Mark Kelly's legal team hits back at Pentagon with stern threat

An attorney representing Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) fired off a warning letter to the Department of Defense on Monday, saying the senator is prepared to take whatever legal action is necessary to stop what they regard as an illegal and politically motivated investigation into him.

Kelly has been singled out for investigation under military law, after he and five other Democratic lawmakers with a military background published a video reminding servicemembers they have a duty to refuse illegal orders — a video Trump proclaimed to be "seditious" and "punishable by death" in social media rants.

The letter was first posted to X on Monday evening by Punchbowl News' Andrew Desiderio.

"Secretary Hegseth's contemporaneous statements, as well as official statements from the Department of Defense, made clear that you were to consider recalling Senator Kelly to active duty for the purpose of a court-martial, and challenging the rank at which he retired," wrote attorney Paul J. Fischman in a letter addressed to Secretary of the Navy John Phelan. "We now understand from public reporting that you have completed your assignment and that you have submitted your brief to the Department of Defense's Office of General Counsel for 'legal review and input.'"

"To be clear: there is no legitimate basis for any type of proceeding against Senator Kelly, and any such effort would be unconstitutional and an extraordinary abuse of power," said the letter. "If the Executive Branch were to move forward in any forum criminal, disciplinary, or administrative-we will take all appropriate legal action on Senator Kelly's behalf to halt the Administration's unprecedented and dangerous overreach."

"Senator Kelly flew thirty-nine combat missions as a Naval Aviator and four space flights as a NASA astronaut," the letter concluded. "The people of Arizona have elected him twice as their United States Senator. He has dedicated his life and his career to defending our country and its Constitution. He will not stop doing so now."

This letter was sent shortly before a new statement from the Pentagon, which Trump rebranded the "Department of War" in a controversial executive order, stating that they are "escalating the preliminary review" of Kelly for "serious allegations of misconduct."