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Sen. Kelly Sues Pete Hegseth Over Military Censure

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Mark Kelly. Video screenshot

Democratic Senator Mark Kelly has initiated legal proceedings against Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. The lawsuit challenges Hegseth's decision to censure Kelly last week after the senator participated in a social media video asserting that U.S. service members have the right to refuse unlawful orders. Kelly contends that the censure violates his constitutional rights and has broader implications for military veterans.

In a strong statement, Kelly accused Hegseth of undermining his rights as an American citizen and a retired veteran. "Pete Hegseth is coming after what I earned through my twenty-five years of military service," he declared, stressing that the censure sends a worrying signal to retired military personnel about facing penalties for speaking out.

The suit further names the Department of Defense, Secretary of the Navy John Phelan, and the Department of the Navy as co-defendants, focusing on alleged breaches of his First Amendment rights and legislative protections.

The controversy stems from Hegseth’s description of Kelly’s actions as “seditious,” following the senator's participation in the video last November, alongside other Democratic veterans. Kelly and his co-participants assert that their message aligns with the Uniform Code of Military Justice and constitutional principles. The censure could lead to a demotion and affect his retirement pay, impacting the benefits from Kelly's 20-plus years as a Navy captain.

Kelly defended his actions in an ABC News interview, maintaining that he stands by his message to the troops. He emphasised his and his wife, former Rep. Gabby Giffords', resolve to resist any intimidation. So far, the Department of Defense has not responded to requests for comment. The censure, announced on January 5, includes the unusual step of reducing Kelly's military rank, reported ABC News.

Key Takeaways:

  • Senator Mark Kelly has sued Pete Hegseth over a censure for a controversial video.

  • The lawsuit claims the censure infringes Kelly’s constitutional rights.

  • The censure may result in Kelly’s rank reduction and affect his retirement pay.

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Adapted by ASEAN Now from ABC News 2026-01-13

 

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Excellent!!It will also be a great vehicle to produce conversation over the incompetence of this administration and hopefully further senator Kelley’s bid for the presidency…….yup gonna be good 👍 popcorn at the ready!!

civil war is comming !!

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Can't understand why telling people NOT to do anything illegal is somehow illegal.

Hegseth would prefer Kelly had told soldiers to follow illegal orders?

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What a lot of people don't seem to understand is that Hesgeth is a grossly unqualified individual, l a very minor former news host, who was promoted to the an incredibly powerful position of Sec Def. This man might have been qualified to lead the San Diego County of the Boy Scouts, maybe. He's in so far over his head and the man is so drunk with his new found power.

Kelly is a man of great honor and distinction compared to Hesgeth, who is a dull drunkard who vomits in the back of Uber cars. Anything that can be done to expose his lack of honor, his lack of patriotism, and his extreme lack of qualifications for the job is a huge favor to the American people and a huge slap in the face to the circus clown. At this point in time both Tiny Petie and Don need to be slapped down as often as possible. I'm guessing at this point the military utterly despises them both, and has a great deal of contempt for the command structure at this point. 

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There is a video of Hegseth from a few years ago with him also stating that members of the military do not have to follow illegal orders.

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Hope Senator Kelly wins.

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I would love to see a Kelly/Beshear ticket. I think they would be unbeatable and in addition to that I think they would actually have a chance of getting America back on track after the utter disaster of the Trump/Vance Administration.

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Hegseth must have been on the ‘turps’ the night he posted his rationale for censuring Kelly.

Kelly’s actual words were:
‘Our laws are clear. You can refuse illegal orders.’

Hegseth inverted it and misquoted refuse lawful orders.

Hegseth’s public statement:
‘These actions are based on Captain Kelly's public statements from June through December 2025 in which he characterized lawful military operations as illegal and counseled members of the Armed Forces to refuse lawful orders.’
Obviously, he’s the merit-based DUI pick for Secretary of Defense.

