Sen. Kelly sues Hegseth over effort to reduce retirement pay

By Dave Mason
The Center Square

Editor’s note: This story has been updated since its initial publication to include a comment from the White House.

U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Arizona, is suing Secretary of War Pete Hegseth over his effort to reduce Kelly’s Navy retirement pay following the senator telling service members to disobey illegal orders.

The retired Navy combat pilot announced the suit Monday night. It was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. In addition to Hegseth, the defendants are the Department of War, the Department of the Navy and Secretary of the Navy John Phelan.

Kelly, who’s also a former astronaut, said the issue is bigger than him and that few things are as important as standing up for the rights of veterans who fought to defend Americans’ freedoms. In a statement, he called freedom of speech, the Constitution’s separation of powers and due process the “bedrock principles of our democracy that has lasted 250 years and will last 250 more as long as patriotic Americans are willing to stand up for our rights.”

“Pete Hegseth is coming after what I earned through my 25 years of military service, in violation of my rights as an American, as a retired veteran, and as a United States Senator whose job is to hold him — and this or any administration — accountable,” Kelly said. “His unconstitutional crusade against me sends a chilling message to every retired member of the military: if you speak out and say something that the President or Secretary of Defense doesn’t like, you will be censured, threatened with demotion, or even prosecuted.”

The Center Square reached out Tuesday morning to the White House, which commented about Kelly.

“Mark Kelly sowed doubt in a clear chain of command, which is reckless, dangerous, and deeply irresponsible for an elected official,” White House spokesperson Anna Kelly told The Center Square. “As Secretary Hegseth said, Kelly’s status as a sitting U.S. senator does not exempt him from accountability.”

The Center Square on Tuesday reached out to the Department of War, which replied by email, “We are aware of the litigation. However, as a matter of policy, the Department does not comment on ongoing litigation.”

The Center Square also reached out Kelly’s press office, but did not receive an immediate response.

Hegseth announced on Jan. 5 that he was issuing a “Secretarial Letter of Censure” to reduce Kelly’s retirement rank. According to media reports, Kelly’s rank would go from captain to commander, with a corresponding reduction in retirement pay from approximately $6,000 a month to about $5,000 a month.

Hegseth said the action is being taken because of Kelly participating, along with five other members of Congress, in a video in November telling service members to disobey illegal orders. Hegseth has called the comments seditious but noted Kelly, as a retired military member, is the only congressional member in the video subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

“Six weeks ago, Senator Mark Kelly — and five other members of Congress — released a reckless and seditious video that was clearly intended to undermine good order and military discipline,” Hegseth wrote Jan. 5 on X.

“Captain Kelly’s status as a sitting United States Senator does not exempt him from accountability, and further violations could result in further action,” Hegseth wrote.

“These actions are based on Captain Kelly’s public statements from June through December 2025 in which he characterized lawful military operations as illegal and counseled members of the Armed Forces to refuse lawful orders,” Hegseth said. “This conduct was seditious in nature and violated Articles 133 and 134 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, to which Captain Kelly remains subject as a retired officer receiving pay.”

Kelly has said his First Amendment rights are being trampled, a point that the lawsuit emphasized.

“The First Amendment forbids the government and its officials from punishing disfavored expression or retaliating against protected speech,” according to Kelly’s lawsuit. “That prohibition applies with particular force to legislators speaking on matters of public policy.”

The lawsuit cites Bond v. Floyd, a 1966 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in which justices said the Constitution “requires that legislators be given the widest latitude to express their views on issues of policy.” The suit noted justices ruled “the government may not recharacterize protected speech as supposed incitement in order to punish it.”

“The Secretary’s letter makes clear on its face that he is disciplining Senator Kelly solely for the content and viewpoint of his political speech,” the lawsuit said.

The suit also accuses Hegseth of denying Kelly his due process. And it noted the censure interferes with the legislative branch’s constitutional ability to perform oversight of the executive branch, pointing out Kelly serves on committees that perform oversight. The senator’s committees include Armed Services and Intelligence.