But the Mayor described the call as pastoral, an effort to comfort a troubled family friend.

Yesterday, while saying that the final terms of the agreement remained to be worked out, the Mayor described it as "a win-win situation for everyone involved."

He left after a few moments, and the Mayor described the issues covered.

The Mayor described the mood of the city as "taut."

The Mayor, through a spokesman, described the $30.8 billion spending plan as "a hurtful" budget.

But what the Mayor described as "a stunning achievement" was set in motion by a thoroughly ordinary act of law enforcement.

At a City Hall news conference yesterday, the Mayor and other city officials described new programs.

The Mayor described the careers of the officers at length.

"Guilt by association" was how the Mayor described the Giuliani advertisement.

But the second package of tax cuts, the one that the Mayor described yesterday, is premised on receiving more state aid.