Sen. Elissa Slotkin's alarm about the National Guard and other federal troops originally stemmed from comments President Donald Trump allegedly made to former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper under his first term. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Slotkin’s alarm about the National Guard and other federal troops originally stemmed from comments Trump allegedly made to former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper under his first term.
"The president in the last administration asked then-secretary (Mark) Esper to send in the 82 Airborne into Washington, D.C. to try to quell peaceful protests here in the city. And he said, if necessary, can’t you just ‘shoot at their legs?’" Slotkin said in a January committee hearing.
Esper recorded those quotes as part of the administration's considerations of how to respond to protests over the death of George Floyd. Floyd's 2020 killing by a Minneapolis police officer sparked nationwide protests and ignited the Black Lives Matter movement.
The quotes were included in Esper’s book, "A Sacred Oath" — a highly critical memoir of the first Trump Administration.
Trump has denied ever making the statement.
FORMER ARMY CAPTAIN WARNS DEMS’ ‘UNPATRIOTIC’ VIDEO TELLING TROOPS TO DEFY ORDERS COULD SPARK CHAOS
A group of Democratic lawmakers with military and intelligence backgrounds, including Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich.; Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz.; Rep. Chris Deluzio, D-Pa.; Rep. Maggie Goodlander, D-N.H.; Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-Pa.; and Rep. Jason Crow released a video directed at service members and intelligence officers stating: "Our laws are clear. You can refuse illegal orders." (Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images; Mark Kelly; Elissa Slotkin; Congress)
Wednesday's shooter’s motives remain unclear.
The FBI has identified him as 29-year-old Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a former member of a counterterrorism team in Afghanistan. He is in custody and faces first-degree murder charges.
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The bureau has described his attack as targeted and are investigating it as an act of terrorism.
Leo Briceno is a politics reporter for the congressional team at Fox News Digital. He was previously a reporter with World Magazine.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/slotkin-goes-silent-when-pressed-past-trump-guard-shooting-claims-after-dc-attack