Mayor says Denver had “moral obligation” to shelter migrants under questioning by GOP-led House committee

Mayor Mike Johnston, called before a congressional committee Wednesday to answer for Denver’s status as a so-called sanctuary city, said that providing refuge for the tens of thousands of migrants who arrived in Denver was both a requirement of his job and a moral obligation.

“We are each entitled to our own opinion about what should happen at the border,” Johnston said in his opening remarks to the Republican-controlled committee. “But that was not the question facing Denver. The question Denver faced is: what will you do with a mom and two kids dropped on the streets of our city with no warm clothes, no food and no place to stay?” 

Johnston, ordered to testify before the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform along with the mayors of Boston, Chicago and New York, quoted from the Bible as he spoke to the panel. 

“As mayor I have to protect the health and safety of everyone in our city. As a man of faith I have a moral obligation to care for those in need,” he said. “As scripture says, ‘For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat. I was thirsty, you gave me something to eat. I was a stranger and you invited me in.’ So that’s what we did.” 

About 42,000 migrants, mostly from South America, arrived in Denver over an 18-month period beginning in December 2022. At the height of the migration, 10 or 11 buses were arriving per day, each carrying 300 people, many of them women and children in T-shirts and sandals in the middle of winter, Johnston said. 

Denver set up eight city-funded shelters, which are now closed, and helped 8,700 people apply for work authorization. 

“When buses started showing up filled with migrants some in my city were afraid, just like I’m sure some of your constituents are afraid,” Johnston said. “They were afraid about crime and homelessness and worried about what these new people might take away from them. I understand that fear. The truth is people who are new to this country do good and bad just like all of us.

“When those buses kept on coming, Denver made a choice as a city, not to hate each other, but to help each other.” 

The committee hearing is expected to last a few hours, with Johnston and the other mayors expected to answer questions from members of congress. U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert is on the committee, and three other Colorado Republicans — Reps. Jeff Crank, Jeff Hurd and Gabe Evans — asked to take part in the hearing so they could ask questions. 

The hearing could have big implications for Denver and the other cities, as members of Congress have called for ending federal funding to cities that do not cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. In Colorado, it’s against state law for local law enforcement to hold immigrants in jail for the purpose of waiting for ICE to pick them up. 

Johnston’s testimony could have major implications for Denver as new President Donald Trump and Republicans threaten to withhold federal dollars from cities that won’t work with ICE. In Denver, that could mean the loss of millions of dollars for city projects and programs.

Johnston was notified in a Jan. 27 letter that the committee was “investigating sanctuary jurisdictions” across the country and “their impact on public safety and the effectiveness of federal efforts to enforce the immigration laws of the United States.” 

“Denver is a sanctuary jurisdiction under Colorado law, and Mayor Mike Johnston confirmed that he was prepared to go to jail to protect illegal aliens from federal immigration authorities,” the letter said, citing a Fox News story that quoted Johnston about how the city would try to prevent a mass deportation.

This is a developing story that will be updated.