Williams Is D.C.'s New Mayor

Anthony Williams says the decision to accept a citizens draft and run for the job came as a jolt...literally reports CBS News Correspondent Eric Engberg.

"I was driving around and- I'd like to say, like St. Paul- got hit by lightning! I hit a pothole," says Williams

In Washington, the city where the controversial Marion Barry long reigned...the no-nonsense, non-political Williams is himself no small jolt. When he was brought in three years ago as D.C.'s top accountant, the city verged on bankruptcy, and was about to be taken over by a federal control board...ordered by a fed up Congress.

"We had millions of tax returns on the floor in the basement of the tax office. One half of the human services in the district under court receivership. I mean, the horrors go on and on," say Williams.

As he bored through the mess, Williams' quiet, methodical style...not to mention his ever-present bow tie...caught on with the public.

He is well aware that he will be one of the most visible African American officials in the country. And he believes his agenda...emphasizing civil works more than civil rights...is typical of the next generation of black political leaders.

"A whole generation of leaders, god bless them, they have done a lot for me, who had something to do with the civil rights movement, god bless them," Williams says. "But I am not one of those folks. I am in a new generation who benefited from everything they did, yes, but we've got to do things in a new way now."

As mayor of a city trying to make a comeback from years of mismanagement and turmoil, Williams promises a whirlwind of action.

"I am talking about six months: streets are clean, phone calls are answered, you're getting your driver's license or permit in a reasonable amount of time."

Confidence in Williams is so high that the financial board which took power away from Barry, has decided to return those powers as soon as Williams is sworn in.