Elias Weiss
Audio By Carbonatix
On Tuesday, Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly joined several other Democratic lawmakers to make a video directed at America’s servicemembers. Donald Trump didn’t like it.
“I was a captain in the United States Navy,” Kelly says in the video, his comments intercut with those from other lawmakers. “We want to speak directly to members of the military.”
The lawmakers in the video go on to acknowledge the stress under which members of the military and intelligence community work. “Like us, you all swore an oath,” Kelly says, before other lawmakers note that threats against the Constitution are coming from within the country. “Our laws are clear: You can refuse illegal orders.”
The video ends with the lawmakers repeating the phrase “Don’t give up the ship,” which were the dying commands of a U.S. Navy officer during the War of 1812.
This year, make your gift count –
Invest in local news that matters.
Our work is funded by readers like you who make voluntary gifts because they value our work and want to see it continue. Make a contribution today to help us reach our $30,000 goal!
Kelly was joined in the video by Sen. Elissa Slotkin, Rep. Jason Crow, Rep. Maggie Goodlander, Rep. Chris Deluzio and Rep. Chrissy Houlahan — all of whom have served in the military or in the intelligence services.
Let’s just say the message has, uh, not sat well with President Trump. On his social media site, Truth Social, Trump has railed against the lawmakers in increasingly aggressive ways. He’s called for the six Democrats to be indicted and claimed they’re guilty of sedition. “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!” he posted on Thursday morning. He also reposted a user who wrote, “HANG THEM GEORGE WASHINGTON WOULD !!”
A rather bellicose response to a video whose message essentially amounts to “Don’t break the law.” On social media, Kelly called attention to Trump’s violent response.
“I’ve had a missile blow up next to my airplane, been shot at dozens of times by anti-aircraft fire, and launched into orbit — all for my country,” Kelly wrote. “I never thought I’d see a President call for my execution. Trump doesn’t understand the Constitution, and we’re all less safe for it.”
Kelly also posted a joint statement from the six lawmakers:
It’s not hard to see why the lawmakers’ warning might be necessary. Trump has repeatedly deployed federal agents and the National Guard to Democratic-leaning cities, often over the objection of state officials. Though Trump has claimed the troops are needed to fight crime, in practice, they’ve committed rampant rights abuses, violently going after minority communities and immigrants. Federal judges around the country have ruled that the National Guard deployments are illegal.
This is not the first time someone in Trump’s orbit has come after Kelly. In March, Elon Musk called Kelly a “traitor” for visiting Ukraine. Kelly responded by selling his Tesla.
