The FBI is seeking to interview six Democratic lawmakers who appeared in a recent video and were later accused of sedition. The video urged members of the military and intelligence community not to follow illegal orders, according to a person familiar with the effort.
The outreach, first reported by Fox News, comes days after President Donald Trump accused the group, all veterans of the armed forces or intelligence agencies, of “seditious behavior.”
Details of the inquiry remain unclear. Several lawmakers confirmed they were notified by congressional security officials that the FBI wanted to speak with them.
Four House members featured in the video, Reps. Jason Crow of Colorado, Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire, and Chris Deluzio and Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania, issued a joint statement accusing Trump of weaponizing federal law enforcement.
“President Trump is using the FBI as a tool to intimidate and harass Members of Congress,” they said. “No amount of intimidation or harassment will stop us from doing our jobs and honoring our oath to the Constitution.”
The video also included Democratic Sens. Mark Kelly of Arizona and Elissa Slotkin of Michigan.
U.S. Capitol Police referred inquiries to the FBI. A bureau spokesperson declined to comment.
Justice Department policy requires high-level approval for investigative steps involving sitting members of Congress, in part to shield such cases from political influence. But the Trump administration has largely dismantled the department’s Public Integrity Section, traditionally responsible for overseeing investigations into public officials, leaving only two prosecutors in the unit, down from 36 at the start of Trump’s second term, according to a person familiar with the office.
A spokesperson for Kelly said the senator “won’t be silenced by President Trump and Secretary Hegseth’s attempt to intimidate him.”
The Defense Department announced Monday that it had opened a separate inquiry into Kelly, a retired Navy captain, arguing that he remains subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth followed up Tuesday with a memo directing the secretary of the Navy to report findings by Dec. 10.
The four House Democrats are former service members but are not retired, while Slotkin is a former CIA officer.
Slotkin said on X that she would not allow the FBI review to deter her.
“The president directing the FBI to target us is exactly why we made this video in the first place,” she wrote. “He believes in weaponizing the federal government against his perceived enemies.”
Trump accused the lawmakers of “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!” but later insisted he was “not threatening death.”
Beyond First Amendment concerns, the Constitution’s speech-or-debate clause grants members of Congress immunity for legislative acts, a cornerstone protection designed to preserve the separation of powers.
