The week ended with new criminal charges, sharp political accusations, drilling expansions, and major court rulings.
Trump’s 44th week ended with threats of political violence, resignations, indictments, Supreme Court rulings, and economic developments. Backlash formed after Trump accused six Democratic lawmakers of “seditious behavior, punishable by death,” after they made a video encouraging members of the military to follow the law, sparking concerns as a report detailed the U.S. Coast Guard no longer considering nooses, swastikas, and Confederate flags as hate symbols. The U.S. Coast Guard later denied the report and emphasized that “divisive or hate symbols and flags are prohibited.” Meanwhile, Marjorie Taylor Greene announced she is resigning from Congress, raising implications for the former Trump ally as the midterm elections approach.
The Trump administration later proposed allowing oil drilling to occur in California and Florida through 2031, leading to backlash from California Gov. Gavin Newsom. At the same time, Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick was indicted over allegations of stealing funds from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Following a previous report from The Introspective detailing federal judges blocking Texas’ new congressional map on allegations of racial gerrymandering, the Supreme Court later allowed Texas to use the new map, blocking the previous ruling. At the same time, as the National Guard deployment in Washington, D.C., continues, U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb ruled that Trump’s unprecedented takeover violates federal law.
Meanwhile, a report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) found that 119,000 jobs were added in September, despite a previous report from The Introspective detailing data finding that companies have announced more than 1.1 million layoffs so far this year—the highest number since the Great Recession—with 153,074 job cuts announced in October alone.
Political Tensions, Coast Guard, and MTG
President Trump called for Sens. Elissa Slotkin and Mark Kelly, and Reps. Jason Crow, Chrissy Houlahan, Maggie Goodlander, and Chris Deluzio to be arrested and face trial after they made a video encouraging military members to follow the law.
“It’s called SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“Each one of these traitors to our Country should be ARRESTED AND PUT ON TRIAL. Their words cannot be allowed to stand — we won’t have a Country anymore!!! An example MUST BE SET.”
He later called for the lawmakers to face death in a separate post.
“SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!” he wrote.
The video featured Slotkin—who previously worked at the CIA and the Department of Defense—warning members that they can refuse “illegal orders.”
“This administration is pitting our uniformed military and intelligence community professionals against American citizens. Like us, you all swore an oath to protect and defend this Constitution,” the lawmakers said in the video.
“Right now, the threats coming to our Constitution aren’t just coming from abroad but from right here at home. Our laws are clear. You can refuse illegal orders. You must refuse illegal orders,” they continued.
“No one has to carry out orders that violate the law or our Constitution.”
In a joint statement by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Minority Whip Katherine Clark and Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar, the three criticized Trump’s comments as “disgusting and dangerous death threats” and called for him to delete his Truth Social posts.
“Donald Trump incited a violent attack on the Capitol on January 6th as part of a treacherous attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election,” they wrote.
“The President’s violent and unhinged rhetoric against American patriots is consistent with his well-documented history of attacking prisoners of war, Gold Star families and war heroes. There is no bottom when it comes to Donald Trump.”
In a separate statement from Slotkin along with the other five lawmakers, they said that “no threat, intimidation, or call for violence” would interfere with them defending the Constitution.
“What’s most telling is that the President considers it punishable by death for us to restate the law,” they wrote.
“Our servicemembers should know that we have their backs as they fulfill their oath to the Constitution and obligation to follow only lawful orders. It is not only the right thing to do, but also our duty.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump was not calling for members of Congress to be killed, while stating that the lawmakers in the video were “encouraging [service members] to defy the president’s lawful orders.”
“Let’s be clear about what the president is responding to, because many in this room want to talk about the president’s response but not what brought the president to responding in this way,” she said.
“You have sitting members of the United States Congress who conspired together to orchestrate a video message to members of the United States military, to active-duty service members, to members of the national security apparatus, encouraging them to defy the president’s lawful orders,” she added, saying that Democrats “knew exactly what they were doing” with the video.
“To signal to people serving under this commander in chief, Donald Trump, that you can defy him and you can betray your oath of office, that is a very, very dangerous message,” she said.
“And it perhaps is punishable by law. I’m not a lawyer. I’ll leave that to the Department of Justice and the Department of War to decide.”
This comes as a report from The Washington Post detailed the U.S. Coast Guard no longer considering symbols such as nooses, swastikas and Confederate flags as hate symbols, with the symbols being considered “potentially divisive.”
“We don’t deserve the trust of the nation if we’re unclear about the divisiveness of swastikas,” said a Coast Guard official in the report, calling the new policy “chilling.”
The Coast Guard later denied the report, calling it “categorically false.”
“The claims that the U.S. Coast Guard will no longer classify swastikas, nooses or other extremist imagery as prohibited symbols are categorically false. These symbols have been and remain prohibited in the Coast Guard per policy,” Acting Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Kevin Lunday said in an X post.
