I would argue that Kitty is a more divisive Mayor than she should have been which is evidenced by the comments on this article.  She is also on her way out as Mayor, surely she could have passed up this opportunity to travel to China for no good reason.    There are so many times Kitty could have treated people of opposing viewpoints with respect but she chose not to. For example, she treats Councillors that disagree with her very poorly - she cuts them off, always takes the final opportunity to belittle their comments and manipulates discussions to suit her point of view. She had 3 terms to truly be the mayor for all Eugene, but instead became more political each term.