Senator Rand Paul Criticizes President Trump Over Calling Democrats Traitors

What Happened?

Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky criticized President Trump’s recent comments that Democrats were traitors for posting a video saying that members of the U.S. military were not obligated to follow illegal orders. On CBS Face the Nation, Senator Paul described President Trump’s comments as ‘reckless, inappropriate, and irresponsible.’

The comments in question came from a social media post made by President Trump, where he accused several Congressional Democrats of sedition, then added in all caps that sedition is punishable by death. All the Democratic lawmakers in the video in question are veterans of the U.S. military. 

Why it Matters

Several members of Congress, including U.S. Senator Mark Kelly, who is a Navy veteran and former astronaut, posted a video intended for members of the U.S. armed forces, telling them that they were not required to obey illegal orders. The video did not cite any specific orders as illegal but rather discussed the topic in a general sense. There have been no reported instances of members of the U.S. military disobeying orders from the current administration because they believed them to be illegal.

After commenting on the Democrat’s video, President Trump made a post on Truth Social that said ‘Seditious Behavior, punishable by death’ with death in all caps. Democrats then accused the president of threatening them, which he denied. Over-the-top political rhetoric has been a staple of American history for over two hundred years, and during that time, a countless number of insults, veiled threats, and invectives have been hurled by politicians of all stripes against each other. The comments made by President Trump will likely take their place as among the most troubling ever.

At the heart of the dispute is the issue of the chain of command and how the U.S. military operates. Enlisted members take an oath of obedience, which includes a provision to obey the orders of the President. But officers take an oath of loyalty to the Constitution, not of obedience to any one individual. There is a plaque on the wall of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point which reads, ‘should orders and the law ever conflict, officers must obey the law.’ The law being referred to is the U.S. Constitution. 

Many countries throughout history have suffered military coups because the armed forces pledged their allegiance to a single individual, but the United States never has. The United States military broke from traditional one-man rule by making the Constitution the supreme authority by which they are commanded. As Thomas Jefferson once explained for putting checks in place to guard against potential misuse of the military, ‘the temptation is too great for any one man.’

How it Affects You

The Uniform Code of Military Justice states that members of the armed forces cannot be compelled by order to commit a crime or to engage in criminal activity. Military members know that because they receive annual training on the subject. Congress reminding members of the armed forces of what they already know and believe in constitutes no crime, least of all sedition.