Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey is defending his profane broadside against federal immigration authorities after an ICE agent fatally shot a man in his city, insisting his language is not what is inflaming tensions.
During an appearance on NBCs Sunday program, Frey was pressed by moderator Kristen Welker about his reaction to the shooting, which has sparked protests and renewed scrutiny of federal immigration enforcement, according to Mediaite. The Democrat mayor had responded to the incident by directly attacking Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a federal agency tasked with enforcing immigration law that conservatives generally view as essential to border security and the rule of law.
To ICE: Get the f*ck out of Minneapolis! Frey declared on Wednesday. We do not want you here. Your stated reason for being in this city is to create some kind of safety, and you are doing exactly the opposite. People are being hurt, families are being ripped apart. Long-term Minneapolis residents that have contributed so greatly to our city, to our culture, to our economy, are being terrorized; and now, somebody is dead. Thats on you.
His remarks echoed the broader progressive push to vilify federal immigration enforcement, even as many Americans remain deeply concerned about border chaos and the erosion of national sovereignty.
Welker noted that protests against ICE have erupted nationwide following the shooting and asked whether Frey had a duty to cool the rhetoric rather than escalate it. Do you bear any responsibility as a local leader, Mayor Frey, to bring down the temperature right now? she asked, highlighting the expectation that mayors should promote order rather than agitation.
Of course I bear responsibility to bring down the temperature, thats part of my role as mayor, Frey replied, before immediately justifying his inflammatory language. He then portrayed the demonstrations in Minneapolis as a model of restraint, despite his own coarse denunciation of a federal agency.
Protests here in Minneapolis are peaceful, Frey insisted. We had, I dont know, 10,000 or so people that were protesting and marching yesterday. And virtually all of it was a very peaceful expression of First Amendment rights. And, you know, to those that are offended, Im sorry I offended their delicate ears! But as far as who inflamed the situation, you know, I dropped an F bomb. And they killed somebody. I think the killing somebody is the inflammatory element here not the F bomb which Im sure weve all heard before.
His dismissive reference to delicate ears underscored a broader progressive tendency to excuse incendiary rhetoric while blaming federal law enforcement for unrest.
Earlier in the interview, Welker pressed Frey on whether he trusted the FBI to conduct a fair and accurate investigation into the shooting, a question that resonates in an era when many conservatives already view the Bureau with skepticism over politicization. Will you accept the results of the FBI investigation, Mayor? she asked, seeking clarity on whether he would respect the outcome of a federal probe.
You know, if it was an FBI investigation that was done jointly with an investigation from the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, we could have had some trust that there were entities and individuals at the table that were properly reviewing the evidence, Frey responded, signaling his own doubts about the process.
Look, I dont know what the results of the investigation will be. I dont know what the evidence behind the investigation will be other than of course the videos that weve all seen with our own two eyes. What I will say is there is deep mistrust because so many of the things that we are hearing are not true. You know, again obviously people can come to different conclusions and have different perspectives. But when there is debate about baseline facts like for instance: Did the ICE agent get run over? Guys, the answer is no. It didnt happen.
As the investigation proceeds, Freys rhetoric places him squarely in the camp of progressive officials who attack ICE and question federal law enforcement while presiding over cities already struggling with crime and disorder.
His refusal to moderate his language, even while acknowledging a responsibility to bring down the temperature, highlights the growing divide between local Democratic leaders and those who believe that enforcing immigration law and supporting federal agents are essential to public safety and national security under President Trumps America First agenda.
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