{"id":1718520,"date":"2026-01-30T22:32:06","date_gmt":"2026-01-30T19:32:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1718520"},"modified":"2026-01-30T22:32:06","modified_gmt":"2026-01-30T19:32:06","slug":"minneapolis-mayor-jacob-frey-on-president-trump-patriotism-and-parenting-two-daughters-through-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1718520","title":{"rendered":"Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey on President Trump, Patriotism, and Parenting Two Daughters Through Crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
News<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey on President Trump, Patriotism, and Parenting Two Daughters Through Crisis<\/h1>\n
\n
By <\/span>Michelle Ruiz<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

\n
\n
<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n
Photo: Getty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n

On Friday, amid everything he\u2019s juggling, Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey did morning drop-off for his two daughters, Frida Jade, five, and Estelle Bloom, six months. \u201cOne of the more stressful parts of my day is just figuring out how to carry all this crap into daycare along with two kids,\u201d Frey, 44, told me by phone.<\/p>\n

Going to work, however, comes with another kind of weight. Almost six years after George Floyd was murdered in Minneapolis, Frey again finds himself a local leader on the front lines of a national crisis. The mayor is facing off against President Trump as Trump makes Minneapolis ground zero for his aggressive immigration crackdown, unleashing ICE\u2019s largest-scale operation ever: an estimated 3,000 masked agents raiding homes and even schools, detaining residents (including children like five-year-old Liam Ramos, still toting his Spider-Man backpack), and using deadly force to shoot and kill Ren\u00e9e Good, then Alex Pretti, in the street.<\/p>\n

Neither battle-scarred Minneapolis nor its mayor is having it. Frey famously ordered ICE to \u201cget the fuck out.\u201d More than 50,000 residents\u2014including Frey, in a hooded parka\u2014took to the streets last week in subzero temperatures. And earlier this month Minneapolis sued the Trump administration in federal court, alleging the ICE onslaught is unconstitutional. (A judge is expected to rule imminently.) A week later the Department of Justice subpoenaed Frey, along with Governor Tim Walz and other local Democratic leaders critical of ICE, alleging that the officials conspired to impede law enforcement amid the Trump administration\u2019s immigration crackdown.<\/p>\n

Frey said the White House didn\u2019t respond to his request for an in-person meeting with the president, but in a tenuous bit of progress, Frey confirms he had a \u201cpositive conversation\u201d with Trump this week. \u201cOn the phone, he was affable,\u201d Frey told me, even \u201cflattering at first\u201d\u2014though Trump has since said on social media that Frey was \u201cplaying with fire\u201d for stating that Minneapolis police would not assist ICE.<\/p>\n

When I traveled to Minneapolis to profile Mayor Frey for Vogue<\/em> in late 2021, he told me that Floyd\u2019s murder and its aftermath was \u201ca time that changed me forever.\u201d He\u2019s approached this latest crisis with more experience and thicker skin.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
Read More<\/div>\n

\u201cThis Is a Time That Changed Me Forever\u201d: Inside the Political Debut of Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey<\/span><\/p>\n

By <\/span>Michelle Ruiz<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\"Image<\/div>\n

In a phone interview, Frey spoke about his call with Trump, the anxiety of being the subject of a federal investigation, parenting his daughters in tumultuous times, and what it means to be a patriot now.<\/p>\n

Vogue<\/em>: Loaded question: How are you doing? Maybe it\u2019s better to ask how you\u2019re doing today.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Mayor Jacob Frey:<\/strong> Look, we keep moving. Me, personally, I\u2019m no victim. There are people having their constitutional rights trampled. There are families that are getting ripped apart. There are businesses that have closed. There are people who are in our streets that have suffered, and they\u2019re the ones that deserve the real attention. Not to mention the tens of thousands of people in our city that are peacefully protesting and bringing people groceries that are afraid to go outside and standing guard at a daycare. On the one hand, I am buoyed by an incredible city. And at the same time, I\u2019m getting investigated by a Department of Justice that is being weaponized against local leaders that simply disagree.<\/p>\n

What is the status of that investigation, Mayor? Have there been any new developments since you were subpoenaed?<\/strong><\/p>\n

As in any legal case, there are deadlines that you meet. But unlike other cases, never in a million years did I think that I would be investigated criminally by the federal government simply for carrying out one of my core responsibilities as mayor, which is to speak on behalf of my constituents and keep them safe. I know that their claims are complete garbage and unconstitutional, and at the same time, yeah, it is very disconcerting to have the federal government come after you. In addition to being mayor, I\u2019m a husband. [Frey is married to Sarah Clarke.] I\u2019m a dad. I got a six-month-old and a five-year-old. I just dropped them off at daycare. One of the more stressful parts of my day is just figuring out how to carry all this crap into daycare along with two kids and making sure that one of them doesn\u2019t get hit by a car.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

Parenting through this crisis is a challenge. We\u2019re watching people be shot dead in the street and then making our kids mac and cheese. How is this impacting you as a father? Does your oldest have any awareness of the situation?<\/strong><\/p>\n

