There is a very thin line between irresponsible rhetoric and mutiny, and six sitting members of Congress came perilously close to crossing it earlier this week. A mutiny doesn’t need to resemble the dramatic Mutiny on the Bounty; it can just as easily take the form of a video urging U.S. military personnel to defy “illegal orders” from their commander in chief.
On Tuesday, six congressional Democrats, each touting their prior military or intelligence service, released a remarkable video calling on troops to refuse what they implied to be President Donald Trump’s unlawful commands. The production had all the hallmarks of a psychological operation lifted straight from the CIA’s playbook. Its purpose was clear: to sow doubt within the ranks and to make service members question the legitimacy of orders delivered through the chain of command. In other words, if your aim is to erode confidence in the current administration, this is exactly how you would do it.
