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Donald Trump has reacted angrily to opposition members calling for U.S. military to disobey ‘illegal’ orders but they argue he is seeking a distraction from inflation crisis and Jeffrey Epstein
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President Donald Trump has ramped up his attacks on Democratic lawmakers who posted a video last week urging members of the Armed Forces to refuse “illegal” orders from his administration.
Trump called for the representatives and senators concerned to be jailed in a pair of late-night Truth Social posts Saturday, accusing them of “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL,” having previously argued that they should face the death penalty.
The president also shared posts on his platform from users referring to the opposition as the “Domestic Terrorist party” and to the lawmakers as “traitorous communists.”
Senators Elissa Slotkin and Mark Kelly have insisted they will not be intimidated while Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has called Trump’s comments “bizarre, erratic and volatile” and questioned his mental health.
Zohran Mamdani has meanwhile said that he still believes that the president is a “fascist” and “despot,” just days after the two politicians enjoyed a surprisingly cordial first meeting at the White House.
“Everything that I’ve said in the past, I continue to believe,” the mayor-elect of New York City told NBC’s Meet the Press Sunday, adding: “I think it is important in our politics that we don’t shy away from where we have disagreements.”
The president appears to be up before 6am ET and is already posting, following up some armchair NFL punditry with speculation about an end to the war in Ukraine, which would indeed be a momentous event should it come to pass.
This is what the president had to say about his Ukrainian counterpart over the weekend, whom he has given until Thursday to respond to his proposals.
This is what our own Dave Brown makes of it all, borrowing from James Gillray’s “The Plumb-Pudding in Danger.”
European leaders spent an anguished weekend chewing over the Trump administration’s proposal to end the war in Ukraine, which, as it stands, would force Kyiv into giving up land while compensating the U.S. for upholding the peace.
The 28-point plan, drawn up following talks between Washington and Moscow, offers a guarantee of American protection for Ukraine but, in return, Volodymyr Zelensky’s country must give up on its Nato ambitions and its allies must agree not to station troops in Ukraine, rebuffing British-led plans to deploy international peacekeepers.
Zelensky said he would work with the U.S. on “their vision” and talks are reportedly due to take place in the last week of this month.
The plan is still only a framework but initial impressions show a proposal leaning heavily in Russia’s favour.
Below, James C Reynolds looks at the details that have been revealed so far.
I’m not sure how practical this is for most people but Scott Bessent pitched it nevertheless on Meet the Press yesterday.
In addition to getting in his excuses early over the tariffs as Americans face up to a costly Thanksgiving under his leadership, the president also uses his most recent post to apply pressure to the U.S. Supreme Court over its upcoming decision on whether or not he has the right to impose them in the first place.
This is what Slotkin, Kelly and Crow had to say in answer to the president’s threats against them on the Sunday shows:
New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who did not appear in the video, was also asked about Trump and said it raises questions about his own mental health, not the actions of the lawmakers:
Good morning!
The president has been attempting to keep the pressure on the Democratic lawmakers, including Elissa Slotkin, Mark Kelly and Jason Crow, who posted a video last week urging U.S. military leaders to disobey any orders from the administration they believe to be illegal.
Trump has largely been waging that war on social media, posting a series of memes to his Truth Social followers to stoke the flames, a representatives selection of which follows:
But even Trump’s fellow Republicans have urged him to cool it.
“If you take at face value the idea that calling your opponents traitors and then specifically saying that it warrants the death penalty is reckless, inappropriate, irresponsible,” Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul told CBS’s Face the Nation Sunday.
“It’s not something that is helping the country heal wounds. I think it stirs things up, and really, I think we can do better.”
“I would tone down the rhetoric and tone down the theme here. I would emphasize more what I discussed, and that is, these orders are not illegal,” agreed Texas Rep. Mike McCaul on ABC’s This Week.
Here’s more from John Bowden.
Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene refuted a Time magazine report claiming the Republican lawmaker privately told her allies she was considering running for president in 2028.
“I’m not running for President and never said I wanted to and have only laughed about it when anyone would mention it,” Greene wrote Sunday on X.
Time cited two unnamed sources who spoke directly with Greene, and three unnamed sources who were familiar with her thinking.
Greene announced Friday she’s resigning from the House at the start of next year amid her growing feud with President Donald Trump.
President Donald Trump claimed Sunday that Chicago residents have been chanting “bring in Trump” as a series of shootings in the Windy City this weekend prompted him to raise the prospect of sending troops into the city.
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