Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa dished about growing up in Los Angeles, the worst ways people have mangled his surname and even talked about the origins of his "Born To Raise Hell" tattoo on Sunday's episode of "State Of The Union With Candy Crowley."
The City Maven reports on some of Villaraigosa's best comments from the promotional web video published before the interview:
On his "Born to Raise Hell" tattoo:
"I took it off years ago. Yeah, about 20 years ago — 15-20 years ago. 'Born to Raise Hell' was here, and then I had my name with a girl’s name and a heart here. I put it on when I was 15, 16 years old and kind of lost, if you will."
On a duty that is unique to being mayor of Los Angeles:
"This is a city where you have to walk the red carpet... The reason why I walk that red carpet as often as I do is I say this: The jobs behind the cameras are more important than the people in front of them. This is a job-creating industry, our creative economy. So, you’ll see me at the Academy Awards, at the Emmys, at virtually every red carpet affair because, you know, Mayor Bloomberg is on Wall Street and he should be because that’s the mode of force of the New York economy. The creative economy is our mode of force, so you’ll see me in Hollywood as much as I need to be."
The Mayor also acknowledged LA's 12.2% unemployment rate and discussed his 5-point plan to revamp the city's economy, which he had outlined in a blog for the Huffington Post. They include business tax reform, getting rid of bureaucratic red tape, redirecting local tax dollars, modernizing LAX and the Port of Los Angeles and prioritizing public transportation.
In the interview, Villaraigosa re-affirmed that he was an ardent supporter of President Barack Obama and didn't consider the potential GOP contenders a true threat. CNN tweeted, "Mayor @Villaraigosa slams candidates Romney, Perry and Cain on #CNNsotu. Says @GovernorPerry 'can't finish his sentences.' "
A CNN blog quotes the Mayor on his support for the President, who explained, "I don't have to agree with everything this administration is doing to support President Obama. I unqualifiedly support him."