Earlier today, David Axelrod hosted mayors of Boston, New Orleans, Denver and Gary for a discussion on the power of city mayors to enact meaningful and repeatable local reforms. The Director of the University of Chicago’s Institute of Politics, David Axelrod, was also the chief strategist behind both of Obama presidential election victories. The advertisement for the panel discussion, titled ‘Organizer of America’s Mayors: Getting Stuff Done in 2018’, had the following description:

As public opinion of Congress remains at historic lows, many Americans have accepted gridlock as the governing norm. Yet this narrative – focusing exclusively on the federal government and the hurdles to bipartisanship – tells an incomplete story. American cities have forged ahead without federal support, experimenting with new approaches to address issues from climate change to education and infrastructure.

Join the IOP as we welcome a panel of mayors from cities across the United States. Together, they’ll discuss the ways in which their city governments have adapted to federal gridlock by creating innovative solutions to public problems – while waiting for Washington to catch up.

The panel for the event includes:

Karen Freeman-Wilson – Mayor of Gary, Indiana

Michael B. Hancock – Mayor of Denver, Colorado

Mitch Landrieu – Mayor of New Orleans, Louisiana

Martin J. Walsh – Mayor of Boston, Massachussetts

The video is about 70 minutes long. Take a look: