Schumer, Jeffries accuse Trump of calling for 'execution of elected officials'

"Their words cannot be allowed to stand," Trump said. "SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR FROM TRAITORS!!! LOCK THEM UP??? President DJT."

He later posted, "SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!" and reposted a user who wrote "HANG THEM GEORGE WASHINGTON WOULD." 

"Every time Donald Trump posts things like this, he makes political violence more likely," Schumer said.

"When Donald Trump uses the language of execution and treason, some of his supporters may very well listen," he continued. "He is lighting a match in a country soaked with political gasoline."

And House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., in a joint statement with his House Democratic leadership team, condemned Trump's "disgusting and dangerous death threats against Members of Congress" and urged House Republicans to follow suit.

"We have been in contact with the House Sergeant-at-Arms and the United States Capitol Police to ensure the safety of these Members and their families," Jeffries said. "Donald Trump must immediately delete these unhinged social media posts and recant his violent rhetoric before he gets someone killed."

The lawmakers said in a joint statement that, "What's most telling is that the president considers it punishable by death for us to restate the law." 

"Our service members should know that we have their backs as they fulfill their oath to the Constitution and obligation to follow only lawful orders," they said. "It is not only the right thing to do, but also our duty."

Republicans and members of the Trump administration pounced on the video, with some demanding that the lawmakers provide specifics.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who wrote letters to all six lawmakers asking specifically what unlawful orders were being made, said that he thought it was, "Despicable," what the group did in their video, but acknowledged that Trump's reaction was "over the top." 

Still, he wanted answers from the cohort of Democrats. 

"What is an unlawful order, what the f--- is it? What have we done," Graham said. 

When asked if Trump wanted to execute members of Congress, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters, "No." 

She argued that Trump was directly responding to the lawmakers' call to encourage service members to "defy the president's lawful orders." 

"The sanctity of our military rests on the chain of command, and if that chain of command is broken, it can lead to people getting killed, it can lead to chaos, and that's what these members of Congress, who swore an oath to abide by the Constitution, are essentially encouraging," Leavitt said. 

The video came on the heels of rising questions among lawmakers about the legality of President Donald Trump's authorization of strikes on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean, and in the wake of the administration's deployment of the National Guard to blue cities across the country.