--- title: Trump Calls for Democrats' Arrests Over Message to Troops description: Trump's posts come after the lawmakers released a video urging members of the military and intelligence community to refuse unlawful orders. canonical: https://time.com/7335430/trump-democrats-arrest-sedition-military-illegal-orders-video/ author: Chantelle Lee article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2025-11-20T16:41:36.000Z article:modified_time: 2025-11-20T22:08:49.000Z article:section: Politics og:title: Trump Calls for Democrats' Arrests Over Message to Troops og:description: The lawmakers released a video urging members of the military and intelligence community to refuse unlawful orders. og:url: https://time.com/7335430/trump-democrats-arrest-sedition-military-illegal-orders-video/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltadcc347619844445/6998cbcf83ec37998dc7b25b/Trump-Arrests-Dems-Troops.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: President Trump Returns To Washington From Florida On Sunday og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Trump Calls for Democrats' Arrests Over Message to Troops twitter:description: The lawmakers released a video urging members of the military and intelligence community to refuse unlawful orders. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltadcc347619844445/6998cbcf83ec37998dc7b25b/Trump-Arrests-Dems-Troops.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Trump Calls for Arrests of Democrats Who Urged Troops to Refuse Illegal Orders: ‘Seditious Behavior, Punishable by Death’ > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=31a982f5-8ec4-454e-8134-f6a26efddb36&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Trump Calls for Arrests of Democrats Who Urged Troops to Refuse Illegal Orders: ‘Seditious Behavior, Punishable by Death’ [Watch (HLS stream): Trump Calls for Arrests of Democrats Who Urged Troops to Refuse Illegal Orders: ‘Seditious Behavior, Punishable by Death’](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/kY48NsuH.m3u8) (2:55)  _Published 2025-11-20. President Donald Trump has labeled six Democratic lawmakers “seditious” and called for them to be arrested, after the politicians posted a video urging members of the military and the intelligence community to refuse unlawful orders._ by [Chantelle Lee](https://time.com/author/chantelle-lee/) ## Chantelle Lee Reporter Updated: Nov 20, 2025 10:08 PM UTCPublished: Nov 20, 2025 4:41 PM UTC President Donald Trump has labeled six Democratic lawmakers “seditious” and called for them to be arrested, after the politicians posted a video urging members of the military and the intelligence community to refuse unlawful orders. by [Chantelle Lee](https://time.com/author/chantelle-lee/) ## Chantelle Lee Reporter Updated: Nov 20, 2025 10:08 PM UTCPublished: Nov 20, 2025 4:41 PM UTC President Donald Trump has labeled six Democratic lawmakers “seditious” and called for them to be arrested, after the politicians posted a video urging members of the military and the intelligence community to refuse unlawful orders. “This is really bad, and Dangerous to our Country,” Trump [said](https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115582451169685243) in a Truth Social post Thursday morning. “Their words cannot be allowed to stand. SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR FROM TRAITORS!!! LOCK THEM UP???” He followed up with another post about an hour later, [saying](https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115582703277798715), “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!” He also reposted several posts condemning the Democrats, including one from a user calling for the lawmakers to be hanged: “HANG THEM GEORGE WASHINGTON WOULD !!” the user [wrote](https://truthsocial.com/@P78/posts/115580255469225519) on Wednesday evening. Another post the President [reposted](https://truthsocial.com/@sandyjp/posts/115580234409714218) urged officials to “Indict all of them.” Trump’s furious posts come after Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona, Rep. Jason Crow of Colorado, Rep. Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania, Rep. Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire, and Rep. Chris Deluzio of Pennsylvania released a [video](https://www.facebook.com/SenElissaSlotkin/videos/2558895077819811/) on Tuesday in which they spoke directly to members of the military and intelligence community. All six Democratic lawmakers either served in the military or in national security positions before they were elected to office. “We know you are under enormous stress and pressure right now,” they said in the video. “Americans trust their military. But that trust is at risk. This Administration is pitting our uniformed military and intelligence community professionals against Americans citizens. Like us, you all swore an oath to protect and defend this Constitution. Right now, the threats to our Constitution aren’t just coming from abroad—but from right here at home.” “Our laws are clear: You can refuse illegal orders,” they continued. “You must refuse illegal orders. No one has to carry out orders that violate the law or our Constitution.” The Democrats said they understood “this is hard” and a “difficult time to be a public servant,” but assured the community that “we have your back.” “Now, more than ever, the American people need you. We need you to stand up for our laws, our Constitution, and who we are as Americans,” they said. “Don’t give up the ship.” The lawmakers didn’t specify in the video what kinds of unlawful orders troops may be receiving. But Slotkin has, in the past, expressed concerns that the Trump Administration could deploy troops within the U.S. in response to protests. The President has faced widespread controversy in recent months over his [deployment](https://time.com/7308904/dc-national-guard-trump-troops/) of National Guard troops to cities ranging from [Washington, D.C.](https://time.com/7308788/trump-washington-dc-national-guard/?amp=true) to [Los Angeles](https://time.com/7291978/los-angeles-immigration-protests-trump-national-guard-deployed-newsom-backlash/), in his effort to crack down on crime. Slotkin and Kelly also [told news outlets](https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/18/us/politics/democratic-lawmakers-illegal-orders.html) that they, and some active service members, are worried about whether there is legal justification for the [strikes](https://time.com/7328921/cartel-boats-pete-hegseth-pacific/) that the Trump Administration has ordered on boats in the Caribbean that it has [claimed were transporting drugs](https://time.com/7326921/trump-venezuela-caribbean-drug-boats-maduro/). The [Code of Military Justice](https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title10-section892&num=0&edition=prelim) requires service members to “obey any lawful general order or regulation.” But troops [could be court-martialed](https://nlgmltf.org/military-law/2025/faq-on-refusing-illegal-orders/) for carrying out illegal orders, such as war crimes. At the White House press briefing on Thursday, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt called the Democrats’ video “a dangerous message” that “perhaps is punishable