Mark Kelly sues Hegseth after attempt to downgrade pay
WASHINGTON - Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., sued Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the Department of Defense, alleging Trump administration officials violated his First Amendment rights and the Constitution’s Speech or Debate Clause for members of Congress, one week after the Pentagon started the process of downgrading the senator and former Navy captain’s rank and pay grade.
Key facts
- The Arizona senator filed a 46-page complaint in the federal District Court for the District of Columbia on Monday, about one week after Kelly vowed to “fight this with everything I’ve got.”
- The complaint accuses the government of punishing Kelly for protected speech under the First Amendment.
- Hegseth said he began the process to downgrade Kelly’s rank and pay in retirement after the senator appeared in a video alongside other Democratic elected officials in November that encouraged military members to “refuse illegal orders.”
- The suit says Kelly’s statements in the video were protected by the Speech or Debate Clause, the clause in the Constitution that protects lawmakers from prosecution over their speech and “legislative activity”—which the suit says the video constituted.
- In a statement sent to Forbes, Kelly accused Hegseth of “coming after what I earned” over his 25-year career in the military, calling the defense secretary’s move an “unconstitutional crusade” that would have a “chilling effect” on speech from other veterans.
Key background
In the video, Kelly told members of the military that “our laws are clear: You can refuse illegal orders.” Immediately after the video was released, Trump administration officials responded with what the lawsuit characterized as “extreme rhetoric and punitive retribution.” Hegseth contended these were “seditious statements” and the video was “intended to undermine good order and military discipline.” The defense secretary accused the statements of violating articles of the Uniform Code of Military Justice. (Source: Forbes)