‘Punishable by death’: Trump accuses Democrats of sedition over video message to military

Washington: US President Donald Trump assailed Democratic politicians who told members of the US military they must refuse any illegal orders, calling them traitors who could face execution.

Trump reposted an article on Truth Social about a video released during the week by six Democratic lawmakers – who all served in the military or in the intelligence community – calling it “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!”

US President Donald Trump talks up his investment deal with Saudi Arabia in the White House on Tuesday.Credit: AP

“This is really bad, and Dangerous to our Country,” Trump wrote in an earlier post. “Their words cannot be allowed to stand. SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR FROM TRAITORS!!! LOCK THEM UP???”

Trump’s posts on Thursday (Washington time), are the latest example of him calling for the punishment of those he sees as political enemies. Since returning to the presidency in January, Trump has occasionally called for imprisoning adversaries, and his Justice Department has targeted critics such as former federal officials John Bolton and James Comey.

Top Democrats in Congress said Trump’s words could incite violence. House of Representatives leaders said they contacted the US Capitol Police to ensure the Democratic lawmakers’ safety.

At a news briefing later, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said “no” when asked whether the president wanted to execute members of Congress, but she castigated the Democrats for encouraging members of the military to defy the chain of command.

Democrat senator Elissa Slotkin.Credit: Bloomberg

For civilians, US law has no provision for a charge of sedition, although “seditious conspiracy” carries a maximum penalty of 20 years. For troops, the Uniform Code of Military Justice includes a section on sedition, with possible penalties including death.

The lawmakers include Senators Elissa Slotkin, a former CIA analyst and Iraq war veteran, and Mark Kelly, a former astronaut and Navy veteran, as well as representatives Jason Crow, Maggie Goodlander, Chris Deluzio and Chrissy Houlahan.

In the video, they directly address members of the US military and intelligence community, saying the Trump administration was pitting those institutions against the American people and threatening tenets of the US Constitution.

“We know you are under enormous stress and pressure right now,” they said.

“Our laws are clear: You can refuse illegal orders,” said Kelly. The other lawmakers offer a similar refrain before Slotkin concluded: “We need you to stand up for our laws, our Constitution. Don’t give up the ship.”

“Calling for the execution of senators and members of Congress for reminding our troops of that is chilling behaviour we should expect from authoritarians ... not the president of the United States.”

After Trump published his post, Slotkin wrote on X that she and her colleagues would continue to defend the Constitution. “No threat, intimidation, or call for violence will deter us from that sacred obligation,” Slotkin wrote.

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The lawmakers did not refer to any particular incident or scenario, and did not provide any examples of orders that they might consider illegal.

Some Democrats in Congress have been sharply critical of Trump’s military strikes on suspected drug traffickers in the southern Caribbean and the Pacific, focusing on the legality and lack of transparency. There have also been concerns that Trump will launch an attack on Venezuela itself.

Democrats have also challenged Trump’s attempts to deploy National Guard personnel to support immigration crackdowns in US cities.

“Calling for the execution of senators and members of Congress for reminding our troops of that is chilling behaviour we should expect from authoritarians ... not the president of the United States,” Senator Chris Coons, the top Democrat on the Appropriations Subcommittee on Defence, said in a statement.

“Every one of my Republican colleagues needs to stand up and swiftly condemn this.”

Republicans were largely silent. Senator Lindsey Graham, a longtime Trump ally, said he did not know of any illegal orders issued to the US military and that the Democrats “owe it to the country” to be specific.

Senator Chuck Schumer, who leads his chamber’s Democrats, called Trump’s posts an outright threat.

“When Donald Trump uses the language of execution and treason, some of his supporters may very well listen,” Schumer said in the Senate. “He is lighting a match soaked with gasoline.”

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