SF to consider values resolution
Proposal intended to repudiate Trump
SANTA FE — Anticipating the inauguration of Donald Trump as president next week, the Santa Fe City Council tonight will consider a resolution reaffirming the city’s commitment to its values and those established in the state and U.S. constitutions.
This is different from another pending resolution reaffirming Santa Fe’s status as a so-called “sanctuary city,” with policies protecting undocumented immigrants from immigration enforcement.
This one mentions Trump by name, saying he espouses beliefs “that are contrary to and undermine our community values.”
Those values include dignity, diversity, civil and human rights, and inclusivity, according to the resolution. It says the city expresses a “firm intent to repudiate any actions and policies that threaten our community and values and violate the principles” of the U.S. and state constitutions.
The values resolution would hold no binding effect. But it would be distributed to members of the New Mexico congressional delegation, others in Congress, the state Legislature and the governor.
At least one councilor thinks the proposal is an over-reaction. “I don’t think we need a resolution to restate our values,” Councilor Mike Harris said in a phone interview. “I think it’s well intended, but I also think it’s a bit of partisanship that doesn’t serve us well.”
The resolution takes aim at pillars of Trump’s campaign platform, such as building a wall on the southern border, and alludes to traits that Trump critics attri--
bute to him, such as promulgating hate speech and objectifying women. Trump has said he will withhold federal funding from cities that maintain sanctuary city policies.
Both resolutions are cosponsored by councilors Joseph Maestas and Renee Villarreal. Maestas said during last week’s city Immigration Committee meeting that the City Council was “thumbing our nose” at the Trump administration.
Villarreal said she wouldn’t put it that way. “To me, I think it reiterates the progressive values the city has supported for a long time,” she said. “... It’s not just focused on immigrants but all people who are a part of our community.” The resolution also says the city’s citizens have benefited from the Affordable Care Act and that the community believes in climate change and that it’s caused by fossil fuels.
Harris says Trump sometimes speaks, or tweets, to provoke reactions. “I have felt for a long time that this is his style, but also a tactic,” he said. He said he’d rather focus on a positive agenda. “I think it’s distracting from the work we do,” Harris said of the proposed resolution.