Senator Mark Kelly on Sunday urged congressional Republicans to publicly condemn Donald Trump’s threats against him and five other Democratic lawmakers. The former president’s remarks came after the group released a video reminding military personnel that they are not obligated to follow illegal commands.
“We’ve heard very little, basically crickets, from Republicans in the United States Congress about what the president has said about hanging members of Congress,” the Arizona senator said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” He noted that Trump and other Republicans had previously asked Democrats to moderate their language, asking, “What happened to that?”
The controversy began after Kelly and five other Democratic members of Congress, all with military or intelligence backgrounds, posted a video to X. Directed at active-duty service members, it stated, “Our laws are clear. You can refuse illegal orders.”
Trump reacted on social media Thursday, writing that the lawmakers should be tried for “seditious behavior.” In a subsequent post, he declared the behavior “punishable by DEATH!” and reposted a message that read, “HANG THEM, GEORGE WASHINGTON WOULD!”
Kelly said Trump’s words carry “tremendous weight” and have led to increased threats against the lawmakers. “He’s trying to intimidate us,” Kelly added. “I’m not going to be intimidated.”
Other prominent Democrats also condemned the president’s rhetoric. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Whip Katherine Clark, and Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar issued a joint statement asserting that “political violence has no place in America.” On NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Senator Amy Klobuchar called Trump’s posts “dangerous,” stating, “What is dangerous is the president of the United States threatening these members of Congress with death.”
In contrast, Vice President JD Vance posted on X in defense of Trump. “If the president hasn’t issued illegal orders,” Vance wrote, “then members of Congress telling the military to defy the president is by definition illegal.”
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