Washington
Dems say Trump is investigating them over video message to military members
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democratic lawmakers who appeared in a video urging members of the military to resist “illegal orders” confirmed Wednesday that they are under investigation from the Trump administration, a remarkable step by the Justice Department that comes after the president accused the lawmakers of sedition for their words.
The four House members and two senators all previously served in the military or at intelligence agencies. The FBI contacted them for interviews late last year, after their 90-second video was released, and now say they have been contacted by the U.S. attorney’s office for the District of Columbia, a significant escalation in the investigation.
Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, a former CIA analyst, first revealed the outreach from prosecutors in an interview with The New York Times. On Wednesday she posted a video on her X account saying the office of U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, the chief federal prosecutor in the nation’s capital, reached out last week asking to interview her.
“This is the president’s playbook. Truth doesn’t matter. Facts don’t matter. And anyone who disagrees with him becomes an enemy,” Slotkin said. “And he then weaponizes the federal government against them. It’s legal intimidation and physical intimidation meant to get you to shut up.”
Pirro’s office said it would neither confirm nor deny whether an investigation is taking place.
Democratic Reps. Jason Crow of Colorado, Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania and Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire also confirmed Wednesday that they have been contacted by Pirro’s office.
“They would like to sit down with us,” Houlahan told reporters. “And to my knowledge, each one of us have received the same email and outreach.”
The House members remained defiant, with Crow saying the Trump administration “picked the wrong people.”
“It is downright dangerous that the Justice Department is targeting me for doing my job,” Goodlander said in a statement. “These threats will not deter, distract, intimidate, or silence me.”
The lawmakers attracted President Donald Trump’s wrath with a video that he and his aides have labeled as “seditious” — an offense Trump said on his social media account was “punishable by death.”
It is not clear what laws could have been violated in the video message. In it, the lawmakers tell troops to follow established military protocols by not following commands that violate the law. They said the administration “is pitting our uniformed military against American citizens” and they called for service members to “stand up for our laws.”
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said Wednesday that “these members of Congress did not violate the law” and that Democrats “stand firmly behind them.”
The Pentagon swiftly went after Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona, a former Navy pilot who represents Arizona, for his participation in the video.
In November, the Pentagon opened an investigation into him, citing a federal law that allows retired service members to be recalled to active duty on orders of the defense secretary for possible court-martial or other punishment. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has censured Kelly for participating. Hegseth is attempting to retroactively demote Kelly from his retired rank of captain.
The senator is suing Hegseth to block those proceedings, calling them an unconstitutional act of retribution.
“The First Amendment forbids the government and its officials from punishing disfavored expression or retaliating against protected speech,” his lawsuit says.
Wisconsin
Liberal Supreme Court candidate raises 10 times more than conservative
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Democratic-backed candidate for Wisconsin Supreme Court raised 10 times as much last year as her Republican-endorsed opponent, putting in stark relief the challenge conservatives face in winning the race in the battleground state.
The reports filed this week offer the first glimpse at one key measurement of how the race to be decided on April 7 is stacking up. Liberals, who captured the majority in 2023, are optimistic they can win their fourth Supreme Court race in a row dating back to 2020 and solidify their hold on the court for years.
The winner is elected to a 10-year term on the state’s highest court, with several hot-button issues pending including challenges to congressional district maps and the future of a state law that effectively ended collective bargaining for most public workers. The next justice will be on the court in the lead-up to the November midterm election where Wisconsin voters will elect a new governor and decide who controls the state Legislature.
Liberals have struck down a state abortion ban law and ordered new legislative maps since taking control of the court, fueling Democrats’ hopes of capturing a majority this November.
The Democratic-backed candidate is state Appeals Court Judge Chris Taylor, who spent 10 years as a Democratic state lawmaker. She faces the Republicans choice, fellow state Appeals Court Judge Maria Lazar, a former prosecutor in the state attorney general’s office.
Taylor on Wednesday said she raised about $2 million in the last half of 2025, for a total of $2.6 million for the year. Lazar said she raised $200,000 since she got into the race in October. Taylor launched her candidacy in May.
Lazar’s campaign downplayed the disparity.
“We knew starting in October put us behind the fundraising clock, but we aren’t running a traditional, consultant-driven campaign,” Lazar campaign spokesperson Nathan Conrad said in a statement. “While our opponent relies on a $2 million head start from the same old political machines, Judge Lazar is building a new style of campaign.”
Conrad said Lazar is focused on independent voters who feel disenfranchised “and those who simply want a judge who follows the law, not a political agenda.”
Taylor’s fundraising shows that no one is taking the race for granted given the record-breaking spending on last year’s Supreme Court race, her campaign manager Ashley Franz said.
The 2025 race, won by liberal Susan Crawford, shattered national fundraising records for a judicial election, with billionaire Elon Musk spending millions on the conservative candidate. Crawford’s win maintained the liberals’ 4-3 majority on the court. If Taylor wins, that will increase to 5-2 and give liberals the majority until at least 2030, barring any resignations that trigger a special election.
Taylor and Lazar are running for an open seat caused by the retirement of a conservative justice.
Taylor’s fundraising at this point is similar to Crawford’s. Last January, Crawford reported raising $2.4 million, but that included $1 million from the Wisconsin Democratic Party. Taylor’s campaign said she will not report receiving any funding from the state Democratic Party.
