Pete Hegseth isn’t even in the building yet, but he’s already making his target list clear. At the top of it? Senator Mark Kelly.
You’d think a retired Navy captain and NASA astronaut would be the last person the Pentagon would want to mess with. But Hegseth, the man tapped to lead the Department of Defense, sees things differently. He’s reviving a push to punish Kelly for his past actions and his vocal role in Washington politics.
The retired officer trap
The core of the argument is about how retired military officers should behave. Hegseth has long argued that high-ranking officials shouldn’t use their former titles to jump into the political fray. And he’s specifically zeroed in on Kelly, an Arizona Democrat who has been a consistent critic of the MAGA movement.
The plan involves using the Uniform Code of Military Justice to go after retirees. It’s a move that would have been unthinkable a few years ago. But Hegseth wants to set a new standard: if you’re still receiving a pension, you’re still subject to the military’s rules of conduct.
So, what does this actually look like? It could mean attempting to strip Kelly of his rank or even pulling him back into active service just to face a court-martial. It sounds like a plot from a political thriller, and legal experts say it would face massive hurdles in court.
Why Kelly is in the crosshairs
Kelly isn’t just any politician. He represents everything Hegseth has promised to change about what he calls the “woke” military establishment. Kelly has been a key voice on the Senate Armed Services Committee, often clashing with the ideas Hegseth promoted for years on television.
- Kelly’s support for diversity programs in the ranks.
- His role in investigating military personnel decisions during the first Trump term.
- His status as a high-profile veteran who actively opposes Trump’s policies.
But this isn’t just about one Senator. It’s a signal to every retired officer who might consider speaking out. Hegseth wants to make it clear that the safety net of retirement doesn’t mean you’re beyond the reach of the chain of command.
This push is bound to trigger a massive fight in Washington. It pits the First Amendment against military tradition in a way we haven’t seen in the modern era. If Hegseth succeeds, the path from the cockpit to the halls of Congress might get a lot more dangerous.