This idea that senior leaders have a responsibility to refuse illegal orders is not hypothetical, and it's not new. Since being sworn in back in January, I’ve asked President Trump's nominees about this issue, on the record. Watch for yourself:
Congress Member Profile|U.S. Senator|Democrat|Michigan
Elissa Slotkin
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Voting Record — 789
Yes34%
No63%
Present0%
Not Voting3%
Party align92%
Cross-party8%
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District Map
Senate District (Statewide)
U.S. Census Bureau boundary data.
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External Resources
Elissa Slotkin
U.S. SenatorDemocratMichigan
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Elissa's ATmosphere Activity
20 recent posts · 20 sponsored · 117 cosponsored
Recent ATmosphere posts, sponsorships, and cosponsorships.
Whether it's the strikes in the Caribbean, Signalgate, or what's happening in our cities with uniformed military, Pete Hegseth should just own his decisions and be transparent with the American people.
Pam Bondi and Pete Hegseth have made stronger statements about the military's right to refuse illegal orders than I did. I'm glad that the 2016 version of Pete Hegseth understood the law and the UCMJ. I'm sorry that the 2025 version doesn't seem to care.
The inconsistency in DOD’s approach to these strikes doesn’t give me confidence that leaders are thinking through these operations before they strike.
2. If these drug traffickers are terrorists, why are we letting survivors go free? Why not see if they have intelligence on the trafficking network? We have laws that prescribe what happens next: detain them, bring them before a court of law in the U.S. and try them.
1. The Pentagon appears to have changed its policy on survivors between the September 2nd double tap strike — in theory because there was angst about how the Sept 2 survivors were handled. Picking up survivors after a strike is what following the law looks like.
This new story about how the Department of Defense is treating survivors of U.S. strikes in the Caribbean tells us a lot:
Americans know that our health care system is broken. This week is a vote on a band-aid. But I believe we need to fundamentally reimagine health care in America. To me, that's a nationwide public insurance plan.
I'm the first person to say that the Affordable Care Act is not perfect. We have a long way to go to make health care affordable. In the meantime, we have to fight to protect health care coverage for millions of Americans.
When it comes to using military force in our name, President Trump and Secretary Hegseth need to be transparent with the American people.
The Senate will be taking a vote this week on a straight extension of the Affordable Care Act. The ACA isn’t perfect, but a simple extension will prevent prices from skyrocketing come January.
We're just repeating what the Secretary has already said many times: the military can refuse illegal orders.
This is not the America that we want. I refuse to believe this is the new normal.
On the surface, this does not look like a great deal to create a lasting peace.
In this week's Intel Briefing, we're covering three important topics:
1️⃣ Rising energy costs and the aftermath of Michigan's ice storm
2️⃣ Negotiations with (and without) Ukraine
3️⃣ Progress since the 2021 Oxford shooting
youtu.be/ho5d8aUruPE
But the Secretary knows the military can refuse illegal orders — and he’s made that clear over the years. Watch for yourself:
President Trump said we should be arrested, tried, and hanged for simply re-stating the law and making clear the military can refuse illegal orders. SecDef @PeteHegseth cheered him on and threatened a military investigation.
Coming from a manufacturing state in the Midwest, manufacturing is not like tech. It doesn’t live in the cloud — it’s tangible. And Michigan knows this business better than anybody.
We've seen this administration use these harassment tactics on the private sector, on law firms, on universities. I will not back down from speaking up for our country.
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Voting History789 total votesExpandCollapse
Voting History
789 total votes
Recent roll calls with party-majority context so it is easier to scan how this member tends to vote.