I’d be surprised if Kelly doesn’t use that word substitution — made in Hegseth’s public statement, not the formal censure — to support his defamation claim.


https://x.com/SecWar/status/2008189258528665898

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7 hours ago, newnative said:

Hope Senator Kelly wins.

He'll waltz it ... not even a court martial would convict him.

'I was only following orders' has been completely struck out as a defense against war crimes charges since the Nuremberg war crimes trials post-WW2. Kelly is absolutely right and it's great to hear him speak out and stand up to be counted.A rarity in the contemporary US.

S. Korean court has just sentenced the country's former defense minister and the former chief of police to jail (life and 20 years respectively) for carrying out the illegal orders during then President's Yoon's attempted coup at the end of 2024.

It would be nice to see Hegseth and Noem to name just two facing the same fate.

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8 hours ago, BusyB said:

He'll waltz it ... not even a court martial would convict him.

'I was only following orders' has been completely struck out as a defense against war crimes charges since the Nuremberg war crimes trials post-WW2. Kelly is absolutely right and it's great to hear him speak out and stand up to be counted.A rarity in the contemporary US.

S. Korean court has just sentenced the country's former defense minister and the former chief of police to jail (life and 20 years respectively) for carrying out the illegal orders during then President's Yoon's attempted coup at the end of 2024.

It would be nice to see Hegseth and Noem to name just two facing the same fate.

Yes, indeed. In the Twilight Zone we are living in, Trump can tell over 30,000 documented lies and get away with it but Kelly is prosecuted for telling one truth. And, now, they are apparently going after Senator Slotkin, who also made the same mistake of telling the same truth. Unbelievable, but there it is. For the record, they both simply stated what is in the US Military Code of Conduct.

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10 minutes ago, newnative said:

Yes, indeed. In the Twilight Zone we are living in, Trump can tell over 30,000 documented lies and get away with it but Kelly is prosecuted for telling one truth. And, now, they are apparently going after Senator Slotkin, who also made the same mistake of telling the same truth. Unbelievable, but there it is. For the record, they both simply stated what is in the US Military Code of Conduct.

Can we all say banana republic………

4 hours ago, Tug said:

Can we all say banana republic………

Certainly behaving like one with the backing of 77 million citizens.

I suspect the Dems won't make much change after the still theoretically upcoming mid-terms. They certainly won't dare to campaign on serious change. So even if they win they won't have a mandate for it - like the UK's 'Labour' Party.

I'm still trying to get my head round 77 million voting for this moron and his hate driven, cruel and incompetent 56!tfest. They were all very transparent about what they intended before the election - they had perhaps the most transparent and honest campaign ever in that sense. 'They're eating the dawgs, eating the pets.' What moronic, racist garbage. And 77 million decided they wanted all those lies and deceit and cruelty and fraud and misogyny and and ... My sympathies are severely limited, not that the cult will care.

This is clearly a perfect case of the country having the government it deserves. Not at all sure that recovery is even possible now - too many red lines simply bulldozed under with masked presidential paramilitary gangs roaming the streets essentially with carte blanche. And the regime bare faced blatantly lying about the recent fatal shooting of Ms. Good (nomen est omen) in a manner not even the Soviets would have dared. And now investigating the bloody victims!

Wow! Stunned.

Will you stop with this Secty of 'Defense' nonsense already! Give the man the current he's due. Hegseth is Secretary of War...and don't you forget it!

34 minutes ago, unblocktheplanet said:

Hegseth is Secretary of War.

To a warmongering Dictator!

On 1/14/2026 at 8:53 AM, spidermike007 said:

Kelly is a man of great honor and distinction compared to Hesgeth, who is a dull drunkard who vomits in the back of Uber cars

Hegseth makes up another part of Donnie's unqualified muppet show, but at least he has a lot in common with trump.......

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45 minutes ago, xylophone said:

Hegseth makes up another part of Donnie's unqualified muppet show, but at least he has a lot in common with trump.......

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Hegseth has the honor and dignity of a Thai soi dog. Actually I didn't intend to insult the Thai soi dogs that viciously.

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