It\u2019s the oldest clich\u00e9 in the book that you get a different perspective when you become a parent, but it\u2019s absolutely true. That perspective is only enhanced as these kids get older and start becoming genuine people. I do know Frida is tracking way more than I think she is and is simultaneously not fully aware of the gravity. I mean, I certainly didn\u2019t tell her that Trump is trying to criminally indict me, but she knows what\u2019s happening is bad. She knows that people whom she really cares about, teachers and friends, are scared. She knows that we\u2014both me as a mayor and we in the city\u2014are standing up for people who we love and that we care about. She\u2019s got a very Disney sense of right and wrong; there are people that are good in the world, and we\u2019re going to do everything possible to be on the good side, even when it\u2019s tough.<\/p>\n

We have this Yiddish eight ball, so it\u2019s the same thing as a regular eight ball, but with Jewish grandmother phrases. This morning she asked the eight ball: \u201cHow do things connect together without wires?\u201d I thought that was pretty impressive. That\u2019s a good question.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
Read More<\/div>\n

Moms Are Organizing Against ICE in Their Group Chats<\/span><\/p>\n

By <\/span>Margaux Anbouba<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\"Image<\/div>\n

There\u2019s a nationwide strike today in solidarity with Minneapolis and in protest of ICE. Do you feel that support from across the country?<\/strong><\/p>\n

It didn\u2019t fully hit me until, really, yesterday. For the first time in months, I wasn\u2019t in Minneapolis. I went to DC for the US Conference of Mayors, and these mayors have incredibly important daily jobs, but their gaze was very much focused on Minneapolis. Their heart and their thoughts and their support for our city was…. There was a feeling in the room that you could just cut with a knife. That really meant a lot to me.<\/p>\n

You spoke to President Trump this week, and he said it was a \u201cvery good\u201d conversation. Do you feel it was a very good conversation too?<\/strong><\/p>\n

It was a good conversation, yeah. He\u2019s not wrong. It was a positive conversation.<\/p>\n

Was that the first time you\u2019ve spoken since ICE descended on Minneapolis?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yes. We had reached out a few weeks prior, requesting an audience. I was ready to head out to DC for a meeting, but they never got back to us.<\/p>\n

The headline was that you both agreed that \u201cthe present situation cannot continue.\u201d How did you reach that consensus? I would have assumed that the president would come in very defensive of what he was doing with ICE.<\/strong><\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t. This was not a hard-driving negotiation. I mean, it was clear. It was broadly acknowledged that the present status is not sustainable. He instructed the border czar [Tom] Homan to come out to Minneapolis. Obviously, there were some staffing changes, and Homan was directed to bring down the temperature.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

Do you think Homan is going to make a difference?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019m hopeful, but I\u2019ll believe it when I see it. Our understanding is that there will be a drawing down of federal agents. Now, how many and when very much remains to be seen. Again, I\u2019ll believe it when I see it, but that is the message that they have delivered\u2014both the drawing down of agents and also a changing of tactics. I don\u2019t know that we\u2019ve seen that yet.<\/p>\n

How uncomfortable was that call with the president, given the subpoena and the insults he\u2019s hurled at you?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I mean, insults, whatever. You put those aside. I\u2019ve gotten insulted plenty over my career. Of course, the subpoena is something entirely different. Look, in that moment, you do your best. We started out talking about the East Coast. I\u2019m from the East Coast [Frey is a native of Virginia], as is he, obviously.<\/p>\n

It seems like\u2014and we saw this with New York mayor Zohran Mamdani too\u2014Trump doesn\u2019t have the same bluster when he\u2019s speaking directly to someone as he does when he\u2019s posting online.<\/strong><\/p>\n

On the phone, he was affable. He was flattering at first, and I said I must have got it from my mom, who\u2019s from Queens. Of course, he\u2019s [also] from Queens. I said my mom\u2019s from Fresh Meadows, and he mentioned the Fresh Meadows theater. We were just talking about New York City for a little bit.<\/p>\n

What was it about you that he was flattering?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I don\u2019t want to get too into it.<\/p>\n

I understand. One of the cases out of Minneapolis that is getting national attention is that of Liam Ramos, the five-year-old boy detained by ICE. There are reports now that he\u2019s sick in ICE detention. Do you know the latest on efforts to get him home?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I don\u2019t. I should get re-briefed now. In normal circumstances, you could get briefed with a singular focus on a kid, and obviously we want to help in any way we can, while we\u2019re dealing simultaneously with an invasion of three to four thousand federal agents and border patrol.<\/p>\n

Will Minneapolis be able to investigate the deaths of Ren\u00e9e Good and Alex Pretti, even with the Justice Department pressuring the FBI to drop investigations and not cooperating with local and state officials? Will there be answers and justice for these two people?<\/strong><\/p>\n

