Nov. 24 (UPI) — The U.S. Department of Defense announced on X that it will investigate Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., for “serious allegations of misconduct.”
The investigation comes in response to President Donald Trump’s accusation of “seditious behavior” after Kelly and five others posted a video reminding service members that they can and must refuse illegal orders.
After the video was released, Trump said on Truth Social, “This is really bad, and Dangerous to our Country. Their words cannot be allowed to stand. SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR FROM TRAITORS!!! LOCK THEM UP???,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Thursday morning.
In another post, he called the video, “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!”
Kelly is a retired Navy pilot and NASA astronaut, whose wife, Rep. Gabby Giffords, D-Ariz., was shot in the head at a campaign event in Tuscon, Ariz., in 2011. She survived, but suffered severe brain injury.
On X, the Defense Department said Monday it’s beginning a “thorough review” that could result in a court martial against Kelly.
“The Department of War reminds all individuals that military retirees remain subject to the UCMJ for applicable offenses, and federal laws such as 18 U.S.C. § 2387 prohibit actions intended to interfere with the loyalty, morale or good order and discipline of the armed forces. Any violations will be addressed through appropriate legal channels.
“All servicemembers are reminded that they have a legal obligation under the UCMJ to obey lawful orders and that orders are presumed to be lawful. A servicemember’s personal philosophy does not justify or excuse the disobedience of an otherwise lawful order,” the Pentagon said.
The Democrats in the video released a joint statement Thursday.
“What’s most telling is that the president considers it punishable by death for us to restate the law. Our servicemembers should know that we have their backs as they fulfill their oath to the Constitution and obligation to follow only lawful orders. It is not only the right thing to do, but also our duty,” they said.
“But this isn’t about any one of us. This isn’t about politics. This is about who we are as Americans. Every American must unite and condemn the president’s calls for our murder and political violence. This is a time for moral clarity.”
The Uniform Code of Military Justice states that service members are required to follow lawful orders, but can be prosecuted for following unlawful orders.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defended Trump’s statements, though she said the video was “punishable by law,” not death.
“To signal to people serving under this commander in chief, Donald Trump, that you can defy him and you can betray your oath of office, that is a very, very dangerous message. And it perhaps is punishable by law. I’m not a lawyer. I’ll leave that to the Department of Justice and the Department of War to decide.”
Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Trump’s words are dangerous in this era of political violence.
“He is lighting a match in a country soaked with political gasoline. Every senator, every representative, every American, regardless of party, should condemn this immediately, without qualification, because if we don’t draw a line here, there is no line left to draw,” ABC News reported Schumer as saying.
Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., a Marine combat veteran, told ABC News that the president “doesn’t understand the military.”
“He thinks the military is one of his personal little play toys,” Gallego said. “He, for some reason, thinks that men and women upholding their oath is a contradiction to him as commander in chief — which, again, tells you he doesn’t really understand his role.”
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