Welcome to a compilation of insightful quotes by Eric Garcetti, a prominent American politician and the former mayor of Los Angeles. Eric Garcetti has been a central figure in Los Angeles politics for decades, known for his progressive policies, effective governance, and dedication to improving the lives of Angelenos. Throughout his tenure, Garcetti has offered words of wisdom, inspiration, and guidance on various issues ranging from leadership and public service to community empowerment and urban development.
As a leader who has navigated the complexities of one of America’s largest cities, Eric Garcetti’s quotes encapsulate his deep understanding of governance, social justice, and the challenges facing modern cities. Whether addressing issues of sustainability, diversity, or economic opportunity, Garcetti’s words resonate with authenticity and a commitment to creating a better future for all. Delve into this collection to discover Eric Garcetti’s perspective on leadership, civic engagement, and the pursuit of a more equitable society.
Pete Buttigieg is one of my closest friends as a mayor. Eric Garcetti
The idea of red-washing or blue-washing an entire county because a few more people vote one way or the other does a disservice to the people who live there. Eric Garcetti
I’m an average American. As I joke, I’m the average Mexican American Jewish Italian mayor of the most diverse city in the world. Eric Garcetti
If you want to cut crime, if you want to end homelessness, you have to deal with sexual violence, sexual harassment, and domestic violence. Eric Garcetti
Cities are those laboratories of democracy that states used to be. Eric Garcetti
I think it is time for a radical federalism in this country, where people trust innovation coming from the local level and ramp that up. Eric Garcetti
I want to be high-profile with the average Angeleno. I want to be out there holding office hours on a curb in Boyle Heights. Eric Garcetti
In Washington, you have imaginary problems, and they can’t even solve the imaginary problems. Eric Garcetti
The struggle of African Americans is everybody’s struggle. Eric Garcetti
I always thought Grover Cleveland was from Cleveland. Eric Garcetti
I prioritize my daughter and my wife. Eric Garcetti
My grandfather was an undocumented immigrant. My great-grandmother, my bisabuela, carried him over the border in her arms. Eric Garcetti
I’m not one of those politicians, to my probably discredit, who thinks very far ahead. It has to feel right to me and not be about a careful plot and plan. Eric Garcetti
I kind of believe that, whenever possible, you should finish the job that you set out to do. Eric Garcetti
Latinos are not monochromatic. You know, they trace their ancestry back to South America, to Central America, to Mexico, like in my family, and the Caribbean. And it’s – we’re a very diverse group. And we care about a lot more than just immigration, though we’re passionate about having sensible immigration policies that don’t go after our families. Eric Garcetti
I have a piano in my office, and sometimes during meetings, I’ll sit down and goof on the keyboard a little bit. Eric Garcetti
People elect me to make sure the chief of police is the right chief of police. They elect me to make sure I have the right person running the airport. Eric Garcetti
I think connected to poverty is the trauma of poverty. It’s not just a material thing; it’s a psychological thing that we have no mental health system in this country. Eric Garcetti
Campaigns are these moments of suspended animation where people usually learn how to be friends afterward. Eric Garcetti
Think about Kennedy. Think about Carter. Think about Clinton. Think about Obama. They’ve all been in their forties and from outside Washington, or underdogs in one way or another. I just think that Americans are looking everywhere, saying, ‘Hey, show me some authenticity. Show me somebody who’s practical. Show me people who run things.’ Eric Garcetti
It sure would be nice to have a Washington that was there for us, but most help has always been local and regional. Eric Garcetti
It is the responsibility, I think, of anybody in elected office to look for opportunities to help serve their people. Eric Garcetti
Los Angeles has all the ingredients of success… but we need to start with our education system. Eric Garcetti
I always say, as a leader, you’ve got to know when to get out of the way. Eric Garcetti
My wife and I are foster parents. Eric Garcetti
L.A. is a great city to get lost in. The best thing to do is to drive in any direction, find a strip mall, and go from one store to the next. I guarantee you will see a collision of cultures you never imagined. Eric Garcetti
I won’t let anybody, even the most powerful person in this country, trample our values or our Constitution. And no matter who’s in the White House, I am incredibly vigilant about that and will continue to fight that fight. Eric Garcetti
Mayors are really good at dealing with things practically. Eric Garcetti
We need a pro-worker trade approach that puts American jobs – not corporate profits – front and center. Eric Garcetti
Ninety-five percent of my work is being mayor. But that 5% that nags at all of us – of what’s going wrong in this country – I think is best thought out not in your own head but by getting out there, being out there, and listening to Americans. Eric Garcetti
