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Slotkin revealed Pirro's office sought interviews with Democratic lawmakers over anti-illegal-orders video

Sen. Elissa Slotkin revealed on January 14, 2026 that Jeanine Pirro, the Trump-appointed U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, had asked to interview her the previous week about a November 2025 video in which she and five other Democratic members of Congress reminded U.S. troops of their duty to refuse illegal orders. Reps. Jason Crow, Maggie Goodlander, and Chrissy Houlahan confirmed to reporters that they received similar interview requests from Pirro's office. The requests followed a November 2025 FBI counterterrorism interview request over the same video and preceded a February 2026 attempt by Pirro's office to indict the same six lawmakers before a grand jury.

Jurisdiction
Federal
Location
Washington, D.C.

Abuses documented

Actors

Sen. Elissa Slotkin publicly revealed on January 14, 2026 that Jeanine Pirro, the Trump-appointed U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, had asked to interview her the previous week about a November 2025 video in which she and five other Democratic members of Congress — Sen. Mark Kelly and Reps. Jason Crow, Maggie Goodlander, Chris Deluzio, and Chrissy Houlahan — reminded U.S. troops of their constitutional obligation to refuse illegal orders. Reporting the same day confirmed that Crow, Goodlander, and Houlahan had also received interview requests from Pirro's office; Pirro's office declined to comment when asked about the requests. Sources did not narrow the exact date the requests were made beyond Slotkin's own description of "last week."

The DOJ/U.S. Attorney's interview requests are a distinct escalation from the FBI counterterrorism division's November 25, 2025 interview request over the same video, already recorded in this archive — a different office taking a further investigative step against the same six lawmakers over the same protected speech. They also preceded, and appear to have set up, a February 10, 2026 attempt by Pirro's office to present a criminal case against all six lawmakers to a federal grand jury, which unanimously declined to find probable cause — also already recorded in this archive.

The video at issue, posted to social media in November 2025, reminded U.S. military and intelligence personnel of their obligation under the Uniform Code of Military Justice to refuse manifestly unlawful orders. President Trump had publicly accused the six lawmakers of committing "seditious" acts over the video before either investigative step began.

Updates

2026-02-05 — Slotkin, Houlahan publicly refused DOJ interview requests, citing intimidation [3]

Sen. Elissa Slotkin and Rep. Chrissy Houlahan publicly declined the U.S. Attorney's Office's interview requests. Slotkin said prosecutors were "using that intimidation to deter others from speaking out against their administration"; Houlahan said "I will not be doing that." Pirro's office declined to comment on the refusals.

Why we recorded this

Investigative escalation against sitting members of Congress for constitutionally protected speech threatens the separation of powers Congress and the courts exist to preserve. After the FBI's counterterrorism division sought interviews with six Democratic lawmakers over a video reminding troops to refuse illegal orders, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia — under Trump appointee Jeanine Pirro — independently sought its own round of interviews with the same lawmakers, deploying federal prosecutorial machinery a second time against the same protected speech. This archive records a further investigative escalation against political critics that preceded, and appears to have set up, Pirro's office's subsequent attempt to indict the same six lawmakers before a grand jury.

Sources

  1. Slotkin says she's under federal investigation over illegal orders video — UPI primary accessed August 31, 2026
  2. DOJ wants interviews with Democrats as part of investigation into lawmakers' 'illegal orders' video — CNN (via ABC17 News) investigative accessed August 31, 2026
  3. Democrats involved in 'illegal orders' video say they won't cooperate with DOJ probe — NBC News primary accessed August 31, 2026

See also