Judge seems skeptical of legal justification for Pentagon’s punishment of Sen. Mark Kelly
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court knows of no precedent that would justify this decision, a federal judge said Tuesday. Pentagon condemns incumbent US senator Who participated in the video recording? Call for soldiers to resist illegal orders From the Trump administration.
Senator Mark Kelly He sat front row in the courtroom as his lawyers urged U.S. District Judge Richard Leon to block the Pentagon from sentencing the Arizona Democrat, a retired U.S. Navy pilot. Leon did not immediately rule from the bench on Kelly’s allegations that Pentagon officials violated his First Amendment rights to free speech.
But the judge appeared to be skeptical of key arguments made by a government lawyer in defense of Kelly. January 5 condemnation From Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.
“You’re asking me to do something the Supreme Court hasn’t done before,” the judge told Justice Department attorney John Bailey. “Isn’t that a bit of an exaggeration?”
Bailey argued that Congress has ruled that retired military service members are subject to the Uniform Rules of Military Justice that apply to active-duty troops.
“Retirees are part of the armed forces,” Bailey said. “They are not separate from the services.”
Benjamin Mizer, one of Kelly’s attorneys, said they were not aware of any rulings supporting the idea that military retirees’ “right to speak out” has been diminished. And he argued that the First Amendment clearly protects Kelly’s speech in this case.
“And any other approach would be to make new laws,” Mizer added.
Leon, who was nominated to the bench by Republican President George W. Bush, said the Pentagon’s actions against Kelly could have a chilling effect on “a lot of retirees who want to voice their opinions.”
The judge said he hopes to make a decision by next Wednesday. Kelly shook hands with two government lawyers after the hearing.
In November, Kelly and five other Democratic lawmakers released a video in which they called on troops to protect the Constitution and not follow the Trump administration’s unlawful military directives.
Republican President Donald Trump, in a post on social media days later, accused lawmakers of inciting insurrection “punishable by DEATH.” Hegseth said Kelly’s reprimand was a “necessary due process step” in proceedings that could result in the senator being demoted as a retired captain and subsequently reducing his pension benefits.
The 90-second video was first published on a social media account belonging to Senator Elissa Slotkin. Reps. Jason Crow, Chris Deluzio, Maggie Goodlander and Chrissy Houlahan also appeared in the video. Participants are all veterans of the armed services or intelligence communities.
The Pentagon began investigating Kelly in late November, citing a federal law that allows retired soldiers to be recalled to active duty for possible court-martial or other punishment upon the order of the secretary of defense.
Hegseth said Kelly is the only one of the six lawmakers to be investigated because he is the only one who is officially retired from the military and still falls under the Pentagon’s jurisdiction.
