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Newsom Accuses Trump of Demanding Lawmakers Executed Over Military Video
A controversy unfolded this week when several Democratic members of Congress, all with military backgrounds, released a video reminding active-duty service members of their solemn oath to the Constitution and their legal duty to refuse unlawful orders. The lawmakers involved included Senator Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona, and Representative Jason Crow of Colorado, among others. Their message restated a fundamental principle of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which has governed American forces for decades and makes clear that troops are not obligated to follow commands that violate the law.
The video appeared at a time of heightened political tension, with concerns lingering about the potential misuse of military authority. Within days, President Donald Trump responded on Truth Social with sharp condemnation. In one post, he suggested the lawmakers might deserve arrest, writing “LOCK THEM UP???” In a follow-up message, he described their actions in all capitals as “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!”
Trump also reportedly reposted a comment from a supporter that read, “HANG THEM GEORGE WASHINGTON WOULD!!” The original comment appeared to refer directly to the Democratic lawmakers featured in the video.
California Governor Gavin Newsom quickly highlighted these posts on X, sharing screenshots and declaring that the president had effectively called for the death of elected officials who had criticized him. In one post, Newsom wrote, “The President of the United States of America just called for the death of Democratic lawmakers.” He added in another, “This man is sick in the head.”
Newsom’s accusation centers on the idea that Trump explicitly demanded execution. Yet the president’s own words, while extraordinarily inflammatory, stopped short of that precise phrasing. Trump labeled the video seditious and noted that such conduct can carry the death penalty under federal law, but he did not write “execute these lawmakers” or issue a direct order or personal demand for their deaths. The closest thing to an explicit call for hanging came in the supporter’s post that Trump reposted. On platforms like Truth Social and X, reposting is widely understood as amplification or endorsement, though Trump has occasionally reposted extreme content from followers without later confirming he agreed with every word.
Sedition itself is a serious charge. The relevant statutes, including seditious conspiracy under 18 U.S.C. § 2384 and treason under § 2381, do allow for capital punishment in extreme cases, but only after trial and conviction. Legal experts across the spectrum have pointed out that restating the military’s duty to refuse illegal orders is not sedition; it is, in fact, part of the training every service member receives. The lawmakers’ video contained no incitement to mutiny, no call for violence, and no conspiracy against the government. It was a straightforward recitation of existing law.
The episode has alarmed observers who see Trump’s language as another instance of a political leader invoking the specter of capital punishment against domestic opponents. Even if the words were not a literal directive to carry out executions, the combination of declaring an action “punishable by death” and then reposting “HANG THEM” created the clear impression, for many, that the president wanted these lawmakers to face execution. That impression is precisely what Governor Newsom seized upon and broadcast.
In the end, Trump’s posts were menacing and reckless. They were not, however, the direct, personal command to execute named individuals that Newsom described. The distinction matters, because precision matters when the charge is that the president of the United States openly demanded the killing of members of Congress. The rhetoric was authoritarian in tone and dangerous in effect, but it fell just short of the explicit call Newsom attributed to him.
The episode serves as a stark reminder of how quickly political discourse can slide into threats of violence, and how carefully words must be weighed when they come from the highest office in the land.
