Retired general blasts Democratic lawmakers' 'irresponsible' video urging troops to refuse 'illegal' orders

Retired Gen. Jack Keane tore into congressional Democrats after a group of lawmakers released a video urging U.S. service members to "refuse illegal orders" from the Trump administration, a message he called "irresponsible," "reckless" and an affront to the military chain of command.

"This is pretty outrageous. I don't have a frame of reference for it whatsoever," Keane said Monday on "America's Newsroom." 

"These are irresponsible, reckless political leaders, and I normally don't go after political leaders in our country, but they deserve it now. They're absolutely undermining the military chain of command."

A group of Democratic lawmakers with military and intelligence backgrounds, including Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich.; Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz.; Rep. Chris Deluzio, D-Pa.; Rep. Maggie Goodlander, D-N.H.; Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-Pa.; and Rep. Jason Crow released a video last Tuesday, urging service members to "refuse illegal orders" while invoking their prior service.

Conservatives blasted the message as a call to defy President Donald Trump and his Secretary of War Pete Hegseth.

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Keane accused the lawmakers of "insulting the intelligence of our soldiers and their moral commitment to serve the nation" with their statements, while echoing criticism that they have been unable to identify an illegal order thus far.

"What is the purpose of doing this? What are they trying to accomplish?" he pressed.

"We've only declared war five times in the history of the nation. The last was World War II, and presidents have acted since that time. Given the powers they have authorized to take action against those who they believe are presenting a security risk to the United States of America, these politicians should stand down and deal with the events in front of them, as opposed to undermining the chain of command."

Keane added that criticizing Trump's policy decisions is certainly allowed, but openly encouraging troops to disobey orders is "disgraceful."

The video came amid Slotkin and her colleagues introducing legislation to limit Trump's ability to deploy National Guard members domestically or launch military action against narco-terrorists without congressional approval.

Slotkin stood by the production over the weekend, telling ABC News host Martha Raddatz that she is not aware of any illegal orders issued by Trump, adding, "but there are certainly some legal gymnastics that are going on with the Caribbean strikes."

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"For us, it was just a statement, widely. We say quickly and to all the folks who come to us, 'This is the process, go to your JAG officer, for explanation… for their view on things.'"

Houlahan said in a statement to Fox News Digital: "Some in the administration and media are actively working to distort that message into something dark or divisive. Let me be absolutely clear: there is nothing more patriotic, nothing more stabilizing and nothing more true to the rule of law than reminding our military of their constitutional obligations and reassuring them that, if they are ever given an unlawful order, they do not have to carry it out."

She added, "Don't Give Up the Ship' is not a slogan of rebellion-it is a historic naval motto that has always stood for steadfastness, duty and loyalty to country. That is the backbone of American civil-military tradition."

Crow, in a statement to "The Ingraham Angle," said, "The president is putting our service members in a very difficult situation. He's sending active-duty troops to police U.S. cities and discussing using our military against the enemy within. We're reminding our service members about what the law and the Uniform Code of Military Justice clearly says, and you have the right and obligation to not carry out illegal orders."

Regarding specific illegal orders made by the Trump administration, Slotkin's office told the show, "When Trump asked [former Secretary of Defense] Mark Esper if he could shoot protesters in the legs."

The Democrats also issued a joint statement responding to Trump's statement on Truth Social, where he threatened the lawmakers with jail time for "seditious behavior."

"No threat, intimidation, or call for violence will deter us from that sacred obligation," they wrote.

Slotkin, Kelly, Deluzio and Goodlander did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's prior requests for comment.

Fox News Digital's Jasmine Baehr contributed to this report.