Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey says it would be a 'shocking step' for Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act

WASHINGTON — Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” on Sunday that it “would be a shocking step” if President Donald Trump were to deploy the military to Minnesota under the Insurrection Act.

Frey noted crime statistics were down across multiple categories, according to city data, saying, “We don’t need more federal agents to keep people safe. We are safe.”

“In Minneapolis, we’re not going to be intimidated. We’re not backing down,” he told “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker. “We’re going to grin down this bear and do so again with peace.”

Crime in Minneapolis is down across several categories including vandalism, theft and weapons violations over the last 28 days, according to city data. In that same period, though, the city has seen a rise in certain crime categories such as assault offenses and motor vehicle theft.

White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson responded to Frey’s interview, accusing him in a statement of “putting criminal illegal aliens before law-abiding Americans.” She also criticized what she referred to as “his smears against law enforcement officers that incite violence.”

Last week, Trump threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act to respond to protesters, whom he referred to as “professional agitators and insurrectionists.”

The Pentagon has placed about 1,500 active-duty troops on prepare-to-deploy orders in case Trump seeks to send them to Minnesota, according to two U.S. officials. The troops are part of two battalions of the 11th Airborne Division.

The notification was described as part of “prudent planning” for the possibility that Trump invokes the Insurrection Act, said the officials, who had no knowledge of whether Trump plans to do so.

The units that were notified are part of a domestic response force out of Northern Command, the officials said.

A White House official said, “It’s typical for the Department of War to be prepared for any decision the president may or may not make.”

In an interview on Fox News, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said that "there may come a time when the president has to order that," referring to the Insurrection Act.

"We support him, the attorney general supports him, because we have to keep the citizens safe," he added.

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NBC News reported last week that the Justice Department is investigating Frey and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, both Democrats, under the theory that they conspired to impede federal immigration agents via public statements.

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Frey said on “Meet the Press” that he has not received a subpoena, adding that “it would be deeply concerning if the federal government is targeting someone for a product that is quite literally my job.”

“It is my responsibility to speak on behalf of Minneapolis residents,” he said. “It’s my responsibility to do everything possible to keep our city safe.”

Walz also slammed the administration in a statement, saying, “Weaponizing the justice system and threatening political opponents is a dangerous, authoritarian tactic.”

Frey and Walz have been outspoken against the administration’s handling of immigration enforcement, as well as an ICE officer’s fatal shooting of Minneapolis woman Renee Nicole Good. A growing number of federal officers have arrived in the city in the wake of the shooting, which has sparked additional protests.

Shortly after Good was killed, Frey blasted Immigration and Customs Enforcement, telling ICE to “get the f--- out of our city.”

On Sunday, Frey again urged the administration to have ICE leave Minneapolis.

“If the goal is safety, if the goal is maintaining a peace, I’ll tell you, there’s a very good antidote to some of the danger we’ve been seeing, and it’s just to have ICE leave,” he said.

The FBI requested agents from across the United States to voluntarily travel to Minneapolis for temporary assignments, two sources told NBC News. The messages sent to agents do not describe exactly what reassigned personnel would do in the city, but one source said they would investigate cases identifying and charging suspects accused of assault on a federal officer.