WASHINGTON – US Senator Mark Kelly alleged that President Donald Trump is sending a “message” that Americans cannot criticize their government – after the Pentagon last week opened an investigation into the Arizona Democrat that could include a recall to active duty for court-martial proceedings.
“They’re trying to send a message to retired service members, government employees, members of the military, elected officials, and all Americans who are thinking about speaking out, you better keep your mouth shut, or else,” Kelly, a retired US Navy captain, said at a Dec. 1 press conference on Capitol Hill.
The Pentagon announced last week that it was investigating Kelly for “serious allegations of misconduct.” The move came after Kelly joined a group of Democratic lawmakers who released a video telling service members they have the right to disobey orders they believe are illegal.
Trump’s War Department in a post on X last week confirmed that it will begin an investigation into Kelly that could “include recall to active duty for court-martial proceedings or administrative measures.” The post cited the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the federal law that outlines the military’s criminal code.
US Senator Mark Kelly, Democrat from Arizona, speaks during a press conference at the US Capitol on December 1, 2025 in Washington, DC.
However, Kelly in his press conference said that the Trump administration’s public comments are “the only notification we have received to date” about a potential court-martial. Legal and military experts told USA TODAY that a case against Kelly faces major obstacles and is likely to be “dead on arrival” in the military courts.
“It is a dangerous moment for the United States of America when the president and his loyalists use every lever of power to silence US senators for speaking out,” Kelly said.
The FBI last week also requested interviews with the Arizona senator and the five other Democratic members of Congress who participated in the video.
Shortly after the clip was released, Trump in a slew of social media posts accused Democratic lawmakers of “SEDIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!” He later told Fox News he did not believe the lawmakers should be executed but warned they were in “serious trouble.”
Addressing Trump’s initial social media posts on the video, Kelly claimed the president “has no regard for the rule of law.” But the senator also said he does not plan to sue Trump for his public criticism.
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Kelly also criticized recent US attacks on suspected drug boats, following a report that the US military carried out a strike on a ship in the Caribbean and killed two survivors as they tackled the wreckage.
Congress was briefed on the first three strikes, Kelly said. But the member of the Senate Armed Services Committee alleged that the officials were “tying themselves in knots, trying to explain why this whole operation is legal.”
He said he wants officials associated with strikes to come before the committee to outline the legal argument to the American public, including addressing concerns about due process, a guarantee under the 14th Amendment to the Constitution.
The Trump administration is facing increased scrutiny from a bipartisan group of lawmakers after the most recent strikes, though the president’s allies say they are national security efforts.
“If there’s anyone who needs to answer questions in public, and under oath, it’s Pete Hegseth,” Kelly said.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Sen. Mark Kelly calls Trump, Pentagon investigation ‘dangerous moment’