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Gone quiet · last update May 11, 2026 / Mark Kelly

Hegseth's case against Sen. Mark Kelly for urging troops to refuse illegal orders

Overview · reviewed October 26, 2026

Sen. Mark Kelly, an Arizona Democrat and retired Navy captain, has been fighting the Pentagon's efforts to punish him since he and five other Democratic lawmakers urged troops in a November 2025 video to refuse illegal orders.[1][2] Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth censured him in January 2026 and moved to cut his retirement rank and pay.[3][4] In February a federal judge blocked the punishment as a violation of Kelly's First Amendment rights, and the Pentagon appealed.[5][6] In May, Hegseth called for a second review, of Kelly's comments after a classified briefing.[7]

Read the timeline

Follow this story to see new developments when you return.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth censured him in January 2026 and moved to cut his retirement rank and pay.[3][4] In February a federal judge blocked the punishment as a violation of Kelly's First Amendment rights, and the Pentagon appealed.[5][6] In May, Hegseth called for a second review, of Kelly's comments after a classified briefing.[7]

Coverage over time

Share of tracked outlets · weekly (UTC)

Week of 2025-11-17 (UTC): 6%, 11 of 189 tracked outlets (4 left, 7 center, 0 right)Week of 2025-11-24 (UTC): 19%, 29 of 153 tracked outlets (7 left, 15 center, 7 right)Week of 2025-12-01 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-12-08 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-12-15 (UTC): 6%, 12 of 187 tracked outlets (2 left, 4 center, 6 right)Week of 2025-12-22 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-12-29 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-01-05 (UTC): 6%, 12 of 198 tracked outlets (3 left, 7 center, 2 right)Week of 2026-01-12 (UTC): 21%, 40 of 191 tracked outlets (11 left, 20 center, 9 right)Week of 2026-01-19 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-01-26 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-09 (UTC): 9%, 17 of 180 tracked outlets (5 left, 9 center, 3 right)Week of 2026-02-16 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-23 (UTC): 3%, 5 of 186 tracked outlets (1 left, 2 center, 2 right)Week of 2026-03-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-16 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-23 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-30 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-06 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-13 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-04 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-11 (UTC): 3%, 6 of 176 tracked outlets (1 left, 0 center, 5 right)Week of 2026-05-18 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-25 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-01 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-08 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-15 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-22 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-29 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-06 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-13 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-03 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-10 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-17 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-24 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-31 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-07 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-14 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-21 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-28 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-05 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-12 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-19 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-26 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-11-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-11-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outlets, so far

LeftCenterRight

Each bar is the share of the outlets on our Left / Center / Right rating scale that we tracked publishing that week which carried reporting on this story, split by the outlets' ratings.We track more outlets now than in the archive, so a share keeps earlier and later weeks comparable. An outlet counts once a week however much it published, and outlets in one ownership or syndication group count as one on each side they appear on. A rating describes the outlet, not the report. A gap means no such reports were collected that week, not that nothing was reported anywhere. Weeks run Monday to Sunday in UTC, so a report published on a Sunday evening in US Eastern time counts in the next week. 3 more outlets off the scale (not rated, or outside the left-right graphs) also reported; they are not in this chart. See them.

Weekly counts, outlets and reports (8 weeks with coverage)
Outlets on the rating scale that carried this story each week, of the outlets tracked that week, newest first
Week of (UTC)LeftCenterRightOf trackedShareReceipts
May 11, 20261056 of 1763%
Feb 23, 20261225 of 1863%
Feb 9, 202659317 of 1809%
Jan 12, 20261120940 of 19121%
Jan 5, 202637212 of 1986%
Dec 15, 202524612 of 1876%
Nov 24, 2025715729 of 15319%
Nov 17, 202547011 of 1896%

Latest coverage

The newest reporting in this story's record.

