Members of all branches of the military are bound to obey the lawful orders of their superiors. Article 90 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) is clear:

§890. Art. 90. Willfully disobeying superior commissioned officer Any person subject to this chapter who willfully disobeys a lawful command of that person's superior commissioned officer shall be punished…

In time of war, the punishment is death, otherwise it’s a lesser punishment.  Articles 91 and 92 bind warrant officers and commissioned officers generally.

Few argue with this requirement. Failing to obey orders in peacetime destroys military discipline and cohesion. Failing to instantly obey orders in war does that but also unnecessarily costs lives. 

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A group of Democrat Congressmen and Senators, some veterans, some former spooks, have released a video urging our troops and members of our intelligence agencies to disobey “unlawful orders.” They don’t bother to identify any such orders—they can’t—but claim: "the threats to our Constitution are coming from right here at home."

As always, they’re projecting. They’re the domestic threat.  There has been backlash:

"Elected Democrats just released a video encouraging members of the military to commit treason and defy orders from Trump and Hegseth," wrote the conservative account Libs of TikTok.

Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., added: "At the end of the day, they’re mad the American people chose Trump and now they’re calling on the Military and Intelligence Community to intervene. Sounds a little ‘subversive to democracy’-ish."

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth was on target:

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Yes, they’re behaving treasonously even though their actions would not conform to the text of the treason statute.  They might arguably be guilty of USC 2383—Rebellion or insurrection or USC 2384—Seditious conspiracy but that’s an argument for another time and the courts.

Members of our military, Judge Advocates General excepted, are largely ignorant of the UCMJ. They may know through their training a number of actions or failings to act that violate the UCMJ, but they haven’t a clue about the texts of the UCMJ, of the elements of the crimes therein. They’re also told that they may refuse an unlawful order and therein lies the problem.

It's a problem for civilians too. They can resist an unlawful arrest, but virtually no one knows what comprises an unlawful arrest, and the police may use any force necessary to make a lawful arrest. That, civilian or military, is not the time to argue or resist.

Civilians and members of the military don’t know the law. Citizens don’t know what the police know, why they’re making an arrest. This is particularly so for the military where enlisted personnel don’t know what an NCO or officer giving an order knows. Those NCOs and Officers don’t know what the higher-ranking officers giving them orders know, and particularly in war there isn’t time for lengthy explanations and justifications. Instant obedience is essential if we’re to have a military. A disciplined military under civilian control is necessary if we’re to have a sovereign nation.

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The arrogant fools making that video are actively encouraging our military and intelligence personnel to substitute their uninformed judgement for that of people with greater experience, rank and knowledge. Worse, they’re inciting their political followers to ignore the UCMJ and military and intelligence agency discipline and substitute Democrat, socialist and communist preferences.

They’re encouraging the betrayal of oaths and refusal to obey the lawful orders of the Commander in Chief and his subordinates.

There are surely a great many in our military, stealthily holding those political beliefs and doing what they can to subvert the lawful, constitutional authority of President Trump and SecWar Hegseth.

The congressional traitors did not supply a single example of an unlawful order issued during the second Trump administration, because there have been no such orders. 

Unfortunately, there are likely to be many young, enlisted personnel and young commissioned officers who believe them. There are certainly many high-ranking officers who abandoned the Constitution in favor of DEI initiatives that would get them promoted. It’s not at all unreasonable to suspect those congressional traitors conspired with DEI officers to enact this plot. 

Some young personnel will believe the traitors when they said: “we have your backs.” They’ll imagine they’re protected as DEI cultists, drag queens, pup players and trans troops were. They’ll refuse to obey perfectly lawful orders, and under the Trump military, they’ll destroy their careers and futures.

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Democrats have a feral political intelligence. They’ve now established the precedent of Congressmen asserting our troops can pick and choose which orders to obey and rely on the power of the legislative branch—and a promised packed Supreme Court--to back them. That’s not going to work during Trump II, but the next time a Democrat, Socialist, Communist or even an Islamist takes power, they’ll pick up that precedent and use it to destroy our military and with it, our Constitutional, representative republic.

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Mike McDaniel is a USAF veteran, classically trained musician, Japanese and European fencer, life-long athlete, firearm instructor, retired police officer and high school and college English teacher. He is a published author and blogger. His home blog is Stately McDaniel Manor.