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One Minneapolis city council member prompted widespread mockery on social media after going to bat for “cat lovers,” claiming Waymo cars are killing cats and urging officials to require humans in the self-driving vehicles.
“I will say cats have been killed and cats have been killed by these autonomous vehicles,” Jason Chavez said to his fellow council members. “I have a cat, I don’t want my cat getting killed because of these autonomous vehicles so to those cat lovers out there, just know that these Waymo vehicles, these autonomous vehicles have killed cats and that’s unfair. I just watched a video sitting here from the dais and it was really hard to watch. Literally cats being murdered by these vehicles.”
The ordinance, which narrowly passed on Thursday, would mandate a human operator and a special license for all autonomous vehicles. But its future remains uncertain.
Mayor Jacob Frey announced he plans to veto the proposal in a statement to multiple Minnesota outlets, saying it “doesn’t make sense” and the city will continue its efforts to embrace “innovative technology,” including transportation options. Despite acknowledging the safety concerns, Frey added he would not support a “backdoor ban” of the vehicles.
WAYMO DRIVERLESS CARS OVERRUN ATLANTA NEIGHBORHOOD, CIRCLING CUL-DE-SACS AND ALARMING FAMILIES WITH KIDS
Minneapolis City Council Member Jason Chavez sparked backlash on social media after urging officials to require a human in self-driving vehicles. (YouTube/City of Minneapolis ; Sina Schuldt/picture alliance via Getty Images)
As Waymo vehicles with rooftop sensors and empty seats become a more common sight, supporters argue requiring a human operator would effectively ban autonomous taxi services and result in higher fares, while opponents insist the technology poses safety risks and takes away jobs.
Social media users were quick to pile on Chavez’s remarks about the potential threat to cats, accusing him of blowing the issue out of proportion and shifting focus from more pressing priorities in Minneapolis.
“The Minneapolis City Council wants to require a human in driverless vehicles because cats are being ‘murdered’ by them,” Townhall columnist Dustin Grage posted on X. “This guy’s salary is $110,000/year, by the way.”
Grage took more swipes at Chavez in separate X posts, writing, “They’re calling it the cat genocide” and, “Hide your cats. The Waymos are coming.”
In another post on X, conservative commentator Gunther Eagleman wrote, “LOL! MINNEAPOLIS HAS FOUND ITS REAL CRISIS, AND IT’S ROBOT CARS ‘MURDERING’ CATS.”
JACOB FREY CRITICIZED FOR REMEMBERING GEORGE FLOYD ON MEMORIAL DAY, SIX YEARS AFTER DEATH SPARKED RIOTS
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey walks prior to a meeting with U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., January 29, 2026. (REUTERS/Annabelle Gordon)
Eagleman also argued the city should be addressing larger issues such as crime and fraud, describing the situation as a sign of failed leadership.
“A council member in a city that let rioters burn down a police precinct and watched a $250 million fraud scheme happen under its nose now wants a human in every driverless car to protect the cats,” he wrote. “He’s pulling down $110,000 a year of taxpayer money to say this with a straight face. Minneapolis doesn’t have a driverless car problem. It has a leadership problem.”
“They’re driving over the cats, they’re driving over the dogs!” Fox News Digital columnist David Marcus posted on X.
“Why is a city council member making 110,000 when families and seniors are getting priced out of their homes in Minneapolis and taxes are sky rocking????? That’s absurd – where is the equality in that???” Three Rivers Park Commissioner Jennifer DeJournett posted on X.
TERRIFIED PASSENGERS FILM WAYMO AUTONOMOUS VEHICLE DRIVING INTO LIVE FIREWORKS IN SAN FRANCISCO
A Waymo driverless vehicle in Los Angeles in May. (Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images)
“Fwiw I’ve been in a self-driving Tesla that stopped for cats to cross the road and Waymo is a lot more advanced,” journalist Zaid Jilani posted on X.
“My FSD Tesla avoids animals on the road. He is full of it,” Dealer Teamwork CEO and co-founder Sean Stapleton posted on X.
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Fox News Digital reached out to Chavez for comment.