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X
x.com › SecWar › status › 2008189258528665898
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth on X: "Six weeks ago, Senator Mark Kelly — and five other members of Congress — released a reckless and seditious video that was clearly intended to undermine good order and military discipline. As a retired Navy Captain who is still receiving a military pension, Captain Kelly knows he" / X
These actions are based on Captain Kelly's public statements from June through December 2025 in which he characterized lawful military operations as illegal and counseled members of the Armed Forces to refuse lawful orders. This conduct was seditious in nature and violated Articles 133 and 134 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, to which Captain Kelly remains subject as a retired officer receiving pay.
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MS NOW
ms.now › home › the law isn’t on pete hegseth’s side as he attempts to demote mark kelly
Opinion | Why Pete Hegseth can't reduce Mark Kelly's rank and pay
Mark Kelly, D-Arizona, as he threatened ... war,” pivoted and said Tuesday that Kelly will be administratively (meaning, arbitrarily and behind closed Pentagon doors) demoted in rank....
Published   1 week ago
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Military.com
military.com › feature › 2026 › 01 › 14 › mark-kellys-lawsuit-against-pete-hegseth-tests-limits-of-executive-power-over-retired-officers.html
Mark Kelly’s Lawsuit Against Pete Hegseth Tests the Limits of Executive Power Over Retired Officers | Military.com
13 hours ago - Senator Mark Kelly is suing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, arguing the Pentagon unlawfully retaliated against his political speech by threatening his military retirement rank and pension.
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9news
9news.com › video › news › politics › national-politics › mark-kelly-suing-pete-hegseth-and-pentagon › 73-34a9d0ea-6383-4b6f-a333-66262da19e7c
Mark Kelly suing Pete Hegseth and Pentagon | 9news.com
Arizona's Mark Kelly is suing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the Pentagon after Hegseth moved to censure the senator.
Published   1 day ago
Discussions

Senator Mark Kelly sues Pete Hegseth, DOD, and others over Hegseth's censure of Kelly
Any post about politics with a Navy nexus lacking a Politics flair may result in, at a minimum, a temp ban and removal of the post. Participation in a Politics-flaired post requires a minimum r/Navy specific karma. This will be automatically enforced by the automod. Anyone using the Politics flair should utilize a common sense approach to what is a Navy nexus. This does not mean posts with Politics flair will be unmoderated. All discussion must adhere to r/Navy rule #1 and Reddit rule #1. I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns. More on reddit.com
🌐 r/navy
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4 days ago
Mark Kelly v. Pete Hegseth
This lawsuit is going to be a serious problem for Pete Hegseth and the administration, and the fact that it had to be filed at all is a pretty stark indictment of where things are right now. A sitting Member of Congress has more speech protection than an ordinary citizen, not less. The Speech and Debate Clause exists specifically to prevent the executive branch from punishing legislators for political speech. Whatever limits apply to active-duty service members do not override a Senator speaking in his legislative capacity. Even putting the constitutional issues aside, what Kelly said should not be controversial. Reminding service members that they are not required to follow illegal orders is basic constitutional and military law. If that is now being labeled seditious, the problem is not the speech. It is the standard being applied. The selective enforcement only makes this worse. Multiple veterans in Congress participated in the same statement. Only Mark Kelly was punished. That looks far less like neutral application of military authority and far more like retaliation. The most plausible explanation is that Kelly has name recognition and credibility, so the administration thought making an example of him would deter others. Courts are rarely sympathetic to that kind of reasoning. Finally, yes, the Department of Defense and the Navy clearly overstepped their authority. Retirement grade determinations are tied to active-duty conduct, not civilian political speech years later. Using military retirement authority to discipline a sitting Senator crosses a clear separation of powers line. This is not a close or novel constitutional question. It is an overreach that is likely to age very poorly once a court actually examines it. Given everything else unfolding right now, it is hard to see much value in even debating this. Between the Epstein files fiasco, the confusion around Venezuela and Greenland, and the ongoing Minnesota ICE and CBP situation, this feels less like a serious legal or policy dispute and more like background noise in an administration that is constantly generating new controversies faster than anyone can meaningfully engage with them...sigh. More on reddit.com
🌐 r/moderatepolitics
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4 days ago
The law isn’t on Pete Hegseth’s side as he attempts to demote Mark Kelly
His goal isn't to demote Mark Kelly, it is to quiet dissent. More on reddit.com
🌐 r/Military
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1 week ago
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth sent a letter of censure to Sen. Mark Kelly. What does that mean?
Just my opinion but I feel like he's doing this to keep other retirees quiet. More on reddit.com
🌐 r/Military
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NYTimes
nytimes.com › u.s. › politics
Kelly Sues Pentagon Over Threats of Punishment From Hegseth - The New York Times
4 days ago - Senator Mark Kelly, Democrat of Arizona, on Monday sued Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the Pentagon over a move to punish him for a video he released with other lawmakers reminding military members that they must not follow illegal orders.
