Justice Department appeals ruling blocking punishment of Sen. Mark Kelly
The Department of Justice on Tuesday appealed a federal judge’s order that barred the Pentagon from punishing Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., over a video that urged U.S. service members to defy “illegal orders,” the DOJ said in court filings. The appeal was filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia on behalf of War Secretary Pete Hegseth, the Department of War, the U.S. Navy and Navy Secretary John Phelan, the filing said.
U.S. District Judge Richard Leon earlier this month ruled the Pentagon likely violated Kelly’s First Amendment rights and those of “millions of military retirees” when it formally censured him on Jan. 5, Leon wrote. Leon blocked the Pentagon from demoting Kelly’s retired rank of captain or reducing his military retirement pay, saying Kelly showed he would likely succeed on the merits and had demonstrated irreparable harm, the ruling said.
Kelly reacted on X, reposting coverage of the appeal and writing, “These guys don’t know when to quit.” He wrote that “a federal judge told Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth that they violated my constitutional rights and chilled the free speech of millions of retired veterans.” He added on X that “there is only one reason to appeal that ruling: to keep trampling on the free speech rights of retired veterans and silence dissent,” and said he would not back down from the fight, his posts said.
Hegseth earlier responded on X to the district court ruling, writing, “Sedition is sedition, ‘Captain.'” The dispute stems from a 90-second video first posted by Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., that urged service members to “refuse illegal orders” and included Rep. Jason Crow of Colorado, Rep. Chris Deluzio of Pennsylvania, Rep. Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire and Rep. Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania, according to reporting. A Washington, D.C., grand jury rejected a DOJ effort to indict the group, further escalating the dispute, Fox News Digital reported.
Fox News Digital said it reached out to the Department of War and the Department of Justice for comment. Sen. Kelly’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment, the outlet reported. Alexandra Koch contributed to the report, Fox News Digital said.
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