At her State of the City address in January, Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner said the Syracuse Police Department will not be used to enforce anti-immigrant policies. Onondaga County Republican Chairman Tom Dadey is criticizing Miner for declaring Syracuse a sanctuary city.
“It’s unfortunate that our mayor, who took an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States is not following that oath and is not following the Constitution by her statements saying that she will not follow the laws of the land,” Dadey said.
Elected officials in the city of Ithaca voted last week to make it a sanctuary city. This comes despite President Donald Trump’s executive order to block federal grants from cities that do not cooperate with immigration laws.
Immigration ban
Trump’s immigration ban sparked protests throughout Syracuse last week. Refugees from Africa and Asia, now living in Syracuse, spoke out at a rally downtown calling the ban anti-American. The ban prevents citizens from seven countries in Africa and the Middle East from entering the U.S. for the next 90 days. Dadey said Trump has hit the ground running by trying to propose solutions and fix the problems created in the last eight years under President Obama.
“The recent temporary ban on refugees coming into this country from seven countries to me seems like a very realistic, temporary, let’s take a slow down and look approach to make sure that we know who is coming into this country and people need to come here legally,” Dadey said.
PR consultant
Dadey is also criticizing the city of Syracuse for hiring a public relations consultant in Albany who has been working since last year for $84,000 annually. The consultant was hired through the city’s urban renewal agency to provide strategic planning and communication services. Dadey is sharply condemning Miner for using city funds on the consultant.
“I think it’s absolutely ridiculous that the mayor is wasting money, taxpayer money, on preserving and promoting her image when we have a crumbling infrastructure, we have the highest rate of homicides we’ve ever had in the history of Syracuse, we have failing schools," Dadey said. "We have so many needs in this city.”
As reported by the Syracuse Post-Standard, the Albany consultant calls in on senior staff meetings, interviews with the press, and reviews official statements and press releases.
