St. Paul leaders shot down a proposal Wednesday that would have called on Minnesota's congressional delegation to push for an investigation of President Donald Trump.
St. Paul City Council votes down proposal seeking investigation of Trump
Sponsor Dai Thao only St. Paul council member to support the proposal.
April 20, 2017 at 1:15AM
![St. Paul councilmember Dai Thao asked Finance Director Todd Hurley a question about the Frank Baker settlement before the council voted to approve it. ] JEFF WHEELER ï jeff.wheeler@startribune.com With little fanfare, the St. Paul City Council Wednesday afternoon, April 5, 2017, formally approved the record $2 million settlement with Frank Baker, the innocent man kicked by a police officer and attacked by a police dog.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/7HUQMFWWFDOOCBDTUW7BS2LRQI.jpg?&w=712)
Council Member Dai Thao, who is running for mayor, proposed the resolution. It asked the Minnesota delegation to author legislation directing the House Judiciary Committee to investigate whether Trump could be impeached for various "constitutional violations."
The City Council voted down the resolution 6-1, with Thao as the lone supporter.
Council Member Chris Tolbert said if the board overuses such symbolic gestures for political purposes, they become meaningless. "This resolution would be a better tweet than a resolution," Tolbert said.
Thao argued that St. Paul residents "don't live on an island" and what Trump does impacts the city. Richmond, Calif., recently passed a similar resolution to what he proposed.
Thao's resolution says Trump has retained financial and personal interest in the success of his various business ventures, like hotels, commercial real estate and golf courses. The Constitution bars U.S. officials from accepting foreign government gifts or payments, and Thao's resolution says the president is violating that clause when foreign governments book rooms in his hotels or work with his businesses.
The resolution states Trump violated the Constitution by labeling the media as "the enemy of the people" and excluding some members of the press. Thao also urged congressional members to look into constitutional violations related to Trump's involvement with Russia.
Thao often emphasizes his opposition to Trump on the campaign trail. He has proposed other Trump-related resolutions in the past couple years, including asking city staff to work with St. Paul residents detained because of the president's travel ban, and condemning then-candidate Trump's "anti-Muslim, anti-refugee, and anti-immigrant speech."
The City Council passed both of those proposals.
Jessie Van Berkel • 612-673-4649
LOCAL FICTION: Featuring stories within stories, she’ll discuss the book at Talking Volumes on Tuesday.
