The Pentagon just dropped a bombshell by launching an investigation into Sen. Mark Kelly over what President Trump calls outright sedition.
The New York Post reported that this fiery controversy erupted after Kelly, a retired Navy captain, joined five other Democratic veterans in a video urging U.S. service members to reject illegal orders, sparking a political storm with Trump and Republicans crying foul.
The drama kicked off when Kelly and his colleagues—Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.), Rep. Maggie Goodlander (D-N.H.), Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-Pa.), and Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.)—released their now-infamous video.
President Trump didn’t mince words, blasting the group on Truth Social with a blistering accusation of “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL.”
Trump even reposted a message suggesting extreme punishment, though he later dialed back to calling for jail time instead of harsher measures.
Republicans, including veteran lawmakers, piled on with criticism, arguing the video undermines military discipline by sowing confusion over lawful orders.
The Pentagon’s probe zeros in on Kelly, the only one of the six under Department of War jurisdiction due to his retired military status.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth slammed the video as “despicable, reckless, and false,” warning it endangers troops by encouraging defiance. Isn’t it curious how a call to uphold the Constitution gets twisted into a threat to “good order”?
The investigation focuses on Kelly’s use of his rank and service history in the video, which Hegseth claims gave an improper “appearance of authority.”
Kelly, unfazed, pushed back hard, declaring, “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” (Sen. Mark Kelly).
Let’s unpack that—Kelly’s banking on his 25 years of service to shield him from what looks like a politically charged witch hunt. But will waving the Constitution card hold up under military law scrutiny?
Interestingly, the video didn’t point to any specific illegal orders, with Slotkin admitting on ABC’s “This Week” that she’s unaware of any such directives from Trump.
Kelly, appearing on CBS News’ “Face the Nation,” justified the video by citing Trump’s past remarks about using the military in ways he claims were unlawful, like targeting terrorists’ families or shooting protesters.
While those comments from Trump—echoed by former Defense Secretary Mark Esper regarding shooting protesters in the legs—raise eyebrows, one wonders if preemptively rallying troops against hypotheticals crosses a line. Shouldn’t the focus be on actual orders rather than speculative fears?
Meanwhile, Democratic leaders like Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) have called for beefed-up security for the six lawmakers after Trump’s heated rhetoric, a move that underscores how tense this showdown has become.