by law,” though she added “I’m not a lawyer.” “They are suggesting the President has given illegal orders, which he has not,” she said. “We do things by the book.” Several Democratic officials have filed lawsuits challenging the Trump Administration’s actions, and a federal judge [ruled](https://time.com/7313929/trump-national-guard-la-los-angeles-marines-judge-ruling/) in September that the President broke the law when he sent National Guard troops to Los Angeles over the summer. Many Democratic lawmakers condemned Trump’s Truth Social posts on Thursday, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who spoke about the issue on the Senate floor. “Let’s be crystal clear: the President of the United States is calling for the execution of elected officials. This is an outright threat, and it’s deadly serious,” Schumer [said](https://www.instagram.com/reel/DRSdvEEEekp/). “We have already seen what happens when Donald Trump tells his followers that his political opponents are enemies of the state. Every time Donald Trump posts things like this, he makes political violence more likely. None of us should tolerate this kind of behavior.” Schumer referenced the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, adding that the country has seen multiple [assassinations and attempted assassinations](https://time.com/7294891/political-violence-rise-america/) this year. “When Donald Trump uses the language of execution and treason, some of his supporters may very well listen. He is lighting a match in a country soaked with political gasoline,” Schumer continued. “Every Senator, every Representative, every American—regardless of party—should condemn this immediately and without qualification.” ## Transcript This morning, President Trump accused six Democratic lawmakers of seditious behavior punishable by death. Just to be clear, does the president want to execute members of Congress? No. Let's be clear about what the president is responding to, because many in this room want to talk about the president's response, but not what brought the president to responding in this way. You have sitting members of the United States Congress who conspired together to orchestrate a video message to members of the United States military to active duty service members, to members of the national security apparatus, encouraging them to defy the president's lawful orders. The sanctity of our military rests on the chain of command, and if that chain of command is broken, it can lead to people getting killed. It can lead to chaos. And that's what these members of Congress who swore an oath to, to abide by the Constitution are essentially encouraging. We have 1.3 active duty service members in this country. And if they hear this radical message from sitting members of Congress, that could inspire chaos and it could incite violence, and it certainly could disrupt the chain of command. And so these members knew what they were doing. They were leading into their credentials as former members of our military, as veterans, as former members of the national security apparatus, to signal to people serving under this commander in chief, Donald Trump, that you can defy him and you can betray your oath of office. That is a very, very dangerous message. Message. And it perhaps is punishable by law. I'm not a lawyer. I'll leave that to the Department of Justice and the Department of War to decide. The president and the vice president, for that matter, have accused the other side of encouraging political violence. Isn't that exactly what the president is doing when he says that members of Congress should be killed? Why aren't you talking about what these members of Congress are doing to encourage and incite violence? They are literally saying to 1.3 million active duty service members not to to defy the chain of command, not to follow lawful orders. Every single. Illegal order which they. Are. But they're suggesting they're suggesting, Nancy, that the president has given illegal orders, which he has not. Every single order that is given to this United States military by this commander in chief, and through this command chain of command, through the Secretary of War, is lawful. And the courts have proven that this administration has an unparalleled record at the Supreme Court because we are following the laws. We don't defy court orders. We do things by the books and to to suggest and encourage that active duty service members defy the chain of command is a very dangerous thing for sitting members of Congress to do, and they should be held accountable. And that's what the president wants to see. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/7335430/trump-democrats-arrest-sedition-military-illegal-orders-video/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/7335430/trump-democrats-arrest-sedition-military-illegal-orders-video/"},"headline":"Trump Calls for Arrests of Democrats Who Urged Troops to Refuse Illegal Orders: ‘Seditious Behavior, Punishable by Death’","datePublished":"2025-11-20T16:41:36.000Z","dateModified":"2025-11-20T22:08:49.000Z","description":"Trump's posts come after the lawmakers released a video urging members of the military and intelligence community to refuse unlawful orders.","url":"https://time.com/7335430/trump-democrats-arrest-sedition-military-illegal-orders-video/","keywords":["Donald Trump","News Desk"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltadcc347619844445/6998cbcf83ec37998dc7b25b/Trump-Arrests-Dems-Troops.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Chantelle Lee","jobTitle":"Reporter","url":"https://time.com/author/chantelle-lee/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltadcc347619844445/6998cbcf83ec37998dc7b25b/Trump-Arrests-Dems-Troops.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"President Trump Returns To Washington From Florida On Sunday","caption":"President Trump Returns To Washington From Florida On Sunday","creditText":"Roberto Schmidt—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/donald-trump/","name":"Donald Trump"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/7335430/trump-democrats-arrest-sedition-military-illegal-orders-video/","name":"Trump Calls for Arrests of Democrats Who Urged Troops to Refuse Illegal Orders: ‘Seditious Behavior, Punishable by Death’"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Trump Calls for Arrests of Democrats Who Urged Troops to Refuse Illegal Orders: ‘Seditious Behavior, Punishable by Death’","description":"President Donald Trump has labeled six Democratic lawmakers “seditious” and called for them to be arrested, after the politicians posted a video urging members of the military and the intelligence community to refuse unlawful orders.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/kY48NsuH/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2025-11-20T22:06:15.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/kY48NsuH.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/7335430/trump-democrats-arrest-sedition-military-illegal-orders-video/","duration":"PT2M55S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/7335430/trump-democrats-arrest-sedition-military-illegal-orders-video/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```