These cases will be investigated because they have to be. Ethics and morality call for it. Justice requires it. There are good positive steps in this direction by the BCA, the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, at the state level. They are the ones that should be handling this. Initially, following the killing of Ren\u00e9e Good, the thought was that the FBI and the BCA would jointly investigate. That\u2019s what we were told until we learned that the FBI was boxing the BCA out of critical evidence and information. My response is: If you got nothing to hide, welcome it. My hope is that the BCA will be investigating both cases, and I do know that there are steps being taken to that end.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

When we met in 2021, it was during the aftermath of George Floyd\u2019s murder, and you told me that it was a time that changed you forever. What lessons did you learn from that crisis that you\u2019ve taken into this one?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019m going to answer that question, but let me make another point. Back then, we were talking about the culture shift that was essential within our police department. Fast-forward four or five years: Our police are getting broad recognition for their restraint, for their de-escalation abilities. Some of the harshest critics, back when we talked last, are now applauding the work of our Minneapolis Police Department and juxtaposing it vis-\u00e0-vis the federal agents. Granted, we are extraordinarily short-staffed. They also have all of their regular day-to-day work, but they have been incredible. I mean, they\u2019re tired. Days off have been canceled. One of the things that I now have a concern for is fatigue. When they make a mistake, there\u2019s life-and-death consequences.<\/p>\n

One of the things I\u2019ve noticed since \u201920, \u201921, \u201922: I was more scripted. There were a few years where I\u2014like, I\u2019m sure, many other politicians\u2014was concerned about saying the wrong thing, stepping on a landmine. Now I\u2019ve got talking points but I\u2019m less scripted and therefore a whole lot more authentic. What I\u2019ve realized is that people can see it when it\u2019s real and when you\u2019re faking it.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
Read More<\/div>\n

One Minneapolis Teacher\u2019s Message: \u201cAmplify the Truth of What Is Happening\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

By <\/span>Emma Specter<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\"Image<\/div>\n

There\u2019s this now famous press conference where you told ICE to \u201cget the fuck out of Minneapolis.\u201d Did you plan to say it that way, or did you get fired up in the moment?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I knew I was going to say it. It wasn\u2019t, like, in the speech. I knew I was going to be forceful, and I guess I wasn\u2019t totally positive about what way that force would come out. I didn\u2019t necessarily know it would be an F-bomb. Some have argued that that increased tensions. I would argue, and I know, that it lessened them, because in that moment my constituents needed to be heard. It was a moment of honestly saying what needs to happen here. It was also to say to my constituents: I know you\u2019re angry. I hear you.<\/p>\n

I think that\u2019s what a lot of people want from the Democratic Party. What do you think Democrats most need to do to respond to this moment and get power back in the midterms and in 2028?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve heard from some business leaders, even some politicians, say, \u201cIf I speak out too much, then maybe I will be the target.\u201d And if you don\u2019t, we all will be. If you were to talk to people locally, none of them would know me as a radical leftist. I\u2019m a progressive person. I\u2019m left-leaning nationwide, certainly, but in Minneapolis, I\u2019ve frequently been the guy that says, \u201cHang on a second.\u201d There have been more than a few times when, to their chagrin, I\u2019ve disagreed with the activists of Minneapolis. But here\u2019s the thing: They are right in speaking out right now. They are right in protesting. The conduct we\u2019ve seen is against the law. It\u2019s unconstitutional.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

Do you think the Democratic Party is doing enough to combat what\u2019s happening?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019d say we all need to be doing more. I don\u2019t pretend to understand the machinations of the federal government. I met with [Senate Minority Leader Chuck] Schumer just yesterday, the leader of the Senate with a brilliant mind and just an excellent leader. As a mayor, it\u2019d probably be easy for me to say, \u201cYou got to be doing more.\u201d We\u2019re all trying to navigate this time when these foundational norms and the underpinnings of our democracy and our republic are being sledgehammered. A reporter asked me a question the other day\u2014we\u2019ve got a big court case, hopefully we get a decision today or Monday\u2014\u201cYou get a favorable decision, what if Donald Trump ignores the court order?\u201d It\u2019s the right question to ask, but, holy shit, is that really where we\u2019re at right now? I think everybody\u2019s doing their best to navigate this. Stand up, and have the courage to be a patriot.<\/p>\n

I know you\u2019re a runner. Are you running through this crisis, in that below-zero weather?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I have not really gotten many runs in this last week. I was hoping to get one in today or tomorrow. That was the hope. I need one.<\/p>\n

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n

Source URL: http:\/\/vogue.com\/article\/minneapolis-mayor-jacob-frey-on-president-trump-patriotism-and-parenting-two-daughters-through-crisis<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

News Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey on President Trump, Patriotism, and Parenting Two Daughters Through Crisis By Michelle Ruiz January 30, 2026 Photo: Getty Images On Friday, amid everything he\u2019s juggling, Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey did morning drop-off for his two daughters, Frida Jade, five, and Estelle Bloom, six months. \u201cOne of the more stressful parts […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[226,50],"class_list":["post-1718520","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-crawlmanager","tag-vogue-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1718520","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1718520"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1718520\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1718520"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1718520"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1718520"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}