Colorado Town Unanimously Votes to Remain a Non-Sanctuary City as Denver’s Migrant Problem Spills Over

A small Colorado town’s council has unanimously voted to affirm its designation as a non-sanctuary city after the progressive mayor of Denver admitted that his city is hitting its “breaking point” with the influx of migrants.

The mayor of Monument, a rural municipality sitting between Colorado Springs and Denver, joined Fox & Friends Wednesday to criticize Denver’s use of local resources to support non-citizens. 

“The goal is to make sure that Denver knows that we will not be accepting any busloads of migrants into our community,” said Mayor Mitch LaKind. “The main reason is that we don’t have a budget that matches theirs, and we won’t utilize taxpayer funds for the support of what they’ve decided to take on themselves as a self-declared sanctuary city.”

People pack and prepare to leave the largest migrant encampment on 27th Ave. between Zuni St. and Alcott St. in Denver, Colorado on January 3, 2024. (Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)

Monument’s council voted unanimously, seven to zero, to formally confirm its non-sanctuary status on Tuesday after Denver Mayor Mike Johnston (D) took to NBC’s Meet the Press Now in January to say that his sanctuary city will “hit a capacity at which we just won’t be able anymore to manage the amount of inflow.”

Claiming that the Mile-High City has taken in nearly 40,000 migrants since 2023, Johnston said, “We’re hitting a breaking point at which there’s just not enough volume of work or housing in the city to support this ongoing volume,” so busloads of migrants could be turned away from the city’s shelters. 

When asked about migrants pouring into surrounding communities from Denver by Fox News host Carley Shimkus, LaKind said Monument has “no room” for them. 

Denver has granted migrant families 42 days and individuals 14 days in its shelter system, reports the Denver Post. After their time is up, they must find somewhere else to stay.

If migrants expect to be housed in Monument, Mayor LaKind said, “The town administration and police force will work with federal agencies to have them picked up and brought to wherever they would need to be held.”

The mayor added that the Biden administration needs to “reverse course” on its faulty immigration policies.

“The president has the power to do that. He’s had the power all along. He’s chosen not to.”

EXCLUSIVE: Large Group of Migrants from Many Nations Cross Border into Arizona

LaKind took to X to celebrate his council’s decision, adding that the move has been backed by the leaders of El Paso County, Colorado Springs, and Keenesburg.

“Last evening, the Monument Town Council passed a resolution declaring non-sanctuary status, 7-0,” he wrote. “We are aligned with El Paso County and Colorado Springs in that we will not support the actions taken by Denver Mayor @MikeJohnstonCO, which further promotes illegal immigration.”

“Mayor @Aron_Lam and the Keenesburg Board also passed a non-sanctuary resolution last night.”