“The Coast Guard remains unwavering in its commitment to fostering a safe, respectful and professional workplace. Symbols such as swastikas, nooses and other extremist or racist imagery violate our core values and are treated with the seriousness they warrant under current policy.”
The Coast Guard later released a new policy stating that “divisive or hate symbols and flags are prohibited,” adding that it includes “a noose, a swastika, and any symbols or flags co-opted or adopted by hate-based groups.”
Coast Guard New Policy
Meanwhile, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene announced she would resign from Congress in January, raising implications as the former Trump ally recently had her support pulled from the president.
“I have too much self respect and dignity, love my family too much, and do not want my sweet district to have to endure a hurtful and hateful primary against me by the President we all fought for, only to fight and win my election while Republicans will likely lose the midterms,” she wrote in a statement.
“And in turn, be expected to defend the President against impeachment after he hatefully dumped tens of millions of dollars against me and tried to destroy me,” she continued, calling it “absurd and completely unserious.”
“If I am cast aside by MAGA Inc and replaced by Neocons, Big Pharma, Big Tech, Military Industrial War Complex, foreign leaders, and the elite donor class that can’t even relate to real Americans, then many common Americans have been cast aside and replaced as well.”
In a Truth Social post, Trump acknowledged her resignation, saying it was because of her “PLUMMETING Poll Numbers and not wanting to face a Primary Challenger with a strong Trump Endorsement (where she would have no chance of winning!).”
“For some reason, primarily that I refused to return her never ending barrage of phone calls, Marjorie went BAD. Nevertheless, I will always appreciate Marjorie, and thank her for her service to our Country!” he wrote
Oil and Indictments
The Trump administration proposed allowing oil drilling to occur in California and Florida through 2031, despite neither state allowing drilling for decades.
“The Biden administration slammed the brakes on offshore oil and gas leasing and crippled the long-term pipeline of America’s offshore production,” Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a press release.
“By moving forward with the development of a robust, forward-thinking leasing plan, we are ensuring that America’s offshore industry stays strong, our workers stay employed, and our nation remains energy dominant for decades to come.”
California Gov. Gavin Newsom called the plan “idiotic” and said the state “will use every tool at our disposal to protect our coastline.”
“This reckless attempt to sell out our coastline to his Big Oil donors is dead in the water,” he said in a press release.
“Californians remember the environmental and economic devastation of past oil spills. For decades, California has stood firm in our opposition to new offshore drilling, and nothing will change that,” he continued.
“It’s interesting that Donald’s proposal doesn’t include the waters off Mar-a-Lago.”
At the same time, Florida Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick was indicted for allegedly stealing funds from FEMA and using some of the money for her campaign.
“Using disaster relief funds for self-enrichment is a particularly selfish, cynical crime,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a press release.
“No one is above the law, least of all powerful people who rob taxpayers for personal gain. We will follow the facts in this case and deliver justice.”
Jason Reding Quiñones, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida, emphasized again that “no one is above the law.”
“Public money belongs to the American people,” he said.
“When FEMA funds are diverted for personal or political gain, it erodes trust and harms us all. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to ensure that American taxpayer dollars are used as intended and that the public’s trust is safeguarded.”
Cherfilus-McCormick faces up to 53 years in prison if convicted, while her brother Edwin Cherfilus faces up to 35 years.
Supreme Court and National Guard
Following a previous report from The Introspective detailing federal judges blocking Texas’ new congressional map on allegations of racial gerrymandering, the Supreme Court later allowed Texas to use the new map, blocking the previous ruling.
Supreme Court Texas
“The chaos caused by such an injunction is obvious: campaigning had already begun, candidates had already gathered signatures and filed applications to appear on the ballot under the 2025 map, and early voting for the March 3, 2026, primary was only 91 days away,” Texas said in a filing to the Supreme Court.
Texas Supreme Court Filing
This comes as U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb ruled that the ongoing National Guard deployment to Washington, D.C., was “unlawful.”
“The Court finds that the District’s exercise of sovereign powers within its jurisdiction is irreparably harmed by Defendants’ actions in deploying the Guards,” she wrote, putting a pause on her order until December to give the Trump administration time to appeal.
National Guard Ruling (DC)
In a press release, D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb said that “the U.S. military should not be policing American citizens on American soil.”
“Normalizing the use of military troops for domestic law enforcement sets a dangerous precedent, where the President can disregard states’ independence and deploy troops wherever and whenever he wants—with no check on his military power,” he said.
“This unprecedented federal overreach is not normal, or legal. It is long past time to let the National Guard go home—to their everyday lives, their regular jobs, their families, and their children.”
Economy
As the trade war continues, a BLS report found that 119,000 jobs were added in September, with the unemployment rate at 4.4%. This comes despite a previous report from The Introspective detailing an October report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas finding that companies have announced more than 1.1 million layoffs so far this year—the highest number since the Great Recession—with 153,074 job cuts announced in October alone.
The Introspective 
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