Colorado Governor Bill Ritter recently announced he won't run for reelection in 2010, leaving wide speculation about who will succeed him. Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper was in the midst of recording an interview with The Takeaway Wednesday afternoon when Ritter called Hickenlooper to talk about what the job entails.  Hickenlooper took the call, called us back, and strongly implied that he's considering running for governor.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is in Copenhagen this week to take part in the Climate Summit for Mayors.  Last week, the Mayor passed his Greener, Greater, Buildings Plan, and this week he hopes to inspire leaders from other cities to follow suit. With cities around the world producing more than 80 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions, changes in urban systems can have green effects globally. We speak with Bloomberg from Copenhagen.  (click through for the full interview transcript)
 

On Saturday, Houston, Texas became the largest American city to elect an openly gay mayor. Mayor-elect Annise Parker joins us to discuss her campaign, her opposition and the country's political and cultural landscape.

President Obama is making Allentown, PA, the first city to visit after yesterday's White House jobs summit. Our guest, Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski, attended the jobs summit and is trying to figure out the best ways to remedy high unemployment in his city and the country. Mike Fegley is the marketing director of his family-owned restaurant, Allentown Brew Works; he gives us a read on Allentown's morale and hopes the President stops by for a drink and a bite to eat.

Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon has been convicted of one count of embezzlement. Dixon was found guilty of stealing around $630 worth of gift cards intended for needy families in Baltimore, then using the cards at stores like Target and Old Navy. Though the charge was only a misdemeanor, Dixon could be forced from office. We're joined by Marc Steiner, host of The Marc Steiner show on WEAA. He's a long-time Baltimore resident and he's been taking the pulse of a city that has, at times, been deeply divided over the mayor's trial.

In Atlanta, a hotly contested mayoral race that was almost certainly partially about race drew to a too-close-to-call near-tie Tuesday night. Former state senator Kasim Reed, who is black, and city councilwoman Mary Norwood, who is white, tried not to make race a central focus of the campaign. But in a city where black mayors have been the norm since the 1970's and city residents often vote along racial lines, there was almost no escaping the hot-button issue. We talk to Rickey Bevington, an anchor with Georgia Public Broadcasting.

As economists declare the country to be officially heading out of recession, many are looking around them and still seeing severe economic troubles. Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter joins us; he says American cities are in serious trouble, can expect little help from cash-strapped state governments, and need direct action from Washington. (click through for a full interview transcript)

 

The 35th Annual National Conference of Black Mayors convenes today in Las Vegas. In honor of the conference, we put together our own roundtable of black mayors to talk about issues they're facing during these tough economic times. We speak to Mayor John Marks of Tallahasse, Fla., Mayor-President Melvin "Kip" Holden of Baton Rouge, La., and Mayor Sheila Dixon of Baltimore.

Bringing change to Washington — it’s the campaign promise that helped land President Obama in the White House. But far away from the intricacies of Washington politics and way outside the Beltway, a first grade teacher named Geraldine Sam recently decided she wanted to bring her own form of change to her hometown of La Marque, Texas, a little town just north of Galveston. Ms. Sam, as her students call her, ran for mayor. She has just been elected the first African American woman leader in the history of the city, and in Galveston County. Mayor-elect Gerry Sam joins The Takeaway to talk about her goals for La Marque. Listen in or you get a time-out!