Vice President JD Vance escalated attacks on six Democrats who warned troops about illegal orders as President Donald Trump pushed sedition claims and courts struck down parts of his National Guard deployments.
Democrats Tell Troops They Can Refuse Illegal Orders
Vance said Sunday that the lawmakers Sens. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) and Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) and Reps. Chris Deluzio (D-Pa.), Maggie Goodlander (D-N.H.), Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.) and Jason Crow (D-Colo.) crossed a legal line by addressing active-duty personnel in a video reminding them they can refuse unlawful commands.
"If the president hasn’t issued illegal orders, then the members of Congress telling the military to defy the president is by definition illegal," Vance wrote on X.
In their video, the lawmakers, all with military or intelligence backgrounds, told service members, "Our laws are clear. You can refuse illegal orders."
Trump Accuses Lawmakers Of ‘Sedition’ As Courts Reject His National Guard Deployments
Trump called the group "traitors" on Truth Social and claimed they were guilty of "SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!" He repeated Saturday that the six Democrats "SHOULD BE IN JAIL RIGHT NOW."
Slotkin, speaking on ABC's "This Week," said she was "not aware" of any illegal orders from Trump but defended the message as a standard reminder of military law.
The exchange comes as federal judges ruled that Trump exceeded his authority by deploying or attempting to deploy National Guard troops to Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., for domestic law enforcement.
Democrats Push Back Against Trump's Threats
On Sunday, Trump posted on Truth Social that the Democratic lawmakers who told service members they could refuse illegal orders were "traitors" who should be jailed.
He called their message "sedition at the highest level" and insisting there was "no other interpretation" of their actions.
The targeted lawmakers responded sharply on X, Kelly said Trump was effectively claiming "loyalty to the Constitution is punishable by death" and warning that the president's threats of execution and violence were dangerous and unacceptable.
Slotkin accused Trump of using fear to silence dissent and vowed not to back down.
Crow said Trump was threatening him with arrest and execution for upholding his constitutional oath, calling it evidence of the president's disregard for the rule of law.
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