A federal judge ruled on Thursday that the Pentagon cannot cut Arizona Senator Mark Kelly's pay over the “Seditious Six” controversy, in which Kelly and five other Democratic colleagues urged National Guardsmen not to follow “illegal orders.” The video in question did not cite any specific illegal orders, but the Trump administration interpreted the remarks as an attempt by the Democrats to encourage disobedience among the National Guard, which had been deployed to several major U.S. cities to help curb rising crime rates.
BREAKING: Elected Democrats just released a video encouraging members of the military to commit treason and DEFY orders from Trump and Hegseth pic.twitter.com/Sm4calnccR
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) November 18, 2025
Senior U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon, a George W. Bush appointee, ruled that the attempt to cut Sen. Kelly's pay was likely a violation of his First Amendment rights.
"Secretary Hegseth relies on the well-established doctrine that military servicemembers enjoy less vigorous First Amendment protections given the fundamental obligation for obedience and discipline in the armed forces," Judge Leon wrote. "Unfortunately for Secretary Hegseth, no court has ever extended those principles to retired servicemembers, much less a retired servicemember serving in Congress and exercising oversight responsibility over the military. This Court will not be the first to do so!"
“This Court has all it needs to conclude that Defendants have trampled on Senator Kelly’s First Amendment freedoms and threatened the constitutional liberties of millions of military retirees. After all, as Bob Dylan famously said, ‘You don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows,’” Leon continued. “To say the least, our retired veterans deserve more respect from their Government, and our Constitution demands they receive it!”
"Senator Kelly's First Amendment claim is not only justiciable; he is likely to succeed on the merits. He has also shown irreparable harm, and the balance of the equities falls decidedly in his favor," the judge added.
In early January, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth vowed to bring Sen. Kelly to justice, writing on X:
Six weeks ago, Senator Mark Kelly — and five other members of Congress — released a reckless and seditious video that was clearly intended to undermine good order and military discipline. As a retired Navy Captain who is still receiving a military pension, Captain Kelly knows he is still accountable to military justice. And the Department of War — and the American people — expect justice.
Therefore, in response to Senator Mark Kelly’s seditious statements — and his pattern of reckless misconduct — the Department of War is taking administrative action against Captain Mark E. Kelly, USN (Ret). The department has initiated retirement grade determination proceedings under 10 U.S.C. § 1370(f), with reduction in his retired grade resulting in a corresponding reduction in retired pay.
Six weeks ago, Senator Mark Kelly — and five other members of Congress — released a reckless and seditious video that was clearly intended to undermine good order and military discipline. As a retired Navy Captain who is still receiving a military pension, Captain Kelly knows he…
— Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (@SecWar) January 5, 2026
Sen. Kelly blasted the move, claiming the lawsuit violated his rights as an American, and responded with a lawsuit of his own.
Pete Hegseth is coming after what I earned through my twenty-five years of military service, in violation of my rights as an American, as a retired veteran. His unconstitutional crusade against me sends a chilling message to every retired member of the military: if you speak out and say something that the President or Secretary of Defense doesn’t like, you will be censured, threatened with demotion, or even prosecuted.
It remains unclear whether the injunction will be appealed.