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FBI Director Kash Patel said his agency is doing President Donald Trump’s job of enforcing the law completely, warning that elected officials are exempt from federal scrutiny, following the subpoena of Justice Department judges Tuesday at five Minnesota state offices.
“No one — elected official, private citizen or otherwise — can block or obstruct a law enforcement investigation. No one,” he said on “Hannity.”
Patel’s comments come after the Justice Department issued subpoenas to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and several other state officials as part of an investigation into whether they conspired to interfere with immigration laws.
The subpoenas, served by the FBI, seek records and communications related to the alleged effort.
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Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Gov. Tim Walz is in the middle of an investigation into the obstruction of justice. (Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg via Getty Images; Jerry Holt/The Minnesota Star Tribune via Getty Images)
The investigation follows a major increase in immigration enforcement operations across the Twin Cities ordered by the Trump administration. An estimated 3,000 immigration officers were deployed – the largest force in a region where the Minneapolis Police Department has only about 600 officers.
The investigation also came after the shooting of Jan. 7 Renee Nicole Good is an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer. His death sparked widespread protests across Minnesota, leading to several clashes between protesters and law enforcement.
Top Democratic leaders in the state, such as Walz and Frey, strongly opposed the enforcement action that hit their state. Gov. Walz once declared that the state was “at war with the federal government.”
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A protester confronts a Homeland Security officer during a protest against US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) following the fatal shooting of an ICE agent in Minneapolis on Jan. 11. (Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Joining “Hannity” on Tuesday, Patel thanked the administration for prioritizing law enforcement crackdowns in the North Star State and beyond.
“He has given law enforcement the resources they need to protect our American communities,” the FBI Director told Fox News. “He also gave us the authority to strengthen the law.”
Patel went on to detail how the federal criminal investigation against the Minnesota subpoenaed officials is expected to unfold.
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“When you issue subpoenas, it’s not rocket science,” he explained. “The investigation is done by obtaining records, the investigation is continued by subpoenaing witnesses to grand juries and making a case presentation with our colleagues at the Department of Justice.”
Fox News learned late last week that authorities had opened an investigation into Walz and Frey for allegedly obstructing law enforcement.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison was also among those called.
In response to the news, Walz, Frey and Ellison echoed the same message, saying they are not panicking.
Walz, who was President Donald Trump’s opponent in the 2024 presidential race, dismissed the call as “partisan interference” and “political revenge.”
“The state of Minnesota will not engage in political theater,” the governor wrote on X.
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Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison speaks at the Community Development Speaker Series at the Bridge Center on May 7, 2025, in Detroit, Mich. (Monica Morgan/Getty Images)
Frey also pushed back, accusing the federal government of using its power to intimidate local leaders.
“We should not live in a country where federal law is used to play politics or to violate local voices they don’t agree with,” he wrote in X.
Ellison called the investigation “highly unusual” and noted its timing just after his office filed a lawsuit against the administration over its actions in Minnesota.
“Trump is using the justice system against any leader who dares to stand up to him,” he wrote in X.
FBI Director Kash Patel speaks during a press conference at the White House in Washington, DC, on November 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
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Patel, however, asserted that the administration’s efforts are aimed at public safety and made it clear that the FBI is following Trump’s mandate to impose law on everyone, excluding elected officials.
“The FBI is committed to working with our agencies and our Justice Department partners under President Trump’s mandate to make sure Minnesota and every other city in the country is safe,” Patel said.