On things like the minimum wage, where cities as well as states are increasingly looking at income disparity, mayors will have, I think, a very strong voice. Eric Garcetti
The questions that consume me, that keep me up at night, are the people that are sleeping on the streets. Eric Garcetti
My main job and my overwhelming job starts with my family, my street, my neighborhood, and my city. Eric Garcetti
I’m in what feels like a pretty transparent fishbowl as mayor. People see you at the market, people see you at the diner, people see you wherever you are, talk to you. You don’t shave, they’re taking selfies of you. You come back from your jog, they’re talking to you. Eric Garcetti
I’m progressive, and I’m practical. Eric Garcetti
I don’t spend much time on the computer at all, so I do most of my email on my phone if I do any at all. Eric Garcetti
Homelessness is like public education – something that for far too long we haven’t put the resources or love or attention to. Eric Garcetti
I am a passionate, committed composer, and the guy I used to write musicals with, once he was able to ditch me and get a better composer, actually won the Tony. Eric Garcetti
I want to turn momentum on traffic. I want to make in a dent in homelessness on the way to eradicating it on our streets. But there’s always something else to do tomorrow. And you have to be at peace knowing you’re not going to finish it all. Eric Garcetti
I think I bring a perspective that local communities are what make this country great, and they are the laboratories of democracy. Eric Garcetti
I’m a typical mutt American. I have an Italian last name. Half-Mexican, half-Jewish. Eric Garcetti
If you can speak Spanish, then you can have a stronger connection with the residents of Los Angeles. Eric Garcetti
Most people will be primarily getting into autonomous vehicles if we look 20, 30 years out. If we mandate that autonomous vehicles have to be electric, then we will move people into electric vehicles. Eric Garcetti
I lived in Burma for a couple of summers in the ’90s, working with the democratic resistance that had fled to the jungles. Eric Garcetti
I think poverty is the biggest challenge for Los Angeles and for many of our cities that have come back from the recession. Eric Garcetti
No sane person would run for president, right? Eric Garcetti
The Olympics have been an amazing part of Los Angeles’ history. In many ways in 1932, they put us on the map when people didn’t even know where Los Angeles was. In 1984, they were the first profitable Olympics of the modern era. Eric Garcetti
If a sanctuary city means that our police department does not enforce federal immigration laws, then we are one. But declaring yourself a ‘sanctuary city’ also signals to a lot of people that you are protecting hard-core criminals, which I don’t, and I don’t believe in. Eric Garcetti
I think everyone has the impression that L.A. is Hollywood and fast lives. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Eric Garcetti
We need to make sure teachers are in schools and that children have teachers. Eric Garcetti
I’ll never stop listening to police officers over politicians. Eric Garcetti
You have to listen to your own heart. Eric Garcetti
What I think the average person wants is not a fight; they want to see something move forward in their own neighborhood. Eric Garcetti
Mayors are accountable. Local governments are accountable. Eric Garcetti
Don’t run for mayor if you don’t want to basically be working all the time. Eric Garcetti
The cost of housing in L.A. has increased dramatically because more people want to live here. They come to Los Angeles every day, not just from around the United States but from around the world. Eric Garcetti
I won’t be a perfect mayor, but I will be the mayor of a great city. Eric Garcetti
The problem with the Democratic Party is, we’re like, ‘If we just get another presidential candidate in there, everything will be OK.’ We should be focusing on school boards, city council races, state legislatures. Eric Garcetti
I agree with President Trump that we need good jobs in this country, but let’s get to that business rather than the distractions of repealing Obamacare or raiding communities and taking otherwise law-abiding, contributing citizens away from their families. Eric Garcetti
You don’t have to be Latino to speak powerfully about how important it is to have a police department that cares for our immigrant communities. Eric Garcetti
I don’t think you can lead a nation if you don’t have a definition of the nation. We have to define, as Democrats, what a nation is and embrace the entire nation. Eric Garcetti
When President Trump got out of the Paris climate accords, we got 412 cities to say we will do it instead, because we’re on the front line with our firefighters dealing with historic fires and floods. Eric Garcetti
As mayor, I’ve traveled to China, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, and Mexico to meet with heads of state and business leaders to promote trade with L.A. companies and through L.A.’s seaports and airports – because that generates L.A. jobs. Eric Garcetti
If I hear that Quito, Ecuador, is doing something to have a whole area of town that’s zero emissions, and we’re thinking about that in Los Angeles’ downtown, I’m like, ‘I better catch up.’ Eric Garcetti
I have an incredible compass. You can put me back in a country I haven’t been in 20 years and say, ‘Get me from point A to point B,’ and I’ll take you there. Eric Garcetti
