More than the other mayors who appeared before the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday, who seemed pained at times, Michelle Wu of Boston appeared to lean into the friction in the hearing over the cities’ immigration policies, seeming to relish the opportunity to push back against the assertions of Republican committee members.
Ms. Wu, a first-term Democrat who is up for re-election this year, challenged the “false narrative” that “immigrants cause all kinds of harm and danger.” She bristled when asked about criticism that Thomas Homan, President Trump’s border czar, had leveled at the Boston police. “Shame on him,” she said, “for lying about my city.”
Ms. Wu, 40, described Boston as a city built and bettered by immigrants — and as the safest major city in America, after a 40 percent decrease in murders over two years. Roughly 28 percent of Boston’s 650,000 residents were born in other countries, with many coming from China, the Dominican Republic, India, Brazil, El Salvador and Haiti.
Asked repeatedly about the cost of services provided to undocumented immigrants, Ms. Wu said that she could not give a specific number because the city does not ask the people it assists about their citizenship status. She said that many immigrants in Boston live in fear under the Trump administration; that fear, she added, inhibits effective law enforcement by eroding trust and communication between the police and immigrant communities.
“It makes all of us less safe,” she said.
A daughter of immigrants from Taiwan, Ms. Wu brought her own infant daughter to the hearing, which at times drew attention from committee members.
“She has a 7-week-old baby and she showed up here to be yelled at for four hours,” said Representative Melanie Stansbury, a Democrat from New Mexico.
Josh Kraft, a Democrat who is running against Ms. Wu this year, criticized her spending on preparation for the hearing. Her office said the cost was expected to exceed $600,000, including for services provided by an outside law firm.
“Mayor Wu said she’s going to DC to defend the city, and I support this,” Mr. Kraft wrote on X. “My question is: do we need to spend $650,000 of taxpayer funds on a show trial hearing?”
Mr. Kraft, the son of the New England Patriots owner Robert K. Kraft, has not taken issue with Ms. Wu’s handling of the immigration issue as of yet. On Wednesday, he planned to attend a rally in support of Boston immigrants outside City Hall.
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