Rep. Hakeem Jeffries Hakeem Sekou JeffriesPelosi: House will stay in session until agreement is reached on coronavirus relief Races heat up for House leadership posts Postmaster general earned millions from company with ties to Postal Service: report MORE (D-N.Y.) on Tuesday tore into President Trump Donald John TrumpHR McMaster says president's policy to withdraw troops from Afghanistan is 'unwise' Cast of 'Parks and Rec' reunite for virtual town hall to address Wisconsin voters Biden says Trump should step down over coronavirus response MORE after he accused Democrats on Monday of "treasonous" behavior during his State of the Union address.

Jeffries said Tuesday that treason is "not a laughing matter" but rather a "serious crime embedded in the Constitution, punishable by death."

"But since your commander in chief chose to raise it at a political rally, let's have a discussion about treason," he said.

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"Is it treason for a presidential campaign to meet with a hostile foreign power to sell out our democracy and rig the election?"

Jeffries further questioned whether it was treason for a presidential campaign to "meet with Russian spies who promise information that was negative about a political opponent and then fail to report that meeting to law enforcement officials."

He appeared to be referring to a 2016 Trump Tower meeting that included Donald Trump Jr. Don John Trump'Tiger King' star Joe Exotic requests pardon from Trump: 'Be my hero please' Zaid Jilani discusses Trump's move to cancel racial sensitivity training at federal agencies Trump International Hotel in Vancouver closes permanently MORE, White House adviser Jared Kushner Jared Corey KushnerAbraham Accords: New hope for peace in Middle East Tenants in Kushner building file lawsuit alleging dangerous living conditions Trump hosts Israel, UAE, Bahrain for historic signing MORE, former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort Paul John ManafortBannon trial date set in alleged border wall scam Conspicuous by their absence from the Republican Convention Ukraine language in GOP platform underscores Trump tensions MORE and a Russian attorney.

"How dare you lecture us about treason. This is not a dictatorship. It's a democracy," Jeffries said.

"And we do not have to stand for a reality show host masquerading as president of the United States."

In a speech Monday, Trump suggested that Democrats not clapping for his address were guilty of treason.

"They were like death and un-American. Un-American. Somebody said, 'treasonous,'" Trump said Monday.

"I mean, yeah, I guess, why not? Can we call that treason? Why not? I mean they certainly didn't seem to love our country very much."

Trump added the Democrats "would rather see Trump do badly than our country do well," saying that was "very selfish."