Overview
- In late-night posts on Saturday, President Trump said the six lawmakers “SHOULD BE IN JAIL RIGHT NOW,” days after labeling their video “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH.”
- At least five of the six Democrats reported bomb threats to homes or district offices, prompting police and bomb-squad responses in Michigan, Colorado, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire, with no injuries reported.
- White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the president was not seeking executions and argued the lawmakers were encouraging defiance of lawful orders and endangering the chain of command.
- Military-law scholars and retired JAG officers said the video did not constitute sedition and largely restated the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which requires service members to refuse only manifestly unlawful orders.
- Officials and allies have suggested potential probes of the video, while the lawmakers said they will not be intimidated and blamed the rhetoric for heightening security risks.