U.S. Mayors Gathering in D.C. Ahead of Trump Inauguration
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Vice President-elect Pence is scheduled to address more than 300 city hall leaders on Tuesday afternoon
WASHINGTON — Before the well-wishers and protesters of President-elect Donald Trump descend on the nation’s capital later this week, America’s mayors will convene the 85th Winter Meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors. Tuesday through Thursday, the organization will host over 300 mayors at the Capital Hilton, near the White House.
The full list of pre-registered mayors are available on the conference’s website.
The organization announced Monday evening that Vice President-elect Mike Pence would speak at their gathering on Tuesday afternoon.
The mayors plan to present their priorities for the new presidential administration at an opening press conference earlier that day. An earlier statement by the organization noted that the organization had invited Trump administration appointees to the event—going as far as posting 12 formal invitation letters online to prove it.
The latest published agenda is available here, featuring voices from federal agencies, the private sector, and—of course—mayors galore.
The winter meeting creates multiple opportunities for the organization and its members to make some political and policy announcements ahead of the transfer of power. The organization has publicized that on Wednesday, mayors would hold “a ‘call to action’ to protect key bipartisan provisions of the Affordable Care Act,” as well as a press conference on bipartisan immigration efforts.
The organization and its members have already begun to engage the incoming administration on several issues.
Last month, key leaders of the U.S. Conference of Mayors and President-elect Trump met at Trump Tower; at that meeting Trump voiced support for the federal tax exemption on municipal bonds. Prior to that, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel met with Trump, delivering to the president-elect a letter signed by 15 other mayors calling for the continuation of a program that shields young people from deportation.
Mitch Herckis is Senior Program Director at Government Executive’s Route Fifty and is based in Washington, D.C.
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