| Date | Bill | Question | Position | Party Maj | Align? | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-07-28 | — | Confirm nominee | NO | NO | ✓ | Nomination Confirmed (50-39) |
| 2025-07-28 | — | End debate | NO | NO | ✓ | Cloture Motion Agreed to (51-45) |
| 2025-07-24 | — | End debate | NO | NO | ✓ | Cloture Motion Agreed to (50-48) |
| 2025-07-24 | — | Confirm nominee | NO | NO | ✓ | Nomination Confirmed (51-47) |
| 2025-07-24 | — | End debate | NO | NO | ✓ | Cloture Motion Agreed to (52-46) |
| 2025-07-24 | — | Confirm nominee | NO | NO | ✓ | Nomination Confirmed (52-46) |
| 2025-07-23 | — | End debate | NO | NO | ✓ | Cloture Motion Agreed to (49-47) |
| 2025-07-23 | — | Confirm nominee | NO | NO | ✓ | Nomination Confirmed (49-47) |
| 2025-07-23 | — | End debate | NO | NO | ✓ | Cloture Motion Agreed to (48-47) |
| 2025-07-23 | — | Confirm nominee | NO | NO | ✓ | Nomination Confirmed (49-47) |
| 2025-07-23 | — | End debate | NO | NO | ✓ | Cloture Motion Agreed to (49-47) |
| 2025-07-23 | H.R. 3944 (119th) | Begin consideration | YES | YES | ✓ | Motion to Proceed Agreed to (90-8) |
| 2025-07-23 | — | Confirm nominee | NO | NO | ✓ | Nomination Confirmed (51-47) |
| 2025-07-23 | — | Confirm nominee | NO | NO | ✓ | Nomination Confirmed (52-41) |
| 2025-07-22 | — | Confirm nominee | NO | NO | ✓ | Nomination Confirmed (61-35) |
| 2025-07-22 | — | Confirm nominee | NO | NO | ✓ | Nomination Confirmed (51-46) |
| 2025-07-22 | H.R. 3944 (119th) | End filibuster to begin debate | YES | YES | ✓ | Cloture on the Motion to Proceed Agreed to (91-7, 3/5 majority required) |
| 2025-07-22 | H.R. 3944 (119th) | Begin consideration | NO | NO | ✓ | Motion to Proceed Agreed to (50-48) |
| 2025-07-22 | — | Confirm nominee | NO | NO | ✓ | Nomination Confirmed (50-47) |
| 2025-07-22 | — | Confirm nominee | NO | NO | ✓ | Nomination Confirmed (51-46) |
| 2025-07-22 | — | Confirm nominee | NO | NO | ✓ | Nomination Confirmed (50-47) |
| 2025-07-21 | — | End debate | NO | NO | ✓ | Cloture Motion Agreed to (44-43) |
| 2025-07-17 | — | End debate | NO | NO | ✓ | Cloture Motion Agreed to (46-36) |
| 2025-07-17 | — | End debate | NO | NO | ✓ | Cloture Motion Agreed to (50-34) |
| 2025-07-17 | — | End debate | NO | NO | ✓ | Cloture Motion Agreed to (57-31) |
| 2025-07-17 | — | End debate | NO | NO | ✓ | Cloture Motion Agreed to (49-40) |
| 2025-07-17 | — | End debate | NO | NO | ✓ | Cloture Motion Agreed to (49-43) |
| 2025-07-17 | — | End debate | NO | NO | ✓ | Cloture Motion Agreed to (52-46) |
| 2025-07-17 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Final passage | NO | NO | ✓ | Bill Passed (51-48) |
| 2025-07-17 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Vote on amendment | NO | NO | ✓ | Amendment Agreed to (52-47) |
| 2025-07-17 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Vote on amendment | YES | YES | ✓ | Amendment Rejected (48-51) |
| 2025-07-17 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Vote on amendment | YES | YES | ✓ | Amendment Rejected (48-51) |
| 2025-07-17 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Vote on amendment | YES | YES | ✓ | Amendment Rejected (49-50) |
| 2025-07-17 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Vote on amendment | YES | YES | ✓ | Amendment Rejected (47-51) |
| 2025-07-17 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Kill the motion | NO | NO | ✓ | Motion to Table Agreed to (51-47) |
| 2025-07-16 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Vote on amendment | YES | YES | ✓ | Amendment Rejected (48-51) |
| 2025-07-16 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Send back to committee | YES | YES | ✓ | Motion to Recommit Rejected (48-51) |
| 2025-07-16 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Vote on amendment | YES | YES | ✓ | Amendment Rejected (48-51) |
| 2025-07-16 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Send back to committee | YES | YES | ✓ | Motion to Recommit Rejected (47-50) |
| 2025-07-16 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Vote on amendment | YES | YES | ✓ | Amendment Rejected (46-51) |
| 2025-07-16 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Send back to committee | YES | YES | ✓ | Motion to Recommit Rejected (47-52) |
| 2025-07-16 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Send back to committee | YES | YES | ✓ | Motion to Recommit Rejected (48-51) |
| 2025-07-16 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Vote on amendment | YES | YES | ✓ | Amendment Rejected (47-52) |
| 2025-07-16 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Send back to committee | YES | YES | ✓ | Motion to Recommit Rejected (48-51) |
| 2025-07-16 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Send back to committee | YES | YES | ✓ | Motion to Recommit Rejected (48-51) |
| 2025-07-16 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Send back to committee | YES | YES | ✓ | Motion to Recommit Rejected (48-51) |
| 2025-07-16 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Vote on amendment | YES | YES | ✓ | Amendment Rejected (49-50) |
| 2025-07-15 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Begin consideration | NO | NO | ✓ | Motion to Proceed Agreed to (50-50, Vice President of the United States, voted Yea) |
| 2025-07-15 | H.R. 4 (119th) | Motion to Discharge H.R. 4 | NO | NO | ✓ | Motion to Discharge Agreed to (50-50, Vice President of the United States, voted Yea) |
| 2025-07-15 | — | Confirm nominee | NO | NO | ✓ | Nomination Confirmed (52-47) |
Alignment stats consider only votes where a clear yes/no majority existed for the legislator's party. Cross-party marks divergence where the vote matched the opposite party majority. ↔ indicates cross-party divergence.