Pentagon probes Kelly, threatens court martial
WASHINGTON The Pentagon communicated Monday it is researching Democratic Sen Mark Kelly of Arizona over achievable breaches of military law after the former Navy pilot joined a handful of other lawmakers in a video that called for troops to defy illegal orders The Pentagon s report posted on social media cited a federal law that allows retired amenity members to be recalled to proceeding duty on orders of the defense secretary for viable court martial or other measures It is extraordinary for the Pentagon which until President Donald Trump s second term had usually gone out of its way to act and appear apolitical to directly threaten a sitting member of Congress with analysis It comes after Trump ramped up the rhetoric by accusing the lawmakers of sedition punishable by DEATH in a social media post days after the video was disclosed last week In its message Monday the Pentagon suggested that Kelly s statements in the video interfered with the loyalty morale or good order and discipline of the armed forces by citing the federal law that prohibits such actions A thorough review of these accusations has been initiated to determine further actions which may include recall to progressing duty for court-martial proceedings or administrative measures the report declared Kelly stated he upheld his oath to the Constitution and dismissed the Pentagon scrutiny as the work of bullies If this is meant to intimidate me and other members of Congress from doing our jobs and holding this administration accountable it won t work Kelly disclosed in a comment In the video Kelly was one of six Democratic lawmakers who have served in the military or intelligence neighborhood to speak directly to members of the military The other lawmakers are Sen Elissa Slotkin and Reps Jason Crow Chris Deluzio Maggie Goodlander and Chrissy Houlahan who are seen as viable future aspirants for higher office and elevated their political profiles with the video s wide exposure Kelly who was a fighter pilot before becoming an astronaut and then retiring at the rank of captain communicated troops that you can refuse illegal orders while other lawmakers in the video reported they needed troops to stand up for our laws our Constitution Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stated Kelly was facing study because he is the only one of the lawmakers who formally retired from the military and is still under the Pentagon s jurisdiction Kelly s conduct brings discredit upon the armed forces and will be addressed appropriately Hegseth noted on his personal X account Of the wider group he added that their foolish screed sows doubt and confusion which only puts our warriors in danger Other Senate Democrats came to Kelly s defense with Democratic leader Chuck Schumer accusing Trump of using the Pentagon as his personal attack dog and saying this is what dictators do His fellow Democratic Arizona senator Ruben Gallego disclosed Mark informed the truth in America we swear an oath to the Constitution not wannabe kings Kelly and the other lawmakers didn t mention specific circumstances in the video but its release comes as the Trump administration has ordered the military to blow up small boats in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean accused of ferrying drugs and continues its attempts at deploying National Guard troops into U S cities despite specific legal setbacks Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell declared last week that our military follows orders and our civilians give legal orders Troops especially uniformed commanders do have specific obligations to reject orders that are unlawful if they make that determination Broad legal precedence also holds that just following orders colloquially known as the Nuremberg defense as it was used unsuccessfully by senior Nazi executives to justify their actions under Adolf Hitler doesn t absolve troops
