🔗 Share this article Democrats Denounce Trump After He States They Should Face Death Penalty Lawmakers from the Democratic party demonstrated fury after former President Donald Trump alleged a group of Democratic legislators of being "turncoats" and asserted they should be taken into custody and punished "through capital punishment" following their publication of a disputed video. The Message That Sparked the Debate The video footage, published on earlier this week, features six Democratic congress members who in the past acted in defense or security capacities. "Similar to us, you all took an vow to safeguard and uphold this founding document," the representatives stated in the short video. "At present, the threats to our democratic foundation are not only from abroad, but from right here at home. Our statutes are unambiguous, you can reject unlawful commands, you can reject unlawful commands, you must decline unlawful commands. No one has to execute directives that break the law or our national charter." The Former President's Angry Response The recorded statement seemed to trigger a angry reaction from the previous commander-in-chief. On later in the week, Trump wrote on Truth Social: "This represents SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL. Each one of these turncoats to our Nation should be ARRESTED AND PUT ON TRIAL." In a separate message, he stated: "This constitutes really bad, and Harmful to our United States. Their comments cannot be enabled to stand. SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR FROM TRAITORS!!! LOCK THEM UP???" In a subsequent publication, he stated: "SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, liable by DEATH!" He also reposted a comment that read: "HANG THEM GEORGE WASHINGTON WOULD !!" Democratic Representatives Answer Following Trump's statements on that day, Top Democrats released a joint announcement condemning the comments. "Partisan aggression has no role in America," they wrote. "Elected officials who participated in the video all worked our country with tremendous national pride and honor. We unequivocally condemn Donald Trump's disgusting and harmful calls for execution against elected officials, and appeal to Republican lawmakers to vigorously do the same." The opposition officials also stated that they had been in contact with law enforcement "to guarantee the protection of these representatives and their relatives." "Donald Trump must without delay delete these extreme online messages and recant his aggressive discourse before he causes harm," the statement continued. Lawmakers' Strong Answer The representatives who participated in the video also released a statement. "We are former service members and defense specialists who love this nation and swore an pledge to protect and support the national charter of the United States," they declared. "That oath continues forever, and we aim to maintain it. No intimidation, intimidation, or promotion of aggression will prevent us from that sacred responsibility." "The most revealing aspect is that the president deems it punishable by execution for us to reiterate the legal requirements," they added. "Military personnel should know that we have their support as they fulfill their oath to the constitution and responsibility to adhere to only lawful orders. It is not only the proper thing to do, but also our obligation." They stated: "The entire nation must come together and condemn the president's calls for our death and ideological conflict. This is a moment for principled stance." Additional Governmental Responses The Opposition leader also condemned Trump's statements and shared on online networks: "Let's be crystal clear: the former president is requesting the death of elected officials." He continued: "This constitutes an outright THREAT. Each congressional member, each house member, the entire nation – regardless of party – should denounce this immediately and unconditionally." The Republican House speaker supported Trump's allegation that the Democrats had participated in "treason", characterizing the video as "highly unsuitable", stating: "This represents very dangerous, you have prominent officials of the legislature telling troops to defy commands, I think that represents unprecedented in US history." The Conservative representative also allegedly told media outlets that in what he reviewed of Trump's posts, Trump was "explaining the violation of rebellion" but that "lawyers have to parse the language and decide all that." Administration Response During a administration briefing on Thursday afternoon, when questioned by a reporter, "Does the president want to put to death members of Congress?", the White House press secretary responded: "Absolutely not." "We should understand about what the former president is addressing," the official stated. "We see current representatives of the federal government who worked together to orchestrate a recorded statement to personnel of the American armed forces, to serving soldiers encouraging them to disobey the executive's legal commands." She said: "The purity of our military depends on the chain of command, and if that structure is broken, it can lead to fatalities, it can result in disorder, and that is exactly what these congressional representatives ... are fundamentally promoting."