The FBI is trying to schedule interviews with the six Democratic members of Congress who recorded a video saying that troops should not obey any illegal orders, according to multiple sources familiar with the situation.
The FBI would conduct these interviews on behalf of the Justice Department, and it is unclear when they would take place amid the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, the sources said.
Democratic Sen. Elissa Slotkin, one of six Democratic lawmakers who appear in the video, said that “the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division appeared to open an investigation” into her.
The seal of the Federal Bureau of Investigation is seen at FBI headquarters in Washington, June 14, 2018.
Yuri Gripas/Reuters
“The president who ordered the FBI to attack us is exactly the reason we made this video in the first place. He believes in weaponizing the federal government against its perceived enemies and doesn’t believe the laws apply to him or his cabinet. He uses legal harassment as an intimidation tactic to scare people from speaking,” Slotkin said in a post on X on Tuesday.
“This is not just a video. This is not the America I know, and I will not let this next step by the FBI stop me from defending my country and our Constitution,” Slotkin added.
Separately, on Tuesday, a CIA spokesman issued a statementattacking Slotkin, saying he joins “the ranks of disgraced former intelligence officers” who use credentials to “promote a malicious and false political agenda.”
The statement goes on to say: “While the intelligence community has nothing comparable to the Uniform Code of Military Justice, “Former officers must remember the oath and commitment they made while serving in the CIA and conduct themselves accordingly, even long after they leave.”
In an interview on ABC News’ “This Week,” Slotkin said lawmakers released the video because officials had approached them directly with their concerns. However, when asked if he believed the president had issued any illegal orders, Slotkin said: “As far as I know, I’m not aware of things that are illegal, but there are certainly some legal tricks going on with these attacks in the Caribbean and everything related to Venezuela.”
The offices of the House Democrats seen in the video also issued a statement to ABC News confirming the FBI’s attempt to schedule interviews, saying the president is “using the FBI as a tool to intimidate and harass members of Congress.”
“No intimidation or harassment will ever stop us from doing our job and honoring our Constitution. We took an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. That oath lasts a lifetime and we intend to keep it. We will not be intimidated. We will never abandon ship,” House Democrats said in a statement.
in an interview which was broadcast on X On Monday, FBI Director Kash Patel said career analysts and agents will make any determination about Democratic lawmakers who urged members of the military to disobey illegal orders, when asked for his reaction to the matter.
“Is there a legal basis to open an investigation or not? And that decision will be made by career agents and analysts here at the FBI,” Patel said in the interview.
When asked if the FBI was involved, Patel said, “based on As for the fact that it’s an ongoing matter, there’s not much I can say.”
The US Capitol Police referred questions to the FBI, which declined to comment.
The development was first reported by Fox News.
President Donald Trump has previously accused these members of Congress of “seditious behavior.”
Senator Mark Kelly speaks during the Harris-Walz campaign’s election eve rally and concert in Phoenix, Arizona, on November 4, 2024.
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images
“I’m not threatening death, but I think they’re in serious trouble. In the old days, it was death… That was seditious behavior, that was a big deal. You know, nothing’s a big deal, it’s a different world today,” Trump said last week.
News of the FBI’s attempt to schedule these interviews comes after the Pentagon announced it would launch a “comprehensive review” of Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly, one of six members of Congress who appear in the video.
“The military already has clear procedures for handling illegal orders. It does not need political actors to inject doubt into an already clear chain of command,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday.
On Monday, Hegseth called the six Democrats in the video the “Seditious Six” but explained why the investigation is focused solely on Kelly.
“Five of the six individuals in that video do not fall under [Defense Department] jurisdiction (one is from the CIA and four are ex-military but not “retired”, so they are no longer subject to the UCMJ). However, Mark Kelly (retired Navy Commander) is still subject to the UCMJ, and he knows it,” Hegseth posted on X.
In response to the FBI scheduling interviews with those in the video, Kelly’s office said the Arizona senator “will not be silenced.”
“Senator Kelly will not be silenced by President Trump and Secretary Hegseth’s attempt to intimidate him and prevent him from doing his job as a United States Senator,” according to a statement from Kelly’s office.