Cory Booker I’ve known since 1993. We used to be part of the L’Chaim Society at Oxford University together. Eric Garcetti
I think our communication strategy has been very disciplined as being a back-to-basics mayor and about focusing on making City Hall work and jumpstarting our economy. Eric Garcetti
The fact is, there are far more customers for American products outside of the U.S. than there are here at home. With open markets and a level playing field, American workers can out-compete workers anywhere in the world. Eric Garcetti
I’m pretty skinny, and I can sleep at the drop of a hat. So, take that middle seat in economy and save the money for other things you can do. Eric Garcetti
The White House is not where power comes from in this country. The cities and the local communities of this nation are prepared to save Washington – and not vice versa. Eric Garcetti
Mayors in any city are pretty non-partisan people where it’s problem solvers. Eric Garcetti
I don’t want to bring a European city or an east-coast city to the West Coast. Eric Garcetti
In presidential elections, I think people focus way too much on ideology. Eric Garcetti
I’ve always said we need to build resilience locally. Eric Garcetti
On my mom’s side, the Jewish side of the family, I come from a family of musicians who are pianists, so I’ve always loved cultural expression. Eric Garcetti
I’m the grandson of immigrants who came across rivers and oceans to get here, some without documentation. Eric Garcetti
I don’t live life with a ton of regrets. Eric Garcetti
I have to spend my time worrying about poor families at the expense of helping businesses, or vice versa. To me, I really see that’s the bridge I need to build. Eric Garcetti
I think, for me, the biggest issue is poverty in general, poverty in this time of plenty. It’s reflected in homelessness. It’s reflected in educational gaps. It’s reflected in racial disparities. Eric Garcetti
The reason I like Steve Aoki is because I can trace my love of electronic music all the way back to when I was listening to not just new wave but to YMO [Yellow Magic Orchestra] which, to me, was the ultimate Japanese band and launched synth electronic music. Eric Garcetti
I’m very much a California boy. I try to eat healthy and exercise. Eric Garcetti
Environment, homelessness, infrastructure and immigration – I’m very focused on all four, which are critical to the success of Los Angeles. Eric Garcetti
I’ve worked closely with presidents, especially with President Obama, and I realized that what good leaders do at the national level is no different than what we do at the local level. Eric Garcetti
The travel that I’ve spent around the country, I always come back with ideas for L.A. and vice versa: My experiences in L.A. give me an immediacy to issues that sometimes people in Washington think about but aren’t experiencing every day. Eric Garcetti
I think it’s really important to talk education, to talk infrastructure, to talk good jobs and the future of work. Eric Garcetti
Tax cuts that actually go to working-class, middle-class people, I’m not opposed to. Eric Garcetti
There are two Americas: Washington and the rest of us. Eric Garcetti
People will give you the responsibility, even the authority, to go after the big things, the visionary things, the reaching for incredible opportunities, if they trust that you’re running a city well. And if you don’t run a city well, conversely, you can’t do the big things. Eric Garcetti
Aggressive government spending during the Great Recession was absolutely necessary. Eric Garcetti
When it comes to public safety, I listen to police chiefs and cops, not to a cable-news station. Eric Garcetti
There are two rules in politics. They say never ever be pictured with a drink in your hand, and never swear. Eric Garcetti
You see as mayors and local officials our jobs are designed so we have more in common with our constituents than Washington politicians can ever have. Eric Garcetti
Withdrawing federal funds to prevent radiological or biological terrorist attack – that doesn’t just hurt Los Angeles: that hurts America. Eric Garcetti
There’s no question we need more housing, and we have to fight for that throughout California. Eric Garcetti
Los Angeles is the strongest defender of immigrants perhaps of any city in this country. Eric Garcetti
I’d hate to see new housing building accelerating while taking down buildings where there’s 50 people living in rent-stabilized apartments. Eric Garcetti
I look forward to working with the White House in areas like infrastructure, where President Trump says he wants to spend a trillion dollars. Great – we’d love to start right here in Los Angeles. Eric Garcetti
I recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. And I have always recognized Jerusalem as the capital of the independent, fully sovereign Palestinian state that we all want to emerge from negotiations toward a true two-state solution. Eric Garcetti
The classic rules of American politics are dying, if not dead, if you look at the last two presidential elections. An African-American could never be president until one was; a TV reality star couldn’t become president until one was. Eric Garcetti
We’re looking to rebrand L.A. Not in some sort of radical way, but we’ve forgotten to sell this city, internationally and nationally… it’s important for us to say who we are. Eric Garcetti