I think the following press release for the League of California Cities pretty well echoes my position on Trump’s attack on cities, particularly sanctuary cities, and immigration. Every day, the Trump administration becomes more incredibly unbelievable.
I spent all day today at the California Climate Change Symposium in Sacramento, hosted by California natural Resources Agency and CalEPA. I presented Richmond’s new Climate Action Plan and discussed its strategies for dealing with sea level rise.
One of the presenters on my panel works for the U.S. Geological Survey, and he discussed how they were making sure that their valuable data on climate change, and in this case sea level rise, was loaded onto servers in the private sector to make sure it would remain accessible to the public.
Over all, I was reminded that the times we are going through with Trump are not unlike the Dark Ages, when reclusive monks in remote monasteries copied and preserved ancient Greek and Latin manuscripts until they could be rediscovered in the Renaissance. The scientific community and the political leaders of California are the modern monks who are guarding that flame that will be needed to reignite civilization once Trump leaves office.
Tom Butt
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1400 K Street, Suite 400 · Sacramento, California 95814
Phone: (916) 658-8200 Fax: (916) 658-8240
www.cacities.org |
Jan. 25, 2017
Contact: Eva Spiegel, (916) 658-8228
Cell: (530) 400-9068
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
League of California Cities Executive Officers Issue Statement on Immigration
Sacramento — The League of California Cities executive officers have issued the following statement in response to concerns over potential federal efforts to attempt to compel cities and local law enforcement agencies to enforce federal immigration laws.
“The possibility of new federal efforts to have California cities, and other cities across the country, enforce federal immigration laws raises numerous concerns for the League of California Cities.
The League represents 98 percent of the state's cities that provide basic municipal services (parks, water, sewer, library, fire, ambulance, and public safety and other services) to 83 percent of our state's 39 million residents. Our mission is to advocate on behalf of our member cities to preserve their local control, meaning that it is up to each city to decide how best to manage local affairs in their communities.
Based on the principle of local control, we believe cities must retain the ability to prioritize how scarce local police resources are allocated. We are also concerned that effective local policing, including ongoing efforts to strengthen police-community relations and build trust, will be undermined by the threat of federal sanctions connected to immigration enforcement.
Immigration is a responsibility of the federal government. Regrettably, Congress has been unable, over recent decades, to enact comprehensive immigration reform policies, leaving states and localities to respond to the issues — which also have many human, economic and societal impacts — on their own.
Our organization has consistently advocated, in conjunction with the National League of Cities, for Congress to enact a comprehensive approach to the immigration issue — one that not only addresses equitable enforcement, but also incorporates thoughtful and sensitive solutions to the realities associated with millions of families, students and workers living in California and throughout the country.
We urge our President and Congress to seize the moment to enact a comprehensive, balanced and bipartisan approach to immigration issues.”
Founded in 1898, the League of California Cities® is an association of California city officials who work together to enhance their knowledge and skills, exchange information, and combine resources so that they may influence policy decisions that affect cities. The League’s mission is to restore and protect local control for cities through education and advocacy to enhance the quality of life for all Californians.
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