Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said his department has censured Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) and will determine whether to demote him in retirement after the senator joined other veterans in Congress in a video urging service members to resist any “illegal” orders issued by Trump.
In a lengthy statement on X, Hegseth accused Kelly and the other lawmakers of releasing a “reckless and seditious video that was clearly intended to undermine good order and military discipline.” Hegseth said that Kelly’s participation in the November video “and his pattern of reckless misconduct” prompted the Defense Department to begin a review of Kelly’s retirement military grade, which could result in a demotion and reduction in retirement pay.
Hegseth said the review will take place within 45 days. A letter of censure was also issued as part of the review, which will remain in Kelly’s personnel file.
“Captain Kelly’s status as a sitting United States Senator does not exempt him from accountability, and further violations could result in further action,” Hegseth said.
Hegseth had considered recalling Kelly, who retired as a captain and worked as a naval aviator and an astronaut, back to active duty as punishment for the video. Kelly served longer than the other lawmaker veterans who spoke out in the video, allowing him to retire — but still subjecting him to military law.
President Donald Trump had also blasted the lawmakers, demanded they be “PUT ON TRIAL” and amplified a Truth Social post that called for them to be hanged over the video.
Kelly rebuked Hegseth’s statement in a X post of his own, saying that the defense secretary “wants to send the message to every single retired servicemember that if they say something he or Donald Trump doesn’t like, they will come after them the same way.”
“It’s outrageous and it is wrong,” Kelly said. “There is nothing more un-American than that.”
