The War Department announced Monday that it will conduct a “thorough review” of “serious allegations of misconduct” levied against Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), a retired Navy captain.
The review will “determine further actions, which may include recall to active duty for court-martial proceedings or administrative measures,” according to the department’s statement, which was published on social media.
After the review was announced, War Secretary Pete Hegseth said, “The video made by the ‘Seditious Six’ was despicable, reckless, and false. Encouraging our warriors to ignore the orders of their commanders undermines every aspect of ‘good order and discipline.’ Their foolish screed sows doubt and confusion, which only puts our warriors in danger.”
The department’s statement included a reminder for retired military service members that they remain subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice for applicable offenses, as well as one for active-duty service members, noting that they are legally obligated to obey lawful orders.
Kelly was one of six Democratic veterans in Congress who participated in a video last week warning service members that they are obligated not to follow illegal orders. However, the lawmakers did not specify what orders could be issued that would be illegal.
He said he found out about the review on social media.
“Secretary Hegseth’s tweet is the first I heard of this,” Kelly said on social media. “I also saw the President’s posts saying I should be arrested, hanged, and put to death. 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. I’ve given too much to this country to be silenced by bullies who care more about their own power than protecting the Constitution.”
Kelly was joined by Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Reps. Jason Crow (D-CO), Maggie Goodlander (D-NH), Chris Deluzio (D-PA), and Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA) in the video.
“To my knowledge, I am not aware of things that are illegal, but certainly there are some legal gymnastics that are going on with these Caribbean strikes and everything related to Venezuela,” Slotkin said Sunday during an ABC News interview.
Hegseth noted that Kelly is the only one of the six lawmakers who is still subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
“Five of the six individuals in that video do not fall under [War Department] jurisdiction,” Hegseth said. “One is CIA, and four are former military but not ‘retired,’ so they are no longer subject to UCMJ. However, Mark Kelly, retired Navy commander, is still subject to UCMJ — and he knows that.”
The video got the attention of President Donald Trump, who initially accused the lawmakers of seditious behavior worthy of being killed. He and several Republican lawmakers said they tried to undermine the president and subtly encouraged service members not to follow legal orders.
Trump initially implied that the lawmakers were guilty of “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH.” However, he later said, “THE TRAITORS THAT TOLD THE MILITARY TO DISOBEY MY ORDERS SHOULD BE IN JAIL RIGHT NOW, NOT ROAMING THE FAKE NEWS NETWORKS TRYING TO EXPLAIN THAT WHAT THEY SAID WAS OK. IT WASN’T, AND NEVER WILL BE!”
In North Carolina, Democrat Richard Ojeda, who is challenging National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Richard Hudson (R-NC), was also the target of at least 10 death threats across social media, emails, and text messages, a source familiar confirmed to the Washington Examiner.
The FBI visited Ojeda’s home Sunday night in the wake of the credible death threats, the source confirmed.
Ojeda’s video, urging service members that it is “their duty” to refuse an “unlawful, illegal or immoral” order from the commander in chief, was picked up by Libs of TikTok.
In response, Ojeda, a retired major with 24 years of service, branded the group running the Libs of TikTok account as “keyboard warriors” and “basement dwellers,” who can “kiss my a**”
“Let me set the record straight: I would never tell members of the United States military to refuse lawful orders from Donald Trump or Pete Hegseth or anybody else,” he continued, in response to Trump’s previous threats calling for the death penalty against members of Congress who called for service members to follow lawful orders.
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“As a soldier, it is your duty to follow lawful orders from superior officers,” he said in a statement. “It is also your duty to refuse illegal orders. That is the core of the Uniform Code of Military Justice. For a president to call for the death of our elected officials under this political climate is either alarmingly incompetent or pure evil. It’s one of the most terrible things I have ever heard from an American President.”
Ojeda has reportedly raised $1.2 million in his uphill battle against Hudson, a notable sum for a non-incumbent Democrat.