Dems say Trump is investigating them over video message to military members
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democratic lawmakers who appeared in a video urging members of the military to resist “illegal orders” confirmed Wednesday that they are under investigation from the Trump administration, a remarkable step by the Justice Department that comes after the president accused the lawmakers of sedition for their words.
The four House members and two senators all previously served in the military or at intelligence agencies. The FBI contacted them for interviews late last year, after their 90-second video was released, and now say they have been contacted by the U.S. attorney’s office for the District of Columbia, a significant escalation in the investigation.
Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, a former CIA analyst, first revealed the outreach from prosecutors in an interview with The New York Times. On Wednesday she posted a video on her X account saying the office of U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, the chief federal prosecutor in the nation’s capital, reached out last week asking to interview her.
“This is the president’s playbook. Truth doesn’t matter. Facts don’t matter. And anyone who disagrees with him becomes an enemy,” Slotkin said. “And he then weaponizes the federal government against them. It’s legal intimidation and physical intimidation meant to get you to shut up.”
Pirro’s office said it would neither confirm nor deny whether an investigation is taking place.
Democratic Reps. Jason Crow of Colorado, Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania and Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire also confirmed Wednesday that they have been contacted by Pirro’s office.
“They would like to sit down with us,” Houlahan told reporters. “And to my knowledge, each one of us have received the same email and outreach.”
The House members remained defiant, with Crow saying the Trump administration “picked the wrong people.”
“It is downright dangerous that the Justice Department is targeting me for doing my job,” Goodlander said in a statement. “These threats will not deter, distract, intimidate, or silence me.”
The lawmakers attracted President Donald Trump’s wrath with a video that he and his aides have labeled as “seditious” — an offense Trump said on his social media account was “punishable by death.”
It is not clear what laws could have been violated in the video message. In it, the lawmakers tell troops to follow established military protocols by not following commands that violate the law. They said the administration “is pitting our uniformed military against American citizens” and they called for service members to “stand up for our laws.”
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said Wednesday that “these members of Congress did not violate the law” and that Democrats “stand firmly behind them.”
The Pentagon swiftly went after Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona, a former Navy pilot who represents Arizona, for his participation in the video.
In November, the Pentagon opened an investigation into him, citing a federal law that allows retired service members to be recalled to active duty on orders of the defense secretary for possible court-martial or other punishment. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has censured Kelly for participating. Hegseth is attempting to retroactively demote Kelly from his retired rank of captain.
The senator is suing Hegseth to block those proceedings, calling them an unconstitutional act of retribution.
“The First Amendment forbids the government and its officials from punishing disfavored expression or retaliating against protected speech,” his lawsuit says.
Wisconsin
Liberal Supreme Court candidate raises 10 times more than conservative
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Democratic-backed candidate for Wisconsin Supreme Court raised 10 times as much last year as her Republican-endorsed opponent, putting in stark relief the challenge conservatives face in winning the race in the battleground state.
The reports filed this week offer the first glimpse at one key measurement of how the race to be decided on April 7 is stacking up. Liberals, who captured the majority in 2023, are optimistic they can win their fourth Supreme Court race in a row dating back to 2020 and solidify their hold on the court for years.
The winner is elected to a 10-year term on the state’s highest court, with several hot-button issues pending including challenges to congressional district maps and the future of a state law that effectively ended collective bargaining for most public workers. The next justice will be on the court in the lead-up to the November midterm election where Wisconsin voters will elect a new governor and decide who controls the state Legislature.
Liberals have struck down a state abortion ban law and ordered new legislative maps since taking control of the court, fueling Democrats’ hopes of capturing a majority this November.
The Democratic-backed candidate is state Appeals Court Judge Chris Taylor, who spent 10 years as a Democratic state lawmaker. She faces the Republicans choice, fellow state Appeals Court Judge Maria Lazar, a former prosecutor in the state attorney general’s office.
Taylor on Wednesday said she raised about $2 million in the last half of 2025, for a total of $2.6 million for the year. Lazar said she raised $200,000 since she got into the race in October. Taylor launched her candidacy in May.
Lazar’s campaign downplayed the disparity.
“We knew starting in October put us behind the fundraising clock, but we aren’t running a traditional, consultant-driven campaign,” Lazar campaign spokesperson Nathan Conrad said in a statement. “While our opponent relies on a $2 million head start from the same old political machines, Judge Lazar is building a new style of campaign.”
Conrad said Lazar is focused on independent voters who feel disenfranchised “and those who simply want a judge who follows the law, not a political agenda.”
Taylor’s fundraising shows that no one is taking the race for granted given the record-breaking spending on last year’s Supreme Court race, her campaign manager Ashley Franz said.
The 2025 race, won by liberal Susan Crawford, shattered national fundraising records for a judicial election, with billionaire Elon Musk spending millions on the conservative candidate. Crawford’s win maintained the liberals’ 4-3 majority on the court. If Taylor wins, that will increase to 5-2 and give liberals the majority until at least 2030, barring any resignations that trigger a special election.
Taylor and Lazar are running for an open seat caused by the retirement of a conservative justice.
Taylor’s fundraising at this point is similar to Crawford’s. Last January, Crawford reported raising $2.4 million, but that included $1 million from the Wisconsin Democratic Party. Taylor’s campaign said she will not report receiving any funding from the state Democratic Party.
