{"id":463933,"date":"2026-02-12T09:42:12","date_gmt":"2026-02-12T09:42:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/463933\/"},"modified":"2026-02-12T09:42:12","modified_gmt":"2026-02-12T09:42:12","slug":"dc-grand-jury-rejects-doj-indictment-of-6-democratic-lawmakers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/463933\/","title":{"rendered":"DC grand jury rejects DOJ indictment of 6 Democratic lawmakers"},"content":{"rendered":"

This story appeared in The Logoff<\/a>, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Welcome to The Logoff: The Trump administration\u2019s latest attempt to go after Democratic lawmakers is falling flat.<\/p>\n

What happened? On Tuesday evening, we learned that a Washington, DC, grand jury had rejected charges sought by the Justice Department against six Democratic lawmakers \u2014 Sens. Mark Kelly and Elissa Slotkin, and Reps. Jason Crow, Maggie Goodlander, Chrissy Houlahan, and Chris Deluzio. Their alleged crime? Filming a video reminding soldiers that they can refuse unlawful orders<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Why does this matter? We don\u2019t know what charges Jeanine Pirro, the US attorney for DC, attempted to bring, but the decision to do so, and the failure to do so successfully, are both remarkable.<\/p>\n

While Trump described the video as \u201cSEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!\u201d in a social media post shortly after it was released, it\u2019s not clear what kind of criminal statute lawmakers could have violated. That said, until recently, it was also incredibly rare for a grand jury to reject charges brought by a prosecutor.<\/p>\n

The DOJ\u2019s dual failures are a pointed reminder that the department, which is traditionally nonpartisan, has become incredibly politicized \u2014 and markedly incompetent.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s the context? The Trump administration has also attempted to punish Kelly, a retired Navy captain, for the video through the military justice system, including threatening a court-martial; currently, it\u2019s trying to reduce his rank and pay.<\/p>\n

And Kelly and the other Democrats aren\u2019t alone in being targeted by Trump\u2019s DOJ. Last year, indictments against both former FBI director James Comey and New York state Attorney General Letitia James were dismissed after a judge concluded the US attorney who brought them was improperly appointed to her role.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s the big picture? Trump has big ambitions for punishing his enemies, and a distinctly flustered Capitol Hill performance by Attorney General Pam Bondi on Wednesday suggests that the pressure is very much still on. But so far, they keep failing \u2014 and that, as my colleague Zack Beauchamp wrote last year<\/a>, is a cheering prospect.<\/p>\n

And with that, it\u2019s time to log off\u2026<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no shortage of great Olympics stories out there right now, but let\u2019s go with figure skating for today, where American Ilia Malinin is doing incredible things on the ice<\/a>. One of the most remarkable, though, is just for kicks: Malinin\u2019s breathtaking full backflip<\/a> is worth no points. He\u2019s doing it anyway, and he\u2019s well on his way to an individual gold medal.<\/p>\n

As always, thanks for reading, have a great evening, and we\u2019ll see you tomorrow!<\/p>\n