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MS NOW
ms.now › home › hegseth taunts mark kelly as another democratic veteran faces investigation
Hegseth taunts Mark Kelly as another Democratic veteran faces investigation
In mid-December, the Pentagon announced that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was “escalating” his crusade against Sen. Mark Kelly, launching an “official Command Investigation” into the Arizona Democrat.
Published   2 days ago
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Fox News
foxnews.com › politics › hegseth-moves-censure-sen-mark-kelly-review-his-retirement-rank-pay-over-seditious-video
Hegseth moves to censure Sen Mark Kelly, review his retirement rank and pay over 'seditious video'
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., will receive a formal censure letter and review of retirement rank and pay following 'seditious statements' that undermined military operations.
Published   2 weeks ago
Find elsewhere
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CNBC
cnbc.com › 2026 › 01 › 05 › pentagon-mark-kelly-video-hegseth.html
Pentagon to cut Sen. Mark Kelly's military retirement pay over 'seditious' video: Hegseth
1 week ago - Mark Kelly, an Arizona Democrat, ... have the right to refuse to execute illegal orders. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also issued a formal letter of censure against Kelly....
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The Hill
thehill.com › policy › defense › 5682489-hegseth-kelly-rank-reduction-fight
Pete Hegseth’s fight against Mark Kelly moves into untested legal waters
5 days ago - Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth seeks to punish Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) by reducing his retirement rank and pension. Legal experts say its highly unusual and potentially 'not lawful.'
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Business Insider
businessinsider.com › business insider › military & defense › hegseth's prosecution of mark kelly sends a chilling message to us troops and veterans, legal analysts say
Hegseth's prosecution of Mark Kelly sends a chilling message to US troops and veterans, legal analysts say
1 week ago - Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's extraordinary move to demote a retired military veteran in the Senate comes after weeks of threats for more severe punishment, and experts on military law said it has implications for speech by troops and retired military. The highly public decision to censure Democratic Sen. Mark Kelley and to possibly dock his military pension is likely to make military retirees think twice before publicly criticizing the Trump administration, two former military lawyers said.
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Washington Post
washingtonpost.com › national security › military
Sen. Mark Kelly sues Hegseth over censure, potential demotion - The Washington Post
4 days ago - Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth at the White House last year. (Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post) ... Sen. Mark Kelly filed a lawsuit Monday seeking to reverse Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s letter of censure and effort to potentially demote the retired Navy officer — sharply escalating a confrontation between the Arizona Democrat and President Donald Trump’s Pentagon chief over a video reminding U.S.
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The Guardian
theguardian.com › us-news › 2026 › jan › 12 › mark-kelly-pete-hegseth-lawsuit
Mark Kelly sues Hegseth over ‘chilling’ effort to reduce military retirement rank | US military | The Guardian
4 days ago - Democratic US senator Mark Kelly filed a lawsuit on Monday seeking to nullify the “chilling” attempt by the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, to reduce the military veteran’s rank and pension as punishment for speaking out against the Trump ...
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CNN
cnn.com › 2026 › 01 › 12 › politics › kelly-lawsuit-unlawful-orders-video-hegseth
Sen. Mark Kelly files lawsuit alleging Hegseth violated his rights with push for punishment over illegal order video | CNN Politics
3 days ago - Lawyers for Sen. Mark Kelly filed a lawsuit Monday seeking to block Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s move to cut Kelly’s retirement pay and reduce his rank in response to Kelly’s urging of US service members to refuse illegal orders. The lawsuit argues punishing Kelly violates the First Amendment and will have a chilling effect on legislative oversight.
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Daily Mail
dailymail.co.uk › news › article-15435955 › pete-hegseth-review-mark-kelly-rank-pension.html
Pete Hegseth moves to strip astronaut senator of military rank and pension over 'seditious' video | Daily Mail Online
2 weeks ago - The Secretary of War said in a statement: 'Six weeks ago, Senator Mark Kelly - and five other members of Congress - released a reckless and seditious video that was clearly intended to undermine good order and military discipline.
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Slate
slate.com › news-and-politics › 2026 › 01 › pete-hegseth-mark-kelly-military-law-court-martial.html
The Defense Department’s case against Mark Kelly is even dumber than it sounds.
3 days ago - Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s campaign to punish Sen. Mark Kelly—a retired Navy captain—for urging members of the armed forces to disobey unlawful orders, is even more outlandish, and legally baseless, than it seems at first glance.
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AP News
apnews.com › article › hegseth-kelly-illegal-orders-censure-eaf323b868c118ef490dff7dc667c561
Hegseth censures Sen. Kelly after Democrats' video urging troops to resist unlawful orders
2 weeks ago - Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says he’s censuring Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona over the former Navy pilot’s participation in a video that called on troops to resist unlawful orders.
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CNBC
cnbc.com › 2026 › 01 › 12 › kelly-hegseth-lawsuit-video-pentagon.html
Sen. Kelly sues DOD Sec. Hegseth, says he was punished for 'disfavored political speech'
4 days ago - Sen. Mark Kelly sued the Pentagon and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, accusing them of violating the Constitution by retaliating against him.