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Vice President JD Vance on Wednesday joined President Donald Trump in sharply criticizing Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey after the mayor reiterated that his city will not enforce federal immigration laws.
Frey made the comments in a post on X, arguing that local police should focus on public safety rather than immigration enforcement.
“The job of our police is to keep people safe, not enforce fed immigration laws,” Frey wrote. “I want them preventing homicides, not hunting down a working dad who contributes to MPLS & is from Ecuador. Everyone should feel safe calling 911.”
Vance responded on social media, questioning whether Frey’s stance undermines the safety of federal officers.
“How about federal law enforcement,” Vance wrote. “Should they feel safe calling 911? Right now, they don’t, because you’ve told your police officers not to help them.”
Earlier in the day, President Trump accused Frey of jeopardizing public safety and violating the law.
“Surprisingly, Mayor Jacob Frey just stated that, ‘Minneapolis does not, and will not, enforce Federal Immigration Laws,’” the president wrote on Truth Social. “This is after having had a very good conversation with him. Could somebody in his inner sanctum please explain that this statement is a very serious violation of the Law, and that he is PLAYING WITH FIRE!”
President Trump’s criticism followed a series of discussions between Frey, state leaders and border czar Tom Homan regarding Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in Minnesota. In a series of posts on Tuesday night, Frey said he rejected some of the terms discussed during those conversations.
“I also made it clear that Minneapolis does not and will not enforce federal immigration laws, and that we will remain focused on keeping our neighbors and streets safe,” Frey wrote, adding that city leaders will continue talking with Homan and his team.
A person who attended a meeting between Homan and Minnesota officials told The Wall Street Journal that Homan appeared focused on reducing street-level chaos rather than escalating tensions. Frey’s office described the talks as productive and said the mayor urged the federal government to end its Operation Metro Surge as quickly as possible.