by Ben Whedon
Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., is suing the Department of War and Secretary Pete Hegseth over the Pentagon’s censure of him for his participation in a viral video urging military personnel to ignore “illegal orders.”
Earlier this month, Hegseth announced that the War Department would downgrade Kelly’s retirement pay and issue a letter of censure over the video he deemed “reckless and seditious.”
The suit names Hegseth, the War Department, and Navy Secretary John Phelan as defendants, Fox News reported.
“The First Amendment forbids the government and its officials from punishing disfavored expression or retaliating against protected speech,” the complaint reads, according to The Hill. “That prohibition applies with particular force to legislators speaking on matters of public policy.”
In a video, Kelly said, “Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth sent a chilling message to every retired member of the military. If you speak out, say something that the president or the Secretary of Defense doesn’t like, you will be censured, threatened with a reduction in retirement grade, or even prosecuted.”
He accused Trump and Hegseth of “abusing their authority to silence the voices that they find inconvenient, even when the speech is protected by the First Amendment.”
“That warning is not just alarming. It’s unconstitutional. And that’s why I’m fighting back,” the senator added.
Last year, Kelly participated in a video with other Democratic lawmakers, urging members of the military and intelligence community to ignore “illegal orders” from the Trump administration, though they did not identify any specific orders they considered objectionable.
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Ben Whedon is a reporter for Just the News. Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network and contributed to this story.
No Mark, appreciate the saying “one cannot speak for all”. You do not represent veterans, it was you, and you alone who arrogantly felt you were above the law. Veterans on not being threated, just idiots who willfully violate the law. If you had completed the mandated UCMJ training while on active duty you would have clearly know you could not encourage military members to ignore orders. The ordered discipline is the same discipline you required to be safe while on active duty, while serving as an astronaut. Now, perhaps fueled by hubris you concluded you knew best. For your seditious behavior I fully support you being reduced multiple grades, perhaps down to Lieutenant Junior Grade with your military pension reduced accordingly.
Kelly is a legend in his own mind ‼️
He should forfeit any government pension.