Mark Kelly says he learned about Pete Hegseth’s push to court-martial him through social media
WASHINGTON, DC: Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) stated on Monday, December 1, that he learned he could be facing a court-martial through a tweet from Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth.
He took a jab at Hegseth for his approach, as well as his leadership of America’s troops, during an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper on Monday.
Mark Kelly says Pete Hegseth posting about court-martial was 'ridiculous'
During the interview, Jake Tapper asked Mark Kelly if the FBI had reached out to him for an interview or if the military had contacted him, after Kelly and five other Democrats shared a video urging troops to "refuse illegal orders".
Kelly said, "The court-martial, Hegseth notified me in a tweet. I mean, how ridiculous is this? That this guy, I mean, it’s not a normal process, [it] doesn’t make any sense. He tweeted something, that’s how I got notified. That’s all I’ve heard from the Navy."
"And that says everything about Pete Hegseth," he added.
Interestingly, Kelly was referring to an X post from the Department of War on November 24, which mentioned it was conducting a "thorough review" to see if a court-martial was warranted.
OFFICIAL STATEMENT:
— Department of War 🇺🇸 (@DeptofWar) November 24, 2025
The Department of War has received serious allegations of misconduct against Captain Mark Kelly, USN (Ret.). In accordance with the Uniform Code of Military Justice, 10 U.S.C. § 688, and other applicable regulations, a thorough review of these allegations…
In a video posted by Sen Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) in November, Kelly told service members that "threats to the Constitution aren’t just coming from abroad, but right here at home".
Meanwhile, the other Democrats in the video were Rep Chris Deluzio (D-PA), Rep Maggie Goodlander (D-NH), Rep Jason Crow (D-CO), and Rep Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA). They have served in the Navy, Army, Air Force, and Central Intelligence Agency.
We want to speak directly to members of the Military and the Intelligence Community.
— Sen. Elissa Slotkin (@SenatorSlotkin) November 18, 2025
The American people need you to stand up for our laws and our Constitution.
Don’t give up the ship. pic.twitter.com/N8lW0EpQ7r
The lawmakers said in the video, "You can refuse illegal orders. You must refuse illegal orders."
Mark Kelly criticizes Trump’s permanent pause on immigration
During his appearance on NBC's ‘Meet the Press’, on Sunday, November 30, Mark Kelly discussed Donald Trump’s permanent pause on immigration from third-world and concerning countries in light of the recent attack on the National Guard in DC.
He said that his understanding of the new directive was that "they don’t want Brown people" coming to America.
During the interview, Kristen Welker asked Kelly for his thoughts on Trump’s permanent pause on immigration, and the senator said he found the move "disturbing". He noted that the US has always welcomed people who were struggling and fleeing famine and violence.
MARK KELLY: “When I heard the secretary say that they're going to pause immigration from third world countries, I take that as a message that they don't want brown people coming to the United States. And I find that disturbing.” pic.twitter.com/1cb32drqZ1
— Chief Nerd (@TheChiefNerd) November 30, 2025
"It would be a fundamental change to the fabric of our nation to change that," Kelly said.
Meanwhile, Welker asked him what he thought the Trump administration wanted to do when they used the term "remigration", and Kelly said it meant they were "kicking people out".
Moreover, the senator added that the POTUS wanted to deport people and added that it was "ridiculous" and called it a "strategy".
