Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio met with President Barack Obama at the White House Friday and said they talked about a central campaign theme of his -- income inequality.
Obama met with more than a dozen new mayors and mayors-elect.
The president said Senate passage next week of a House-approved budget will help metropolitan areas by removing the uncertainty that past fiscal brinkmanship has created in the economy.
He reiterated his call for Congress to extend jobless benefits for the long-term unemployed, a provision not contained in the budget agreement. He also said cities would benefit from an increase in the minimum wage because of their vast service sectors.
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De Blasio said it was "inspiring to hear our president, his concern for what we are facing, his understanding of the problems of our city," he said.
De Blasio said Obama also talked about early childhood education -- a key campaign promise that de Blasio said he would try to push through Albany next year.
"We all now know clearly that he will be a partner," de Blasio said.
Copyright The Associated Press
