The U.S. Navy has submitted its report on the potential punishments for Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) over a recent video where he and other Democratic lawmakers told U.S. service members to disobey “illegal orders.”
The report, which was ordered by the Defense Department and referred to the Navy, was sent to the Pentagon’s Office of General Counsel, “where they are providing a legal review and input,” a department official told The Hill on Thursday.
“It defies belief that with all of the threats facing our country, Pete Hegseth initiated this ridiculous process to try to intimidate Senator Kelly for saying something Pete Hegseth himself has said repeatedly,” Kelly’s spokesperson told The Hill in a statement on Thursday.
Kelly was never contacted or notified about the report and “it sure as hell won’t stop him from doing his job representing Arizona, whether that is voting today to lower health care costs or making sure our service members have what they need to do a very difficult job,” the spokesperson said, adding that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and President Trump “could do themselves a big favor and learn about our country’s history, the Constitution and the rule of law.”
The Arizona senator retired from the Navy with the rank of captain and has deployed twice to the Persian Gulf. He has also worked as an instructor at the Naval Pilot School.
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