Sen. Elissa Slotkin says she has received threatening messages after President Donald Trump suggested that she and several other Democrats had engaged in conduct warranting capital punishment by telling members of the military and intelligence communities that they can disobey illegal orders.
On Monday, the Michigan Democrat shared audio on X from people she said had left her disturbing messages, such as “I want to see you murdered on TV.” Another said: “I can eat popcorn while I watch you get executed for treason. God, I’m going to pray for that. Yeah, tick-tock.”
Slotkin is one of six Democratic members of Congress who said in a video shared on social media on Nov. 18 that those in the defense and intelligence sectors can — and must — “refuse illegal orders.” The lawmakers have all served in either the military or the intelligence capacities themselves.
The Democrats’ public plea comes amid Trump’s deployment of troops to major U.S. cities for crime and immigration enforcement operations. Shortly after the video was released, Trump posted on Truth Social: “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!” He also reshared a post that said, “HANG THEM GEORGE WASHINGTON WOULD !!”
The next day, Trump said he hadn’t actually threatened the Democratic lawmakers with death, but Slotkin said his words still carried significant weight.
“Leadership climate is set at the top. So, when President Trump calls for me to be killed and hanged, many people take that as license to call my office and say even worse,” Slotkin wrote in her post.
The White House did not immediately respond to MS NOW’s request for comment on Slotkin’s post. Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona, another of the Democrats in the video, told reporters Monday that he and his wife — former Rep. Gabby Giffords, who survived being shot in the head in 2011 as a member of Congress — are also receiving threats. “Gabby and I are no stranger to political violence,” he said. Rep. Jason Crow of Colorado, another member of the group dubbed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as the “Seditious Six,” said recently that he has received threatening messages as well.
Erum Salam is a breaking news reporter and producer for MS NOW. She previously was a breaking news reporter for The Guardian. Recommended
