Slotkin Hit With Ethics Complaint After Warning Young People Off Trump Administration Jobs

A conservative watchdog group has filed a Senate ethics complaint against Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., over remarks urging that young people be deterred from working for the Trump administration.

The Center to Advance Security in America filed the complaint Tuesday with Ethics Committee Chairman James Lankford, R-Okla., and Vice Chairman Chris Coons, D-Del., the Washington Examiner reported.

The complaint stems from Slotkin’s Oct. 13 appearance at the University of Chicago, where she discussed how Democrats should use congressional power if they win control in November.

“I want young people coming out of school to say, ‘Should I go work for the Trump administration?'” Slotkin said, according to a clip aired by CNN.

“I want them to be like, ‘Lord, that might be buying myself a ton of problems that I don’t want,'” she continued.

“I want that deterrence message sent,” she added. She also said people around Trump “have no immunity the way the president does.”

CASA Director James Fitzpatrick called the remarks “extremely troubling and a potential violation of Senate Ethics rules,” Newsmax reported.

The complaint argues Slotkin threatened “lawfare against young professionals” and could deter Americans from public service. It cites a Senate rule covering conduct that “unfavorably reflects on the institution.”

The filing is a request for an investigation. It does not mean the committee has opened one or found any violation.

Trump weighed in from the Oval Office on Tuesday, calling Slotkin “a lightweight” and saying she wants to frighten young people from serving, Newsmax reported.

Trump also revived his criticism of a November 2025 video in which Slotkin and other Democrats urged troops to refuse unlawful orders. “She’s a person that should be tried for what she did,” he said.

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, wrote that it is “absolutely disgraceful to threaten young Americans for participating in politics and serving their country,” CNN noted.

Trump had already attacked Slotkin on Monday, calling her “a lowlife” and accusing Democrats of trying to “weaponize government” and discourage people from entering politics, according to CNN.

Slotkin dismissed the backlash as “manufactured outrage” in a Monday interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper, according to a CNN transcript.

“If you commit a criminal act, if you use taxpayer dollars in a way that violates the law, you should be held accountable no matter who you are,” she said. “That was the point I was making.”

Slotkin said that included using taxpayer money to enrich the president or “fabricating cases against people when there’s no legal basis.” She called the episode “a statement on how dark our politics has become.”

Pressed on whether she meant people implementing policies she opposes, Slotkin said no. “You’re not breaking the law. No problem,” she said.

The dispute comes two weeks before midterm elections that will decide whether Democrats gain the congressional majorities Slotkin said they would use to pursue accountability cases.

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