Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey sharply criticized the federal government’s stepped-up immigration enforcement in his city, describing it as an overreach that could spark confrontations between local police and federal agents, while urging demonstrators to keep protests peaceful.
The Democratic mayor said residents have the right to observe and record ICE activity on city streets and cautioned against escalating tensions as federal operations expand.
“We will not counter Donald Trump’s chaos with our own brand of chaos here,” Frey said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “And we’re not going to give them an excuse to do the thing that clearly they’re trying to set up to do right now.”
Reflecting on the scope of the federal presence, Frey added, “I never thought in a million years that we would be invaded by our own federal government.”
The enforcement surge began last year after Minnesota was rocked by a major welfare fraud scandal, prompting the Trump administration to intensify operations across the state.
Since then, roughly 3,000 ICE and Border Patrol officers have been assigned to Minneapolis, a city with a local police force of about 600 officers. Reuters has reported that the administration is also preparing to send 1,500 military personnel into the city.
Frey said the increased presence has heightened anxiety among residents. He noted that some people have asked police to confront federal agents directly.
“We can’t have that in America,” Frey said Sunday when asked about those concerns. “What we are hopeful for here is the judicial system to do its part to see that necessary check and balance.”
Minnesota and Illinois have filed lawsuits seeking to block the influx of federal personnel, arguing that the deployments overstep federal authority.
President Trump has also suggested he could invoke the Insurrection Act — last used in 1992 — to deploy the National Guard to Minnesota, a move Frey said would “be a shocking step.”
Border czar Tom Homan has said the administration could reduce the federal footprint if local officials agree to “let us in the jail.”
Pressed on that point, Frey pushed back.
“I don’t think Homan understands the basic dynamic as to how stuff works in Minnesota here,” Frey said, insisting that Minneapolis enforces the law and is serious about public safety. “But the bottom line is, as we know, this is not about safety. It’s not about crime.”
“This is about intimidation. And, in Minneapolis, we’re not going to be intimidated.”
Separately, CBS News reported last week that the Justice Department is examining whether Frey and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz have worked together to obstruct federal immigration enforcement.
“We haven’t received anything, a subpoena or otherwise,” Frey said Sunday on NBC News’ “Meet the Press.” “And obviously it would be deeply concerning if the federal government is targeting someone for [an action] that is quite literally my job.”
{Matzav.com}
