemos que comenzar a pensar en grande otra vez”, agregó el radiante político latino de 52 años, hijo de inmigrantes mexicanos, que se convirtió hoy en el 41 alcalde de esta ciudad de 4 millones de habitantes, y el primer hispano que ocupa el cargo desde 1872.

“Este es un gran país. Yo soy prueba de que Estados Unidos es un país de oportunidades y libertad”, dijo Villaraigosa.

“Esta es una gran ciudad global... es la indiscutida capital comercial y cultural, pero que tiene una verdad oscura”, afirmó el flamante alcalde al hacer un llamado a todos los angelinos a trabajar por resolver los problemas que enfrenta la ciudad, como el crimen, los desamparados, la deserción escolar y la congestión de las autopistas.

“Les prometo que seré un alcalde para toda la gente”, declaró, enfatizando que “esta es la ciudad más diversa del país y quizás del mundo”.

Can there be any doubt that these comments are precisely what La Sangeles needed to become Los Anheles, even to Anglos, at last?

There are two million Latinos in this City that was founded by 44 Mexicans all those years ago (contemporary to the founding of Chicago, of St. Louis, and well before San Francisco), but the City's profile to the world has been all Anglo for over a hundred years: movies, media, entertainment, defense, sunny fashion, "laid back", sunglasses, palm trees and mannequins, nightlife, surf. With a Latino Mayor, the City is also: integrated, whole, complete--real.

It really doesn't matter if Antonio Villaraigosa builds a subway to the sea or the precise degree to which he disposes of the old line. What matters is that he is.

His thunder has been muffled, if not outright stolen, by the Sandra Day O'Connor resignation, but today Antonio Villaraigosa will be sworn in as L.A.'s mayor. The ceremony, which was expected to command national media coverage, is mere minutes away and the cable news channels are full of breathless speculation about another Latino politician - Alberto Gonzalez.

As the pundits and politicians sharpen their swords in expectation of a bruising, brutal confirmation battle over Bush's forthcoming Supreme Court nomination (whether Gonzalez or some other crypto-fascist jurist), I'm watching the overwhelmingly positive local coverage of the inaugural parade, with nary a mention by any of the Southland's tanned news gatherers of O'Connor's retirement.

Our smiling new Mayor, and the celebratory, hopeful mood of the city, represent the best of our democracy.

I think, though, we're all about to get a very good look at the worst.

The politically leftist, nominally Catholic, pro-abortion, pro-militant homosexual, newly elected mayor of Los Angeles, Antonio Villaraigosa, began his inaugural rites at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels.

LOS ANGELES, July 1 /U.S. Newswire/ -- "Today's attempted arrest in Los Angeles of the student participants in American Life League's Crusade for the Defense of our Catholic Church is beyond scandalous," said Judie Brown, president of American Life League. "Since when is it against the law for Catholics to defend the Catholic faith at a Catholic Cathedral? We are outraged at the situation."
Today's scene occurred when more than a dozen young people attempted to attend the inauguration ceremonies of Antonio Villaraigosa, mayor-elect of Los Angeles, who is a pro-abortion Catholic. The young adults are part of American Life League's 2005 Crusade for Life walks in which they are trekking from San Diego to Sacramento spreading the truth about the incompatibility of Catholicism and support of abortion ...

L.A. is a complicated place, there isn’t one answer to all of its problems, but Villaraigosa, in my opinion, is ready to face those problems and willing to make changes with his enthusiasm. This is history being made. With such a large Latino population, it’s great to see a person of color represent the diverse city of Los Angeles. Villaraigosa wants to fix the schools. Uncoil gridlock. Ease racial tensions. Develop more affordable housing. Extend the subways. Hire more police. Even build more dog parks. But, the challenge now is that he will need to lift the stature of the office to match his ambition, bucking a historically weak mayoralty that at times frustrated his predecessors.

I want the NEW mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa, to PARDON me for hiring a hit man to kill someone.

The FBI mentioned that I will be arrested the next time. That isn't right.

It's my life and I don't believe in suicide.

Thanx for your time.