Donald Trump in the White House gardens. Photo: Graeme Sloan/EPA-EFE/file photo.
Six Democratic congresspersons accused of “sedition” last week by US President Donald Trump reported that the president’s statements have triggered death threats, harassment of their families, and a notable increase in the climate of political tension in that country.
The controversy arose after Trump claimed that the lawmakers—all former military or intelligence officials—should be arrested, tried, and even executed. He accused them of “treason” for urging members of the military to disobey illegal orders, in reference to extrajudicial killings in the Caribbean and raids in different US cities.
Representative Jason Crow of Colorado stated during CBS’s Face the Nation program that the threats he has received in recent days have been “very serious,” including bomb threats and death messages directed at him and his family.
The President of the United States just called for my arrest and execution.
In these moments, fear is contagious, but so is courage: pic.twitter.com/QMkRRoUxEn
— Rep. Jason Crow (@RepJasonCrow) November 20, 2025
Crow said that these types of attacks are directly related to presidential rhetoric: “When the President of the United States threatens to execute, hang, and arrest using this rhetoric, people listen,” he warned.
The crisis erupted after the US congresspersons released a video reminding the Armed Forces of their constitutional obligation to reject illegal orders, without specifying which measures they were referring to. This is also a basic principle of international human rights law.
According to the White House, the message constitutes “sedition at the highest level.” However, several legal experts have pointed out that the lawmakers are citing basic principles of US military law.
The context of this conflict is marked by the increasing use of the military in domestic politics since Trump returned to power in January.
The president has ordered military deployments in several cities governed by Democrats, alleging riots, although several federal courts have overturned these decisions as illegal.
Simultaneously, the United States is carrying out its largest military deployment in the Caribbean Sea in decades, pressuring the Venezuelan government and destroying over twenty vessels, alleging without any evidence that they are linked to drug trafficking. These aggressions have left at least 83 people dead.
Senator Elissa Slotkin, another of the lawmakers attacked by Trump, stated that the president is using “the Justice Department as a weapon” and that his goal is to silence any questioning of his military and security policies.
Slotkin emphasized that, since the president’s messages, her office has received a massive increase in hostile calls and direct threats.
Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona also spoke out on the matter, warning that the president’s words are “very serious” given that he possesses “unparalleled weight and influence” over certain radicalized sectors of the population.
Although several lawmakers filed formal complaints with the police, experts agree that it is unlikely they will lead to legal action against Trump.
The president’s offensive rhetoric marks a new escalation in the conflict between the Executive Branch and the Democratic Party legislative opposition. This occurs in a political climate already strained by internal military operations, economic crisis, and sex scandals surrounding Trump’s presidency.
(Telesur)
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SF
