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A group of Democratic politicians branded by the president as involved in “seditious behavior” have asserted that the US leader is using the FBI against them as a “tool to intimidate and harass congressional representatives.”

The four politicians, along with two additional members, had created a video encouraging US military service members to resist unlawful orders – a message that angered Trump, who wrote on online platforms that the individuals were “traitors” and thus could be jailed or even face the death penalty.

An announcement, released by congressional lawmakers the Colorado congressman, Chris Deluzio and Chrissy Houlahan, and Maggie Goodlander, verified that the Federal Bureau of Investigation had reached out to the Congressional security officials requesting interviews with them.

“No amount of intimidation or harassment will ever prevent us from fulfilling our duties and honoring our constitution,” they stated, noting that they had each sworn an oath “to support and defend” the Constitution of the United States.

“That commitment is permanent, and we intend to keep it. We refuse to be intimidated. We will not surrender our principles,” they added.

The statement intensifies a dispute between the president’s team and Democratic leaders, such as the senator from Arizona and former astronaut Mark Kelly and the Michigan representative Representative Slotkin, over the video message, which urged the armed forces and intelligence personnel to “refuse illegal orders.”

The Michigan lawmaker said the FBI’s counter-terrorism division had informed the lawmakers that “they are initiating what appears to be an investigation against the six of us” and described the move as a “intimidation strategy” by Trump.

“Frankly, the leader’s response and the deployment of the FBI to target us is exactly why we made the video,” she said.

“He supports utilizing the federal government to oppose those he views as opponents, and he’s not afraid to use the arms of the government to target dissenters. He fails to accept the law applies to him … which is precisely the reason we made the video, to give people some assurance that they weren’t alone as they watch this stuff unfold.”

The US Department of Defense has also said it is conducting a review of claims of improper behavior involving the senator that could, it indicated, result in him being recalled to active duty to face court-martial proceedings.