Villaraigosa leaves Friday for climate summit in Mexico City

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is going on the road again — this time to Mexico City, where he plans to attend this weekend’s World Mayors Summit on Climate.

The summit is a follow-up to last year’s mega-conference on climate change in Copenhagen, an event that the mayor also attended. The Copenhagen gathering disappointed many activists, who arrived with high hopes for a robust global consensus to cut greenhouse gas emissions linked to global warming.

At the Mexico city session, mayors from around the world are expected to sign the Global Cities Covenant on Climate, dubbed the Mexico City Pact. The mayor’s office calls it a “major step forward” in cities’ commitment to reduce greenhouse gases.

On Saturday, Villaraigosa is set to deliver remarks at a gathering of regional leaders and to participate in the  official reopening of the Monument to the Revolution, a signature Mexico City landmark that has been spruced up for the centenary celebrations marking the bloody revolution that erupted in 1910.

Villaraigosa is of Mexican ancestry, but the mayoral itinerary includes no roots-exploring visits to distant kin south of the border, said a mayoral spokeswoman.

The Mexico sojourn is the latest out-of-town jaunt for a peripatetic mayor who, in recent weeks, has been back and forth to Washington several times, hit the campaign trail for Democratic candidates in California, Nevada and Colorado, and was a keynote speaker last weekend at a leadership summit at Princeton University in New Jersey.

The mayor is scheduled to depart for Mexico City on Friday afternoon and return Sunday afternoon.

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Photo: Antonio Villaraigosa speaks at the two-day media preview event for the 2010 Los Angeles Auto Show on Thursday. Credit: Kevork Djansezian / Getty Images

Comments

[blancos chupan]

Keep up the great work Mayor!

[Marco]

No one cares what this loser does. He has never stayed in town and taken care of the city's problem. When he is here he is just a ceremonial stooge going to anything he can get for free. How many more years do we have to hear about him? The worst mayoral failure in history!

[Haroldeane Snell]

Mr. Mayor,

Please stay home and tend to the business of Los Angeles.

[P Brown]

Just curious, Patrick McDonald - what was the point of highlighting this mayor's ethnic background relative to an international summit on climate? That seems way out of left field and totally unrelated to climate. Any way you can do some reporting and help us residents learn about what our city is doing to reduce its greenhouse emissions? I prefer TMZ's reporting on those other non-pertinent facts.

[Maria G.]

What has he done for Los Angeles ????? Staying out of the country changes nothing, because he does nothing when he is in town. we don't need anymore photo opts, we need some problem solvers in the city, and this mayor, and this city politicians don't have any answers for the obvious problems.

In fact I wouldn't object to him taking them all with him on this trip, as long as they paid for it out of their own pockets.

[Pirate]

LA Mayor did noting for the City just walk the red carpet

[Villareconquista]

Can we seal the border while he's there and they can keep him? Oh please Santa Claus, please, please, pretty please!!!!

[Runt]

Dear Mr. Mayor,

You don't need to go. Mr. Edenhofer of the U.N. has announced that it's not about global warming - it's all about redistribution of wealth over the world. So you see, the global warming fearmongering is all a hoax. It's not real. It's all a facade to swindle tax paying citizens out of thier hard earned money so these guys can make billions of dollars. So you can stay home now.

[Tom]

The City of L.A. is in deep debt and this idiot goes on a junket. Another Democrat in our state!

[jason]

His agenda seems to be more concerned with problems outside of Los Angeles...What is he's deal??? Recall him now people!

[Joe]

Bearing in mind that Mexico City has the worst air quality in the western hemisphere exactly what will little Tony bring back from this summit? Convenient timing too. The little mexican mayor gets a free trip home in time for the holidays.

[Anonymous]

Please don't come back. You will not be missed.

[P Brown]

Anyone who thinks that global warming is a hoax simply doesn't believe in science, therefore, your opinion is irrelevant. Try going to a witch doctor to cure a disease and see how far that gets you.

As for the mayor, there are things to criticize, but blanket statements that LA has done nothing is void of fact. Crime - 60 year low. Traffic - sure no concrete results that have changed much of anything yet, but at least there's now a multi-billion funding source (Measure R) that will actually construct the projects we've talked about for the last 30 years. There are cleaner fleets of diesel trucks in and out of the Port of LA, which means cleaner air and fewer health impacts.

While walking the red carpet is glamorous, it's also necessary. Bet you didn't know how hard New York and other major cities are constantly pitching to steal our award shows away from LA. These shows bring millions of dollars to local businesses and to the city coffers. This is a major industry that LA can't afford to lose.

[Steve Rodriguez]

Mayor Villar take your Jerry Brown and your green jobs with you, and don't come back!

[Steve Rodriguez]

Maybe he can come back through Arizona!

[Chillipepper]

Who cares about this Mayor? All he did is use taxpayer money to promote himself. He is one selfish Mayor who did not accomplish anything except to rob the very people he represent.

[boochie]

Maybe he'll be stopped at the border-if we are lucky!

[Teri]

I know how Ca. can get rid of greenhouse gas. Get rid of all the ILLEGAL Aliens and their beans. While you are their mayor, don,t bother to come back to the state you are destroying

[inbox1909]

How much is this costing us? Must be time to give another award or some other useless ceremonial act. The absolute worst mayor in recent history. Has there ever been someone with more charisma and less integrity?

[inbox1909]

Anything but city business. Hey Mayor, how is that you spend all your time chasing female reporters and not running LA? Anyone else notice there is no difference whether he is in town or not? An empty suit representing the affairs of mexico. Cant wait for the election.

[Bob]

Now would be an appropriate time for Mt. Popocatepetl to erupt. Show you what global climate disruption is really like. So what are you going to do about that Mr. Mayor? Huh? Huh?

[Steve Rodriguez]

Mayor Villar, please don't sign anything if the Chinese don't sign it. Other wise we'll slow down our economy and the Chinese will continue full speed ahead on their economy. Right now jobs are more important than global warming, and green jobs are a myth!

[Dean McAdams]

Villaraigosa fiddles while LA burns. When do we get rid of this guy? I can't even stand to see his face anymore, and I'm half-Mexican! The Mayor's job is this city not the climate. Can Tony V. even understand scientifical infermationing?

[AAAAANDREE]

Is Mexico safe for Mayors these days?
Enjoy your trip, Tony!