U.S. Conference of Mayors Calls for Moving Money from Pentagon to Cities

The U.S. Conference of Mayors on Monday unanimously passed three resolutions opposing the military-heavy Trump budget proposal, a proposal that calls for an additional $54 billion to the Pentagon by slashing anti-poverty and environmental programs. Instead, the mayors urge Congress and the President to move funding in the opposite direction, out of the military and into human and environmental needs.

The resolutions were passed by the 253 mayors--Democrats, Republicans and independents--attending the conference. CODEPINK will use this victory to continue passing similar resolutions in cities not represented at the conference.

"We are very excited that the entire US Conference of Mayors, from major metropoles such as New York City and Los Angeles to small rural townships, understand that the resources being sucked up by the Pentagon to wage endless wars overseas should be used to address our crumbling infrastructure, the climate crisis and poverty at home and abroad. Congress and the Trump administration should listen to these mayors, as they reflect the needs and hopes of their constituents, not the greed of corporate donors," said Medea Benjamin of CODEPINK, whose group helped pass the resolution from Ithaca, NY that was adopted by the conference.

"The Peace Council applauds the resolve of major city mayors to dramatically cut the U.S. military budget and to take the funds saved to provide money for jobs, education, housing, transportation, seniors, youth, rebuild our roads, bridges, public transportation much more," said Henry Lowendorf of the US Peace Council, a group that helped pass the resolution from New Haven that the conference also adopted. "The mayors understand how pouring the wealth of our great country into building war machines and waging wars around the globe does not make us more secure."

Jackie Cabasso of Cities for Peace promoted Resolution 79, submitted by 18 mayors, which calls on President Trump to lower nuclear tensions, prioritize diplomacy, and redirect nuclear weapons spending to meet human needs and address environmental challenges.

"These three resolutions should be read carefully by every member of Congress," said David Swanson, director of World Beyond War, a groups that helped pass similar resolutions around the country. "These are the considered statements of the mayors of this country, as prompted by the citizens of numerous cities that moved their city councils to pass similar resolutions and their mayors to support these."

The three resolutions, numbers 59, 60 and 79, can be found here and here.