AP Photo/Paul Sancya, Pool
Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) said the Department of Justice is investigating her for participating in a video that urged U.S. service members and intelligence officials to “refuse illegal orders,” The New York Times reported on Tuesday.
Slotkin, a former CIA officer, told the Times she learned of the probe when U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s office requested to speak with her or her attorney.
In November, Slotkin and five other Democratic members of Congress who served in the armed services or the intelligence community appeared in a video calling on those in their former professions to refuse unlawful commands.
The other Democrats in the video were Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-PA), Rep. Maggie Goodlander (D-NH), Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO), and Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA). They served in the Navy, Army, Air Force, and Central Intelligence Agency.
“You can refuse illegal orders. You must refuse illegal orders,” they said.
In response, President Donald Trump melted down and claimed the lawmakers were guilty of “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH.”
Last week, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth stripped Kelly of his military rank over the video. On Monday, Kelly announced he is suing Hegseth.
“A spokesman for Ms. Pirro’s office declined to confirm or deny any investigation, and it is unclear exactly what officials have identified as a possible crime related to the video,” the Times said of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
Pirro, a former Fox News host whose ex-husband was given a last-minute pardon by Trump in 2021, has shown a willingness to probe Trump’s political foes. On Sunday, the Times reported that her office opened a criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Trump has repeatedly criticized Powell for not drastically cutting interest rates. In recent months, Trump has accused the chair of mismanaging the renovations to the Fed’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., and misleading Congress about them.
CNN reported on Tuesday night that the White House has become frustrated with Pirro over the Powell investigation, which supposedly “blindsided” officials, according to four sources familiar with the matter. White House officials and Republican lawmakers have faced a barrage of questions about the probe over the last two days. Some have even defended Powell.
