Mark Kelly Responds After Hegseth's Censure

Sen. Mark Kelly is firing back aggressively at both defense chief Pete Hegseth and President Trump over the Pentagon's action against him. Soon after Hegseth censured Kelly and threatened to reduce his military retirement rank and pay because of a video message to troops, the Arizona Democrat declared that he would "fight this with everything I've got," reports the Hill. The controversy stems from a video Kelly made with other Democrats informing troops they have a right to disobey illegal orders. Hegseth and Trump describe the video as seditious.

• "Pete Hegseth wants to send the message to every single retired servicemember that if they say something he or Donald Trump doesn't like, they will come after them the same way," tweeted Kelly. "It's outrageous and it is wrong. There is nothing more un-American than that."
• On Instagram, Kelly made a point to contrast his military record and that of his family with Trump's. "Four generations of my family have served our country," he wrote. "Service is in my blood. The President wouldn't know anything about that."
• "My rank and retirement are things that I earned through my service and sacrifice for this country," wrote Kelly. "I got shot at. I missed holidays and birthdays. I commanded a space shuttle mission while my wife Gabby recovered from a gunshot wound to the head—all while proudly wearing the American flag on my shoulder."
• Read Hegseth's statement against Kelly here. The senator, he asserted, "released a reckless and seditious video that was clearly intended to undermine good order and military discipline."