By Ashley Brasfield | The Daily Caller News Foundation
A D.C. grand jury declined to indict six Democratic lawmakers over a video urging military and intelligence officials to reject unlawful orders, torpedoing a prosecution pursued by Trump-appointed U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, according to NBC News.
President Donald Trump had accused the lawmakers of “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!” on Truth Social.
The six legislators in the video were Democrats including New Hampshire Rep. Maggie Goodlander, Colorado Rep. Jason Crow, Pennsylvania Reps. Chris Deluzio and Chrissy Houlahan, Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin and Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly. All previously served in the military or intelligence community, and all refused to cooperate with the Justice Department’s probe.
In the video, the lawmakers argued the Trump administration was turning the armed forces and intelligence community against American citizens. They emphasized that public servants have a duty to reject unlawful commands: “The American people need you to stand up for our laws and our Constitution. Don’t give up the ship.”
Under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, service members must follow lawful orders but are obligated to refuse clearly illegal ones.
Slotkin said on X that Pirro acted at Trump’s direct order, calling the investigation “politicized.” She noted Trump had “repeatedly” called for her to be “investigated, arrested, and hanged for sedition,” adding that “a grand jury of anonymous American citizens upheld the rule of law and determined this case should not proceed.”
The FBI had previously sought interviews with all six lawmakers, and the Pentagon announced in November that it was reviewing Kelly for potential violations of military law over the same video.
Republican North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis, who is leaving Congress at the end of his term, warned that “political lawfare” from either party erodes public trust in the justice system.
“Thankfully in this instance, a jury saw the attempted indictments for what they really were,” he said. “Political lawfare is not normal, not acceptable, and needs to stop.”
The specific charges prosecutors sought remain unclear.
In a related case, a federal judge is expected to rule in the coming days on whether Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth acted lawfully in retaliating against Kelly over his role in the video. Hegseth issued Kelly a formal letter of censure and is pursuing a reduction of his retirement rank from Navy captain.
First published on The Daily Caller
Federal Judge Blocks Trump’s War Department From Punishing ‘Seditious Six’ Lawmaker
By Andi Shae Napier | The Daily Caller News Foundation
A federal judge Thursday blocked Department of War Secretary Pete Hegseth from punishing Democratic Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly over his role in a viral November 2025 video urging U.S. service members to not follow “illegal orders.”
U.S. District Judge Richard Leon — an appointee of former President George W. Bush — issued a preliminary injunction blocking Kelly, a retired Navy captain, from having his military rank demoted and his retirement pay reduced. The decision is the latest rebuff of the Trump administration’s efforts to penalize the six Democrats who participated in the video.
Leon referred to the Pentagon’s efforts as “horsefeathers!” noting the push to punish Kelly is “a troubling development in a free country!”
“This Court has all it needs to conclude that Defendants have trampled on Sen. Kelly’s First Amendment freedoms and threatened the constitutional liberties of millions of military retirees,” Leon wrote. “To say the least, our retired veterans deserve more respect from their Government, and our Constitution demands they receive it!”
This will be immediately appealed.
Sedition is sedition, “Captain.” https://t.co/dKrvhqy1a5
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) February 12, 2026
Kelly told reporters Thursday that the law and constitution were “on my side” and Leon “clearly articulated” Hegseth was attempting to violate the First Amendment rights of millions of retired service members.
“This is not just about me and I’m not fighting because this is just affecting me personally. I’m fighting because there are millions of retired service members, who by the way, I have heard from many of these people that have changed what they say and do because of how this president is acting toward me,” the Arizona Democrat said.
Kelly’s upper chamber colleague, Democratic Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin who was also in the video, told the Daily Caller News Foundation that the judge’s decision was “great” before giving Kelly a quick hug as he spoke to reporters.
“It’s yet another win back to back with the grand jury decision for democracy and free speech, and right now, average citizens and average judges are holding up democracy in a way that our president can’t,” Slotkin told the DCNF.
A Washington, D.C. grand jury on Tuesday rejected the Justice Department’s attempt to indict the six Democrats, who all have military and intelligence experience. Kelly and Slotkin participated in the video alongside House Reps. Jason Crow of Colorado, Chris Deluzio of Pennsylvania and Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire.
“If these fuckers think that they’re going to intimidate us and threaten and bully me into silence, and they’re going to go after political opponents and get us to back down, they have another thing coming,” Crow said on Tuesday following the failed indictment.
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