(NewsNation) — The White House confirmed President Donald Trump does not want lawmakers killed after he called several Democrats traitors and deemed their actions “punishable by DEATH.”
Trump’s social media posts on the subject — which labeled six Democratic lawmakers as engaging in “seditious behavior” — came after the group posted a video addressed to military members earlier this week.
The lawmakers, who all have military or intelligence backgrounds, called on servicemen and women to uphold the Constitution and defy “illegal orders” from the administration.
“The American people need you to stand up for our laws and our Constitution,” Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., wrote on social platform X.
In addition to Slotkin, the video featured Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., and Reps. Jason Crow, D-Colo.; Chris Deluzio, D-Pa.; Maggie Goodlander, D-N.H.; and Chrissy Houlahan, D-Pa.
In response, Trump said the lawmakers should be arrested as traitors, before posting: “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!” He also reposted user comments, including one that read “HANG THEM GEORGE WASHINGTON WOULD !!”
The “illegal orders” mentioned in the Democrats’ video were not specified, though it came amid increased concerns on Capitol Hill over deadly strikes in Latin America on suspected drug boats and the domestic deployment of the National Guard.
Democrats double down on military message amid death threats
Democratic leadership contacted Capitol Police after Trump’s comments, which House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called “disgusting and dangerous threats.”
In a joint statement, Jeffries, Minority Whip Katherine Clark, D-Mass., and Democratic caucus chair Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., requested Trump “immediately delete these unhinged social media posts and recant his violent rhetoric before he gets someone killed.”
The posts remained up as of Friday morning.
Slotkin told NewsNation her security detail had to be increased after the posts.
“You get a lot of mentally unwell people who can do crazy things … We’ve gotten, I mean, a huge spike in death threats and intimidation on our phones and on our emails and websites,” she said.
In a follow-up statement, the original six lawmakers reiterated their earlier comments after Trump’s response.
The lawmakers said they “swore an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. That oath lasts a lifetime, and we intend to keep it. No threat, intimidation, or call for violence will deter us from that sacred obligation.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the real outrage should be directed toward Democrats for their initial comments, which she said encouraged military members to “defy the president’s lawful orders,” putting the chain of command at risk.