‘That’s on you’: This US mayor has a blunt message for Trump and his ICE agents
It is not the first time 44-year-old Jacob Frey has clashed with the Trump administration over its immigration crackdown.
January 8, 2026 — 3.45pm
A visibly angry Jacob Frey had a message for US immigration authorities and he didn’t hold back: “Get the f--- out of Minneapolis. We do not want you here.”
The city’s Democratic mayor, just days into his third term, was speaking at a news conference on Wednesday after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents fatally shot a woman in a car during a traffic stop in a snowy residential neighbourhood.
US President Donald Trump and his allies cast it as an incident of self-defence, a view Frey called a “garbage narrative”.
“Having seen the video myself, I want to tell everybody directly – that is bullshit,” he said.
It is not the first time Frey has clashed with the Trump administration over its immigration crackdown.
The 44-year-old, who was re-elected as mayor of Minneapolis City Council for a final term in November, signed an executive order in December that prohibits city-owned parking lots, ramps, garages or vacant lots from being used for immigration enforcement operations.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey with his wife, Sarah Clarke, and their daughters.Credit: Internet
According to Fox News, he has also assured the community that Minneapolis police will not gather information about people’s immigration status nor arrest anyone for being in the country illegally.
In March, he declared that Minneapolis, a so-called sanctuary city, would “continue to be a safe haven for undocumented immigrants” and the transgender community.
“Regardless of who you are or where you come from, Minneapolis is a place where you should be proud to call home,” he said at a town hall where he discussed federal government threats to cut funding if the city didn’t co-operate with its immigration policies.
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According to his website, jacobfrey.org, Frey grew up in northern Virginia and graduated with a degree in government from the College of William and Mary before attending law school at Villanova University in Philadelphia. He moved to Minneapolis after graduation, working as an employment and civil rights attorney, having fallen in love with the city while running a marathon there, the site says.
