Six Democratic U.S. lawmakers who have previously served either in the military or in the intelligence community released a video on Tuesday directly addressing those still serving and telling them “you can refuse illegal orders.” The video has incensed the MAGA right — including, it seems, President Donald Trump. On Thursday morning, Trump posted to Truth Social what appeared to be a response to the video: “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!”
The Democratic lawmakers were in the right — and Trump’s inflammatory response only proves their point.
In the striking video, Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona, Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, Rep. Jason Crow of Colorado, Rep. Chris Deluzio of Pennsylvania, Rep. Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire and Rep. Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania take turns speaking to the camera. In alternating clauses, they cite their service backgrounds and say that Americans’ trust in the U.S. defense establishment is “at risk” because the administration is “pitting our uniformed military and intelligence community professionals against American citizens.”
The Trump administration and its allies have responded in an unhinged manner.
“Like us, you all swear an oath to protect and defend this constitution,” the lawmakers say. “Right now, the threats to our Constitution aren’t just coming from abroad, but from right here at home.”
Twice the lawmakers say people in the military “can” refuse illegal orders, and the third time, Deluzio says “you must” refuse illegal orders.
The Trump administration and its allies have responded in an unhinged manner. The president’s deputy chief of staff, Stephen Miller, wrote on social media that “Democrat lawmakers are now openly calling for insurrection.” Trump was posting about the video on Truth Social all morning, saying among other things that their “words cannot be allowed to stand” and reposting a user who wrote, “HANG THEM GEORGE WASHINGTON WOULD !!” House Speaker Mike Johnson defended Trump’s post that said the lawmakers’ behavior is “punishable by death” as simply “defining the crime of sedition.”
The reaction from the right is remarkable, given that these Democrats are merely reminding service members of their oath and stating that they can refuse illegal orders. Those who swear the U.S. military’s oath of enlistment first promise to “support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic.” (Members of the CIA take a similar pledge.) And as CNN explains:
Service members are required to follow only lawful orders in accordance with the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Following an order that might violate the law could open service members up to prosecution, as legal precedent holds that receiving an order alone isn’t a defense, colloquially known as the ‘Nuremberg defense’ as it was deployed by senior members of Adolf Hitler’s leadership team during legal proceedings after World War II.
Admittedly, the part of the video that warns troops to be on alert about illegal orders would’ve seemed odd and inappropriately political in the years prior to Trump. But it is appropriate in light of the president’s attempts to politicize the military himself. Trump has used absurd and legally disputed pretexts, as well as false claims about crime, for deploying the National Guard to American cities. His strikes on alleged drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean are also unprecedented and legally disputed. NBC News, citing six sources with knowledge of the legal advice, reported on Wednesday that “the senior military lawyer for the combatant command overseeing lethal strikes on alleged drug-smuggling boats near Venezuela disagreed with the Trump administration’s position that the operations are lawful — and his views were sidelined.”
Trump also has demonstrated a disturbing penchant for supporting political violence, as with his role in setting off (and refusing to intervene swiftly during) the Jan. 6 insurrection and then issuing pardons for its participants after returning to the presidency. Mark Esper, who served as defense secretary during Trump’s first term, wrote in his memoir that as protesters gathered near the White House after the murder of George Floyd in May 2020, Trump asked him: “Can’t you just shoot them? Just shoot them in the legs or something?”
The Democratic lawmakers were engaged in protected speech and were not calling for a violent overthrow of the government. But Trump has chosen to suggest that they should be incarcerated or murdered for expressing themselves. House Democratic leaders announced that they have contacted the House sergeant-at-arms and the U.S. Capitol Police to ensure the safety of the lawmakers and their families following Trump’s messages. Trump’s response — seemingly calling for a violence in response to free speech — only confirms that lawmakers are right to be concerned about whom this president would deploy the military against.
Zeeshan Aleem is a writer and editor for MS NOW. Previously, he worked at Vox, HuffPost and Politico, and he has also been published in, among other places, The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Nation, and The Intercept. You can sign up for his free politics newsletter by clicking the link at the top of this bio.