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Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., a retired naval officer, is suing the War Department, as well as War Secretary Pete Hegseth, over the agency’s actions to demote him and cut his retirement pay for urging military service members to “refuse illegal orders” in a video message with other leading Democrats.
A federal lawsuit filed in Washington D.C., names Hegseth, the Navy, the Department of Defense – now renamed the War Department – and Navy Secretary John Phelan as defendants.
The lawsuit said the Trump administration’s actions “trample on protections the Constitution singles out as essential to legislative independence.”
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“It appears that never in our nation’s history has the Executive Branch imposed military sanctions on a Member of Congress for engaging in disfavored political speech,” the lawsuit states.
The Pentagon’s actions “violate numerous constitutional guarantees and have no basis in statute,” the lawsuit adds.
A War Department official told Fox News Digital that the agency was aware of the lawsuit.
“However, as a matter of policy, the Department does not comment on ongoing litigation,” the official said.
Hegseth has sought to reduce Kelly’s retirement rank and military pension amid a feud with the Trump administration, after Kelly joined five other Democratic lawmakers in a November video telling service members that they were obligated to refuse illegal orders.
In a letter censuring Kelly, Hegseth said Kelly’s remarks did not promote good order and discipline. Such a letter typically calls out figures for wrongdoing and can be used to justify reductions in rank, pay or benefits. It also serves as an official warning that future misconduct could result in harsher consequences.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the War Department.
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In a statement posted to X, Kelly said the “unconstitutional crusade” against him “sends a chilling message to every retired member of the military: if you speak out and say something that the President or Secretary of Defense doesn’t like, you will be censured, threatened with demotion, or even prosecuted.”
“Every servicemember knows military rank is earned, not given,” he wrote. “It’s earned through the risks you take, the sacrifices you and your family make, the leadership you display, and the respect you earn from the superiors who recommend you for promotion.”
“Now, Pete Hegseth wants our longest-serving military veterans to live with the constant threat that they could be deprived of their rank and pay years or even decades after they leave the military just because he or another Secretary of Defense doesn’t like what they’ve said,” he added. “That’s not the way things work in the United States of America, and I won’t stand for it.”
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At the time of the video in which Kelly appeared, the War Department said Kelly’s status as a sitting U.S. senator “does not exempt him from accountability, and further violations could result in further action.”
In the Nov. 18 video, Kelly, Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, and Reps. Chris Deluzio and Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania, Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire, and Jason Crow of Colorado told service members and intelligence officers: “Our laws are clear. You can refuse illegal orders.”
In December, the Pentagon announced it was launching a full command investigation into Kelly over allegations of “serious misconduct.”
President Donald Trump threatened the lawmakers with jail time.
“It’s called SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL. Each one of these traitors to our Country should be ARRESTED AND PUT ON TRIAL. Their words cannot be allowed to stand – We won’t have a Country anymore!!! An example MUST BE SET,” Trump wrote on Truth Social at the time.
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