White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said President Trump does not want to execute the Democratic lawmakers who made a video urging U.S. military members to ignore illegal orders.
The president posted a series of social media posts on Thursday calling the six lawmakers who were in the video “traitors” and said it was “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by death.”
When asked if Mr. Trump wants to execute the lawmakers, Ms. Leavitt said, “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,” she said.
“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,” she said. “It can lead to chaos, and that’s what these members of Congress, who swore an oath to abide by the Constitution, are essentially encouraging.”
Ms. Leavitt said the president wants to see the lawmakers held accountable.
The video posted Tuesday featured Sens. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan and Mark Kelly of Arizona, along with Reps. Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire, Jason Crow of Colorado, and Chris DeLuzio and Chrissy Houlahan, both of Pennsylvania.
Each lawmaker in the video has a military or intelligence background and calls for service members to “refuse illegal orders.”
“They are literally saying to 1.3 million active duty service members to defy the chain of command, not to follow lawful orders,” Ms. Leavitt said. “They’re suggesting that the president has given illegal orders, and he has not.”
In response to the president’s shot across the bow, the lawmakers said in a joint statement, “What’s most telling is that the President considers it punishable by death for us to restate the law. Our service members should know that we have their backs as they fulfill their oath to the Constitution and obligation to follow only lawful orders. It is not only the right thing to do, but also our duty.”
