San Diego City Council Supports Lawsuit Against Trump Travel Ban GUEST: Andrew Bowen, metro reporter, KPBS

Transcript for audioclip 33612

The San Diego City Council is co-signing an amicus brief written by the city of Chicago in support of a lawsuit against President Donald Trump's travel ban. Councilman Scott Sherman cast the lone vote against supporting the lawsuit, which is still being decided in court.



The San Diego City Council on Tuesday voted to sign an amicus brief in support of a Washington state lawsuit against President Donald Trump, inserting the city into the ongoing legal battle over the president's executive order on refugees and immigration.

Related: Federal Appeals Court Refuses To Reinstate Trump’s Travel Ban

The vote was 8-1 in favor of supporting the lawsuit. Councilman Scott Sherman, a Republican, cast the lone "no" vote.

The action came after the city of Chicago approached San Diego and several other large American cities to ask if the cities wanted to add their signatures to the amicus brief. It does not make San Diego a co-plaintiff in the lawsuit, but does add the city's voice to a growing number of nonprofit organizations and businesses that publicly oppose the executive order.

The order suspends the country's refugee program and bars immigration by citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries. It cannot currently be enforced because of a court injunction.

The council's deliberation and vote took place in closed session because it involved potential litigation. But more than 40 people spoke during public testimony, most of them urging the council to support the lawsuit.

Ramla Sahid, executive director of the nonprofit Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans, told the council that she was a former Somali refugee and that her community was counting on them standing against the Trump administration.

"You either stand with our most vulnerable families and say that they belong in San Diego, where many of us have had children and have raised our children, or you label them as foreign enemies," she said.

A smaller number of speakers opposed signing the amicus brief, saying it was not a city's place to weigh in on matters of immigration or national security.

"I believe the council should focus on local problems," said Roger Ogden. "As appealing as it might be to you to delve into foreign policy... I don't think you can have much impact there."

A handful of speakers called out council members Lorie Zapf, Mark Kersey and Scott Sherman for not being present in the council chambers for much of the public testimony. A spokeswoman from Zapf's office said the councilwoman was not feeling well and went to her office, where she watched public testimony through CityTV.

A representative for Kersey said the councilman stepped out of the council chambers to reschedule meetings that had to be cancelled because testimony was lasting longer than expected. Sherman's office said he missed public testimony because of "an unfortunate conflict." A spokesman said Sherman voted against signing the brief because "city officials should focus on local municipal issues instead of chasing national news stories."

San Diego City Attorney Mara Elliott, a Democrat, had said in a statement last week that Trump's travel ban "has consequences for San Diego — for our families, our border economy and our innovation and technology sectors."

"Our voice should be heard," Elliott said.

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Andrew Bowen

Metro Reporter

I cover local government — a broad beat that includes housing, homelessness and infrastructure. I'm especially interested in the intersections of land use, transportation and climate change.

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