Pentagon says it is investigating US senator over ‘illegal orders’ video

Former US Navy aviator and astronaut Mark Kelly is the subject of an investigation by the Pentagon for his participation in a video that exhorted members of the military to reject “illegal orders.”

The US military rarely acts against retired officers. However, Kelly and other Democratic lawmakers who were involved in the video were repeatedly charged with criminal offenses as a result of President Donald Trump’s repeated requests for criminal charges.

Pete Hegseth, the head of the Pentagon, later stated later on Monday that Kelly is facing legal action because he is the only lawmaker in the video who is a retired Navy captain who is subject to military law.

Hegseth wrote on X that the Department is “revisiting his statements and actions, which were made known to all troops while explicitly using his rank and service affiliation, giving the impression that his words were being read and interpreted with authority.”

Kelly’s actions “discredit the armed forces” and “will be addressed appropriately.”

The senator quickly defied the Pentagon’s decision by refusing to speak.

It won’t work, according to Kelly in a statement, “if this is meant to intimidate me and other members of Congress from carrying out our duties and holding this administration accountable.” Bullies who care more about their own power than the protection of the Constitution say, “I’ve given too much to this country.”

Kelly is accused of “acts intended to interfere with the armed forces’ loyalty, morale, or good order and discipline,” according to the Pentagon.

Members of the military and the intelligence community are our first priority.

You must defend our Constitution and our laws, American people.

Don’t abandon the ship. pic. twitter.com/N8lW0EpQ7r

In other words, speech intended to incite a rebellion was described as traitor by Trump last week and went so far as to argue that the legislators should receive the death penalty for sedition.

One of six former military and intelligence officers featured in the video, which was released on November 18, was Kelly, a former US Navy captain who now represents Arizona in the Senate.

“Our laws are simple. In the video, they said, “You can refuse illegal orders.

The Pentagon emphasized that service members are required to “obfy lawful orders and that orders are presumed to be lawful” in accordance with the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), which spells out military laws and guidelines.

In a statement from Monday, it stated that “a service member’s personal philosophy does not justify or excuse the disobedience of an otherwise lawful order.”

Kelly may be required to return to “active duty for court-martial proceedings or administrative measures,” according to the Pentagon.

The UCMJ holds that retired military personnel who continue to receive benefits after their service are subject to military law.

Former service members are hardly ever prosecuted by military courts, especially for alleged crimes committed after their enlistment.

Democrats have been furious over Trump’s response to the lawmakers’ videos, which they claim amounts to a death threat, in recent days.

Democrats claim that the video simply confirms a fact about military law: service members are required to take an oath to the Constitution in order to reject orders they believe to be in violation of US law.

Following the assassination of right-wing commentator Charlie Kirk in September and Melissa Hortman’s June murder, the US is still reeling from political violence.

Trump’s first death sentence was on Thursday, causing a slew of negative comments. “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH”! Trump used social media to express his views.

Trump later reacted to the outcry by saying in a social media post that the video’s creators “SHOULD BE IN JAIL RIGHT NOW.”

The Pentagon’s action on Monday indicates that Trump-appointed federal agencies are willing to address the president’s political grievances.

In now-dismissed cases that some claim were political, the Department of Justice filed criminal charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey.

James was facing mortgage fraud allegations, while Comey was facing lying charges.

The Pentagon’s Kelly investigation received additional support later on Monday. If the ranks are disordered and chaotic, “you can’t have a functioning military.” And that’s what these Democratic lawmakers were encouraging, according to Trump’s press secretary Karoline Leavitt.