ANTONIO MAKES CONTACTS AT CAPITAL.

Byline: Lisa Friedman Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON - Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa wrapped up a whirlwind, two-day lobbying expedition Thursday, returning to Los Angeles with no firm promises of federal funding but a Palm Pilot full of key Capitol Hill contacts.

Villaraigosa spent much of the day discussing homeland security with congressional leaders and Bush administration officials.

He also talked about the $11 billion expansion of Los Angeles International Airport with Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta and Federal Aviation Administrator Marion Blakely; and attended a last-minute meeting with National Security Director John Negroponte.

``Now the director of national intelligence knows the mayor of Los Angeles, will take the phone call, and they can build a relationship over time,'' said U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who organized the meeting.

Word of the second wave of bombings in London arrived as Villaraigosa and Mineta were talking about transit security. Aides said the mayor then spoke by phone with Police Chief William Bratton, who was in Chicago, as well as with City Council President Alex Padilla in L.A.

The city's efforts to get more money for homeland security was the No. 1 topic of the day.

U.S. Rep. David Dreier, R-Glendora, who as chairman of the House Rules Committee decides what bills will get a vote, said he and Villaraigosa talked about ``transportation, homeland security and the need to work in a bipartisan way for the needs of Southern Californians.''

Villaraigosa emphasized the need for Congress to change the way it allocates money so that target-rich regions like Los Angeles get more funds.

Feinstein, who last week lost a battle in the Senate that would have made precisely those changes, vowed to fight again.

``I will try to help (Villaraigosa) and the city in every way I possibly can,'' she said.

Lisa Friedman, [phone]

lisa.friedman(at)langnews.com