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What are the most famous instances of military officers refusing orders and the outcomes?
Executive summary
A high-profile moment in November 2025 saw six Democratic lawmakers — all with military or intelligence backgrounds — release a video urging service members to “refuse illegal orders,” touching off sharp partisan debate and renewed attention to when officers may lawfully disobey commands [1] [2]. U.S. law and military practice treat orders as presumptively lawful unless “patently illegal,” and commanders and legal advisers play a central role in resolving doubts; commentators and outlets disagree sharply about the wisdom and risks of public calls to refuse orders [3] [4] [5].
1. What the November 2025 video actually said and why it mattered
Six lawmakers — including Sen. Elissa Slotkin and others who served in uniform or intelligence — posted a short video telling military and intelligence personnel they can refuse orders that are illegal, arguing threats to the Constitution can come from “right here at home”; the video was widely viewed and prompted immediate pushback from the White House and Republican officials who said it amounted to politicizing or encouraging defiance of civilian leadership [1] [2] [6].
2. The legal baseline: orders are presumed lawful unless patently illegal
Military law and guidance emphasize that an order is presumed lawful; only a “patently illegal” command — for example, an order to commit a clear crime — can be refused without exposure to disciplinary action, and the question of lawfulness is typically decided later by a judge or tribunal, which means refusal can itself trigger court-martial risk [3] [5].
3. How officers are trained to resolve doubts — legal chains and judge advocates
Practitioners and military teaching materials stress procedures for resolving uncertainty: officers are trained to seek a legal opinion through their chain of command, from unit judge advocates up through service legal authorities and, if needed, civilian legal offices; opinion pieces note this chain exists precisely to reduce the need for individual acts of refusal [4].
4. Competing perspectives in the public debate
Supporters of the lawmakers’ message framed it as a constitutional safeguard and necessary reminder that service members need to avoid unlawful domestic or international missions; critics — from the administration and conservative outlets — called the video reckless and argued it risks undermining discipline and encouraging insubordination, especially among lower-ranked personnel who lack access to legal resources [2] [7] [6].
5. Risks highlighted by commentators and legal experts
Analysts warn that refusing an order carries severe personal risk: military law criminalizes willful disobedience and presumes orders are lawful unless obviously criminal, so a mistaken refusal can result in court-martial or other punitive consequences; some commentaries explicitly advise service members to consult military counsel first unless the illegality is unambiguous [5] [3].
6. How this fits into broader operational controversies in 2025
The video arrived amid controversy over several U.S. actions — including administration-authorized strikes against suspected drug traffickers and legal disputes about domestic deployments — which opponents cite as context for urging caution and for the lawmakers’ message, while the administration has defended its legal authorities and criticized the lawmakers for stoking division [8] [2].
7. Real-world examples and historical context — what the current reporting covers and does not
Available sources discuss the 2025 political episode and the legal framework for refusing orders; they summarize historical and hypothetical concerns but do not provide a systematic list of “most famous” international instances of officers refusing orders nor detailed outcomes of every past case — that material is not found in the current reporting [9] [3].
8. Practical takeaways for service members and the public
The practical path the military and legal commentators recommend is procedural: when in doubt, seek a judge advocate or legal chain of command rather than immediate public refusal; public calls by lawmakers raise awareness but also risk confusing lower-ranking personnel about whether and how they can safely challenge orders [4] [5].
Limitations: this analysis relies solely on the provided news and commentary items about the November 2025 video, legal FAQs, and opinion pieces; it does not purport to be a comprehensive historical survey of every instance where officers refused orders because those items are not present in the cited material [3] [9].