President Donald Trump’s and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s attempts to silence Sen. Mark Kelly (R-Ariz.) are a threat to free speech in America, according to a retired lieutenant colonel.
“The defense secretary first targeted Kelly because he was one of the Senate Democrats who recorded a video reminding service members that they can disobey unlawful orders, and Hegseth declared that he was reducing Kelly’s rank and military pension,” wrote Lt. Col. Rachel E. VanLandingham (ret.) for MS NOW on Sunday. “However, Judge Richard Leon of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia temporarily enjoined the Pentagon from doing so.”
Despite Leon’s rejection of Trump’s and Hegseth’s efforts, VanLandingham described how “alarmingly, Hegseth’s new attempt to mute his nemesis Kelly is part of the Pentagon’s larger effort to muzzle all of us military retirees, especially those with legislative power.” Citing Hegseth’s recent statement that Kelly was “blabbing on TV” about a supposedly “classified” Pentagon briefing and vowing that the Defense Department will “review” whether he violated “his oath… again?” VanLandingham contextualized this statement as part of the same censorious reasoning used in Trump’s appeal of Leon’s ruling.
“During its appeal of Judge Leon’s ruling, which came days before the defense secretary posted about Kelly on X, the government shockingly argued that all military retirees have to essentially give up some of our free speech rights in order to retain the benefits we earned during long and honorable careers on active duty,” VanLandingham wrote. “Furthermore, the government argued that Kelly, instead of his speech being given even more protection due to his oversight role as a senator, should have fewer speech rights because his impact on the military could be greater.”
She added, “This is quite dangerous. If the Pentagon can shut down a sitting senator, then it can shut down all of us.”
She also noted the irony of Hegseth accusing Kelly of being careless with classified information, given his own central role last year in the so-called “Signal Gate” scandal.
“The ‘Signal Gate’ defense secretary, whose own inspector general found that he mishandled classified information, should not be insinuating that Kelly’s public comments, such as ‘we’ve expended a lot of munitions,’ violated any oath Kelly made, whether as a military officer or his Senate oath of office (senators do not take secrecy oaths, nor do they have security clearances),” VanLandingham wrote. “But Hegseth continues to reveal himself as a Pentagon chief more concerned with picking frivolous fights with a military-seasoned senator than making the case to the American people for war in Iran.”
She added, “Clearly, the Trump administration, and Hegseth in particular, does not want its military narratives challenged by anyone who has the most credibility and experience to do so.”
Kelly himself speculated last week that Trump and Hegseth are targeting him because they do not want veterans, who are well-versed in military strategy, to point out the problems in how he is waging America’s war against Iran.
“I think it comes down to the fact that he doesn't want to be held accountable,” Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) told MS NOW’s Jake Tapper. “They've expended an enormous amount of munitions, and I think the only investigation we need — the one we need right now — is: after 15,000 strikes, all we got out of this is 13 dead Americans. We have the Strait of Hormuz closed, gas prices in Arizona are $4.80 a gallon and seem to be heading up.”
Kelly concluded, “And we have a Secretary of Defense who is not only ill-prepared, unprepared, and unqualified for this job — he doesn't want to be held accountable for the actions.”