Swalwell Claims Military Can Be a ‘Check’ on Trump to ‘Save Us’

In a disturbing escalation of anti-Trump rhetoric, California Democrat Rep. Eric Swalwell claimed this week that members of the U.S. military have told him they can serve as a “check” on President Donald Trump a comment many are calling reckless, unconstitutional, and a threat to civilian control of the military.

Appearing on CNN with Don Lemon, Swalwell referenced the recent controversy surrounding a video in which six Democrat lawmakers including Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly called on service members to “refuse illegal orders” from Trump. The Department of War has since launched a formal review of Kelly’s conduct as a retired Navy officer still subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ).

But Swalwell went even further suggesting that military members could override the Commander-in-Chief based on their personal judgments of what is or isn’t “constitutional.”

“They tell me that I don’t appreciate enough and the public doesn’t appreciate enough that while Congress is not a check on the president anymore, and the judiciary... is hardly a check, military members have told me, ‘We can be a check,’” Swalwell said.

A sitting member of Congress is openly suggesting the U.S. military should serve as a backstop to his political party. This is not oversight. It’s not accountability. It’s a slow-roll endorsement of military insubordination.

Swalwell even went so far as to claim these unnamed service members might be the only thing preventing Trump from destroying the republic:

“They’re essentially saying, ‘We’re not going to betray our oath to the Constitution because this guy tells us to.’ … Their honor and integrity might just save us.”

This is the language of banana republics not constitutional democracies.

Ironically, Swalwell then accused Trump’s administration of “ignoring the Constitution” because they’re defending the clear, nonpartisan principle of civilian control of the military a foundational tenet of American government.

“To me, the only reason you’d go after Mark Kelly if he’s telling soldiers, ‘You don’t have to follow an unlawful order’ and they don’t is if you intend to carry out unlawful orders,” Swalwell claimed.

This is absurd and dangerous. The military already has legal protocols in place for handling unlawful orders. It doesn’t need partisan politicians or former CIA analysts whispering paranoia into the ranks to destabilize command.

And Swalwell wasn’t alone. Fellow Democrat Sen. Ruben Gallego warned on CNN that military members who support an investigation into Mark Kelly could face “consequences” later:

“If you’re part of the military that is going after sitting senators... there will be consequences, without a doubt.”

That sounds an awful lot like intimidation from an elected official.

Here’s the bottom line: Democrats like Swalwell and Gallego are normalizing the idea of military disobedience not because of any illegal orders, but because they personally dislike Donald Trump. That’s not just unconstitutional. It’s bordering on insurrectionist logic.

In America, presidents are elected by the people. Military leaders don’t get to decide whose orders they feel like following based on which party is in power. That’s a dictatorship not a democracy.

If Swalwell’s comments don’t raise alarm bells, they should. This is an attack on civilian control of the military, all dressed up in the language of “saving democracy.”

Share this article and subscribe to our newsletter to stay informed as Democrats keep crossing the lines they claim to defend.