Seattle mayor says he is ready to sue feds over Trump’s orders
Feb 21, 2017, 10:00 AM | Updated: 10:57 am
Seattle Mayor Ed Murray gives his 2017 State of the City Address. (City of Seattle)
(City of Seattle)
Seattle Mayor Ed Murray is ready for a fight.
Mayor Murray announced Tuesday that the city will take legal action if the federal government doesn’t provide answers in relation to President Trump’s executive orders and the administration’s plans for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals and sanctuary cities.
Murray says Freedom of Information Requests will be submitted to the Justice Department, Department of Homeland Security, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
“We believe that the rule of law is on our side, and we will take legal action if the federal government does not answer our requests in a timely manner,” Murray said.
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Murray also announced he will convene a summit of mayors from “across the region” to explore and share ways to “ensure that our cities are safe and welcoming sanctuaries for all.”
The announcement follows weeks of headbutting with the Trump administration, which began with a lawsuit over Trump’s initial travel ban, led by Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson. A Seattle judge upheld the case and put a temporary restraining order on the travel ban. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that decision.
President Trump’s administration said in court documents it does not want a larger appellate panel to review a ruling keeping its travel ban on hold and will instead replace the ban.
Exactly what the new ban will include has yet to be announced. However, a draft obtained by The Associated Press shows the new ban will target the same seven countries listed in the original order. A White House official said that green-card holders and dual citizens of the U.S. and any of those countries would be exempt. The new draft also no longer directs authorities to single out — and reject — Syrian refugees when processing new visa applications.
The final draft of the order is expected to be released “soon,” which could mean sometime this week.
Another local point of contention was last week’s arrest of Daniel Ramirez Medina, 23. According to KIRO 7: Ramirez is at the center of a national story regarding immigration. He was brought to the United States as a child and his attorneys said he should not be deported because of his Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals status. Several elected leaders have spoken out about the actions against him.
On Thursday, Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Ramirez “used to hang out with the Surenos in California.” The Surenos is a known gang. KIRO 7 reports that Ramirez told ICE he “still hangs out with the Paizas in Washington State.”
“The Department of Justice alleges that while in custody, Mr. Ramirez acknowledged that he ‘used to hang out with’ and ‘still hangs out with’ members of two gangs,” attorney Mark Rosenbaum said. “This is false. Mr. Ramirez did not say these things because they are not true. And while utterly implausible and wholly fabricated, these claims still would not be sufficient evidence that Mr. Ramirez is a threat to the public safety or national security.”
