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San Diego City Council Passes Resolution In Opposition To Trump's Border Wall

A U.S. Border Patrol vehicle is stationed between the primary and secondary fences along the U.S.-Mexico border in San Diego, July 20, 2008.
Associated Press
A U.S. Border Patrol vehicle is stationed between the primary and secondary fences along the U.S.-Mexico border in San Diego, July 20, 2008.

The San Diego City Council passed a resolution Tuesday opposing President Donald Trump's plan to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The resolution was approved on a 5-3 vote, with council members Chris Cate, Mark Kersey and Lorie Zapf dissenting.

Zapf said the resolution only served as "political posturing."

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"I'm just wondering what the point of this is," Zapf said. "Other than political posturing, I don't see anything else."

RELATED: Resolution Opposing Trump Border Wall Advances To San Diego City Council

The resolution states the border wall is detrimental to San Diego's environment and tourism. It also expresses the city's intent to divest from the companies involved in the construction, financing and design of the wall. Several companies are preparing to build prototypes of the wall in San Diego.

"The border wall is a stupid idea," Councilman David Alvarez said. "The border can become efficient and safe with investments in infrastructure and technology instead of wasting billions of taxpayer dollars for a wall which will accomplish nothing."

Before the vote, dozens of residents lined up to speak to city officials. Three members of the public expressed their support for the wall, but most denounced it.

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RELATED: Homeland Security To Bypass Environmental Regulations In San Diego Border Wall Construction

Port of San Diego Vice Chairman Rafael Castellanos was among those against the border barrier and said it was important to stand in solidarity with the immigrant community.

"This is not medieval China. We are not trying to keep out Mongol hordes," Castellanos said. "This is not a Matt Damon movie, this is a silly federal frolic that may go down in the Guinness World Book of Records as the worst pork-barrel project of all time."

Mayor Kevin Faulconer's office said that the mayor would not veto the city council's resolution and issued the following statement:

Mayor Faulconer has been clear in his opposition to a border wall across the entirety of the U.S. southern border but will not join on to this resolution because it also includes language that could blacklist businesses based on the political leanings of the City Council majority. This sets an unfair precedent and is a distraction from the very real and immediate issues facing the City of San Diego right now.
San Diego City Council Passes Resolution In Opposition To Trump's Border Wall
The San Diego City Council passed a resolution Tuesday opposing President Donald Trump's plan to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.