US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced last week that the Pentagon plans to demote Senator Mark Kelly from his captain rank. Hegseth accused the former naval officer of reckless and wrongful conduct for urging military personnel to "resist all unlawful orders". This action could result in a reduced pension and a reprimand on Kelly's military record.

On 12/1, Kelly filed a lawsuit in federal court in Washington, accusing Hegseth, Secretary of the Navy John Phelan, and the US Department of the Navy of "violating multiple constitutional rights and lacking legal basis."

"The First Amendment prohibits the federal government and government officials from punishing dissenting views or retaliating against legally protected speech", Kelly stated in the lawsuit. "This provision should be applied even more strictly to legislators when they speak about public policy."

A Pentagon official confirmed the agency is aware of the lawsuit and "does not comment on ongoing legal processes."

Democratic Senator Mark Kelly at Capitol Hill, Washington on 8/1. Photo: AFP.

Kelly served in the US Navy from 1986 to 2011, participated in the Gulf War from 1990 to 1991, and traveled to space 4 times. He ran for the Senate in 2019 and currently holds the senatorial seat representing Arizona.

"Secretary Hegseth is targeting what I built over 25 years of military service, violating my rights as a US citizen, a veteran, and a US senator", Kelly stated before the Senate on 12/1. "I am simply reiterating the law: military personnel must refuse unlawful orders. Yet, he believes restating the law is a violation of the law."

In 11/2025, Kelly and 5 Democratic colleagues posted a video alleging that the administration of US President Donald Trump was violating the law by deploying the military to attack suspected drug-carrying vessels off the coast of Latin America, simultaneously urging soldiers not to carry out "unlawful orders."

The Pentagon declared these raids legitimate actions because the US considers suspected drug traffickers to be terrorists. Hegseth then criticized the 6 Democratic senators as "rebellious, irresponsible, and undermining military discipline."

Nhu Tam (According to AFP, Reuters)