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By Hollie Silverman
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President Donald Trump said Saturday he has directed the Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate what he termed threats by Democratic leaders against administration officials, Republican donors, and supporters, intensifying a political feud days after Democrats swept to control of both chambers of Congress.
In a Truth Social post, the president accused Democrats of "extortion," "weaponization" and "lawfare," alleging they were threatening administration officials with impeachment and Republican donors with imprisonment or other penalties.
"This is extortion at the highest level, and they should be held accountable for this," Trump wrote. "By copy of this statement, I am ordering the Department of Justice to look into this criminal act, immediately!"
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Trump did not cite a specific federal statute or provide evidence in his post establishing that the statements constituted extortion.
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A Focus on Senator Slotkin
Trump specifically targeted Democratic Michigan Senator Elissa Slotkin, accusing her of threatening young people for holding Republican views.
Her documented remarks, however, focused on pursuing "signature cases" involving Trump and "the people who enabled him," using the prospect of legal consequences as a deterrent against individuals considering working in his administration.
"I want young people coming out of school to say, 'Should I go work for the Trump administration? Like, that sounds fun, I might get an opportunity,'" Slotkin said during an October 13 University of Chicago event. "I want them to be like, 'Lord, that might be buying myself a ton of problems that I don't want and so let me avoid participating in that.' I want that deterrence message."
In his Saturday Truth Social Post, Trump claimed Slotkin was "saying that she is going to go after all young people that believe in Republican Values, and that give even the slightest inclination to be a Republican."
Newsweek reached out to Slotkin and the DOJ by email for comment Saturday.
Meanwhile, the DOJ previously investigated Slotkin, a former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) analyst, over a separate video she organized with other Democratic lawmakers advising military and intelligence personnel that they could refuse illegal orders. However, earlier this year a grand jury refused to indict Slotkin and the other lawmakers.
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Post-Midterm Election Fallout
Trump’s order comes after Republicans suffered broad losses in Tuesday's midterm elections, ceding control of both the House and Senate to Democrats alongside state and local seats.
Democrats have secured at least 54 Senate seats, with two races unresolved as of Saturday, while flipping more than 40 Republican-held House districts.
Senator Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, called the result an "ass kicking" and a "Watergate-level repudiation."
The shift in power will significantly expand Democrats' authority to investigate the Trump administration when the new Congress takes office in January. Democratic-led committees will gain subpoena power, the ability to hold hearings, and the authority to demand executive records.
Control of the House will also enable Democrats to initiate impeachment proceedings against administration officials. However, removal from office requires a two-thirds vote in the Senate, a threshold Democrats cannot reach with their current majority without substantial Republican support.
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Raskin Warns of Impeachment Inquiry for Blanche
It was not immediately clear Saturday whether the DOJ had formally initiated an investigation in response to the president's demand.
Trump also alleged Saturday that Democrats were threatening the U.S. attorney general and other officials with impeachment and "many other forms of punishment," as well as targeting donors "with imprisonment, and many other levels of punishment, just because they happen to be Republicans, or Republican supporters."
"This is Weaponization and Lawfare at another level," he added.
Representative Jamie Raskin, a Maryland Democrat who could become chair of the House Judiciary Committee next year, said earlier this week during an interview appearance on MS NOW that U.S. Attorney Todd Blanche could possibly face impeachment hearings.
The congressman pointed to Blanche’s inaction in the Jeffrey Epstein case and what he described as the department's pursuit of the president’s perceived political enemies.
“The Department of Justice has clearly become a Department of Injustice—an instrument of revenge, political revenge for the president,” he told the network. “...This attorney general has been doing nothing other than acting in his old capacity as a personal criminal defense attorney to Donald Trump.”
Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here. Contact Newsweek editors for this story: Steve Mollman and Anthony Murray.
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