  1. May 10, 2026 · first reported · Headline from New York Post

    Hegseth says Pentagon will review Mark Kelly’s public statements about classified briefing amid ongoing feud

Background

The dispute began when Sen. Mark Kelly and five other Democratic lawmakers posted a video urging military and intelligence personnel to refuse unlawful orders. President Donald Trump called it "SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!" and called for their arrest, and the Democrats accused him of promoting political violence.[8] On November 24, the Pentagon said it was investigating "serious allegations of misconduct" against Kelly, a former Navy pilot and NASA astronaut, and could recall him to active duty to face a court-martial or administrative punishment.[2] The FBI sought to interview all six lawmakers.[1] Kelly said the investigation was an effort to silence dissent within the military.[9]

Read the full background (1 more paragraph)

The Pentagon then moved to punish him. On January 5, 2026, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced a letter of over the video,[3] and said the department was taking steps to downgrade Kelly's military retirement rank and pay.[4] A week later Kelly sued Hegseth and the Pentagon, calling the effort "unlawful and unconstitutional" retaliation for protected speech.[4][10] On February 12, US District Judge Richard Leon blocked the punishment, ruling that Pentagon officials had violated Kelly's First Amendment rights.[5] Hegseth appealed.[6] In May he said the Pentagon would review Kelly's public comments about US weapons stockpiles after a classified briefing, suggesting Kelly might have violated his oath; it was the second review he had opened into the senator.[7] Rep. Thomas Massie's push to impeach Hegseth is followed separately.

Supporting stories (10)
  1. FBI seeks interviews with Democratic lawmakers who urged US troops to defy illegal orders
  2. Who is Mark Kelly, the senator the Pentagon is targeting for urging troops to defy illegal orders?
  3. Hegseth Censures Sen. Kelly After Warning About Following Illegal Orders
  4. Sen. Mark Kelly files lawsuit against Pete Hegseth after censure
  5. Judge temporarily blocks Pentagon from punishing Sen. Mark Kelly for call to resist unlawful orders
  6. Pentagon Appeals Order Blocking Sen. Mark Kelly's Punishment for Call to Resist Unlawful Orders
  7. Hegseth says Pentagon will review Mark Kelly’s public statements about classified briefing amid ongoing feud
  8. Trump says he wasn't threatening Democrats he accused of 'seditious behavior, punishable by death'
  9. Sen. Mark Kelly Calls Pentagon Investigation Into His Remarks a Move to Chill Military Dissent
  10. Sen. Kelly Sues the Pentagon Over Attempts to Punish Him, Declaring It Unconstitutional

The full record

Each date is when an update was first reported.

All 10 recorded updates

May 2026

  1. Hegseth says Pentagon will review Mark Kelly’s public statements about classified briefing amid ongoing feudHeadline from New York Post · 6 outlets

February 2026

  1. Pentagon Appeals Order Blocking Sen. Mark Kelly's Punishment for Call to Resist Unlawful OrdersHeadline from Military.com · 5 outlets
  2. Judge temporarily blocks Pentagon from punishing Sen. Mark Kelly for call to resist unlawful ordersHeadline from MyNorthwest · 17 outlets

January 2026

  1. Sen. Kelly Sues the Pentagon Over Attempts to Punish Him, Declaring It UnconstitutionalHeadline from Military.com · 23 outlets
  2. Sen. Mark Kelly files lawsuit against Pete Hegseth after censureHeadline from ABC 7 Los Angeles · 20 outlets
  3. Hegseth Censures Sen. Kelly After Warning About Following Illegal OrdersHeadline from Military.com · 12 outlets

December 2025

  1. Sen. Mark Kelly Calls Pentagon Investigation Into His Remarks a Move to Chill Military DissentHeadline from Military.com · 12 outlets

November 2025

  1. FBI seeks interviews with Democratic lawmakers who urged US troops to defy illegal ordersHeadline from MyNorthwest · 23 outlets
  2. Who is Mark Kelly, the senator the Pentagon is targeting for urging troops to defy illegal orders?Headline from WDIO Duluth · 15 outlets
  3. Trump says he wasn't threatening Democrats he accused of 'seditious behavior, punishable by death'Headline from NBC Los Angeles · 13 outlets

Coverage & sources

Read the reports, see how much was collected over time, or compare outlets by political leaning.

Coverage & sources →