Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., a retired Naval officer, is suing the War Department, as well as War Secretary Pete Hegseth, over the agency’s actions to demote him and cut his retirement pay for urging military service members to “refuse illegal orders” in a video message with other leading Democrats.
A federal lawsuit filed in Washington D.C., names Hegseth, the Navy, Department of Defense – now renamed the War Department – and Navy Secretary John Phelan, as defendants.
Hegseth has sought to reduce Kelly’s retirement rank and military pension amid a feud with the Trump administration, after Kelly joined five other Democratic lawmakers in a November video telling service members that they were obligated to refuse illegal orders.
In a letter censuring Kelly, Hegseth said Kelly’s remarks did not promote good order and discipline.
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