Minneapolis Mayor Frey: Trump, ICE Putting City In ‘Impossible Situation’-l
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said Thursday that the city is in an “impossible situation” and that the current circumstances are “not sustainable” after a federal immigration agent shot a man during an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operation, sparking renewed tensions and protests.
The comments came a week after Renee Good, a Minneapolis woman, was fatally shot by an ICE officer, an incident that triggered widespread demonstrations and criticism of the federal presence in the city.
In remarks to reporters, Frey said there remain many unanswered questions about the latest shooting but reiterated his view that the ongoing federal enforcement actions are straining local resources and community trust.
“There’s still a lot that we don’t know at this time, but what I can tell you for certain is that this is not sustainable,” Frey said. “This is an impossible situation that our city is presently being put in, and at the same time, we are trying to find a way forward, to keep people safe, to protect our neighbors, to maintain order. And we’re in a position right now where we have residents that are asking the very limited number of police officers that we have to fight ICE agents on the street, to stand by their neighbors.”
“We cannot be at a place right now in America where we have two governmental entities that are literally fighting one another,” Frey added.
The most recent incident involved an ICE agent firing a shot that struck a Venezuelan man in the leg during an interaction in north Minneapolis. Officials said the agent fired after being assaulted; the man was hospitalized with what were described as non–life-threatening injuries.
“Tonight a man was shot in the leg by an ICE agent on the Northside,” Frey said in a social media post on X. “No matter what led up to this incident, the situation we are seeing in our city is not sustainable.”
“I’m calling for peace. Everyone has a role in achieving that peace,” Frey said. He also encouraged protesters to not “take the bait.”
“I have seen conduct from ICE that is intolerable,” Frey said. “And for anyone taking the bait tonight, stop. It is not helpful. We cannot respond to Donald Trump’s chaos with our own chaos.”
Protests erupted in the aftermath of the shooting, with demonstrators clashing with law enforcement and federal agents. The unrest follows days of heightened tensions in the city over the increased presence of federal immigration officers.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara also addressed the situation, urging calm and cooperation with local authorities to prevent further violence.
Frey has previously called for ICE to end its operations in Minneapolis and for a de-escalation of federal enforcement activity amid ongoing legal and political disputes between city, state, and federal officials.
Meanwhile, a 21-year-old protester was left permanently blind in his left eye after a federal officer fired a less-lethal projectile at close range during a demonstration in Santa Ana, California, on Jan. 9, family members, witnesses and officials said.
Kaden Rummler, a college student, was participating in a protest outside a federal immigration building against the Jan. 7 shooting death of Renee Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer in Minneapolis when the confrontation occurred, video and statements show.
“Not even light and I never will,” he said when asked about his vision returning. “My doctor said it’s a miracle I’m still alive.”
Video footage of the incident shows a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officer firing a crowd-control munition at Rummler at close range. Rummler fell to the ground, bleeding, and was later pulled by an officer into the federal building, according to video and accounts provided by protesters and Rummler’s family.
Rep. Ilhan Omar Intensifies Criticism of Federal Immigration Enforcement
Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota sharply escalated her criticism of the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement operations on Monday, accusing federal agents of treating Minneapolis as an occupying force and again calling for Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s resignation or impeachment.
In remarks to constituents in Minneapolis, Omar repeatedly described the presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other federal officers in the city as an inappropriate use of government authority, saying the situation has created fear among local residents. Omar said Minneapolis is “currently under occupation” and cited concerns about schools, hospitals and daily life as evidence of what she called harmful federal intervention.
“We do not exaggerate when we say we have schools where two-thirds of the students are afraid to go to school,” Omar said. “We do not exaggerate when we say we have people who are afraid to go to the hospital because our hospitals have occupying paramilitary forces.”
Omar referenced two recent fatalities during federal immigration operations in Minneapolis — the deaths of Alex Pretti and Renee Good — and argued those incidents underscored the need for new leadership at DHS. In her remarks, she blamed senior White House advisers for shaping the administration’s immigration policies.
“When we say it is time for Kristi Noem to go, we mean it now,” Omar added. “And there needs to be accountability for the architect of the terror we are facing in Minneapolis and so many other cities, which is Stephen Miller.”
Omar’s comments follow an appearance on MSNBC’s All In with Chris Hayes, where she reiterated those positions and broadened her critique to include senior administration officials. In that interview, she said Noem should resign or face impeachment, echoing earlier statements from House Democratic leadership. Omar also repeated criticism of Miller, a senior White House adviser on immigration policy, calling him a “copycat of the Nazis” and suggesting he should be prosecuted.
Her remarks also tied national Republican rhetoric on immigration to broader social tensions, asserting that aggressive enforcement language has “created anger” that can lead to confrontations with Somali immigrants and other community members in Minnesota.
Omar’s public criticism comes amid the ongoing federal immigration operation known as Operation Metro Surge. Federal agents have been deployed to Minneapolis to apprehend illegal immigrants with criminal convictions, drawing protests and heightened scrutiny from local officials and advocacy groups.
Democratic lawmakers, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), have called for increased oversight of DHS and ICE policies as part of broader negotiations over long-term funding for the Department of Homeland Security. Jeffries has publicly stated that Noem should be impeached if she does not resign, and Schumer has called for additional conditions on immigration enforcement in appropriations legislation.
In response to increased political pressure, DHS has taken steps to increase transparency in its operations. Earlier this week, Secretary Kristi Noem announced that body-worn cameras will be issued to all federal immigration enforcement officers deployed in Minneapolis as an immediate measure, with plans to expand the program nationwide as funding becomes available. “Effective immediately we are deploying body cameras to every officer in the field in Minneapolis,” Noem wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
Federal officials have said that some Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers present during the Jan. 24 shooting of Pretti were already equipped with body cameras, though full footage has not been released. Officials have not yet clarified whether ICE officers were wearing cameras during the earlier fatal encounter involving Good.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz responded to Noem’s announcement by saying body cameras should have been in place prior to the deaths of Pretti and Good, who were tragically killed while interfering with ICE law enforcement operations.
