Councilmember John Wu rejects allegations of disloyalty, calls accusations "outlandish and offensive"

Councilmember John Wu used his remarks at the Oct. 21 San Clemente City Council meeting to reject allegations aired at a prior meeting that questioned his loyalty and referenced his national origin.

Wu told the council and attendees that he was born in China and came to the United States in 1999. He described his educational background, his professional career in architecture and city planning, and his path to permanent residency in 2010 and U.S. citizenship in 2016.

Speaking directly about accusations made at the Oct. 7 meeting, Wu said the allegation that he might be a spy was "outlandish and offensive" and said the implication was an "ethnically coded" attempt to cast doubt on loyalty of Chinese American and Asian American communities. "Racial prejudice has no place in our society," he said, and affirmed his oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution and his commitment to serve San Clemente residents.

Several council members acknowledged Wu’s statement during council reports. Mayor Hall and other members thanked him for his service; one member (Councilmember at-large Victor) later described the allegations as "forced" and said he would not repeat them.

Wu said he would not dignify the allegations by repeating them and asked the public to judge his record of public service rather than engage with the personal attacks. His remarks closed with an appeal to civility and to treat residents "regardless of color, religion, language or national origin" equally.

No formal council action was associated with the statement; Wu’s remarks were part of council member reports.

Provenance: Wu’s full statement appears in the meeting transcript during the council reports section.