U.S. Senator Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) said in a recent ABC interview that she is not aware of any illegal orders issued by former President Trump — a notable admission, given her participation in a video urging service members to refuse orders they believe violate the law.
In the ABC “This Week” exchange, host Martha Raddatz pressed Slotkin: “Do you believe President Trump has issued any illegal orders?” Slotkin responded, “To my knowledge, I am not aware of things that are illegal,” while also expressing concern about what she called “legal gymnastics” around Trump’s military strikes in the Caribbean and Venezuelan waters.
Slotkin has been at the center of controversy after she joined five other veteran lawmakers in a video telling intelligence and military personnel: “You can refuse illegal orders. You must refuse illegal orders.” Critics — including former President Trump — labeled the message “seditious behavior,” and Trump called for their arrest over it.
Slotkin defended her stance, saying that she and her colleagues were reasserting a constitutional principle. In a joint response to Trump’s backlash, she said:
“We are veterans … who swore an oath to protect and defend the Constitution … We intend to keep it. No threat, intimidation … will deter us from that sacred obligation.”
As the debate intensifies, legal experts note that while service members are obligated to obey lawful orders, they also have a duty to disobey manifestly unlawful ones, according to the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
Trump’s aggressive response has also raised concerns about how political rhetoric intersects with military norms. Several veterans have publicly criticized his calls for arrest, warning that labeling refusal to obey illegal orders as “sedition” could dangerously politicize the military.
Lawmakers and analysts are now watching to see whether this clash prompts formal congressional or legal action — or whether it will escalate tensions between civilians, the military, and political leaders.
