ANALYSIS
Pete Hegseth v. Mark Kelly: Can the Pentagon take away the Democratic senator's military pension?
The Trump Administration invokes a U.S. Code to reduce the Arizona senator's retirement grade.
U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz.
Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, has stepped up his offensive against Senator Mark Kelly following the release of a controversial and viral video. In that mid-November recording, the Arizona Democratic lawmaker, along with five other colleagues with military backgrounds, reminded the military that they could disobey illegal orders.
Following the announcement of previous investigations by the Pentagon and FBI, Hegseth has confirmed two new punitive measures against the former astronaut and veteran pilot:
- Military pension reduction: in his status as a Navy captain, Kelly receives a pension for his years of service. Hegseth assured that this retirement salary will be significantly reduced following an administrative process initiated just this week.
- Letter of censure in the official file: the War Department will issue a formal sanction of what it describes as Kelly's "reckless misconduct." This blemish would be permanently recorded on his military service record.
Does the secretary of war have legal authority to cut Mark Kelly's retirement?
To legally justify this move against the military retirement pension, the Trump Administration is relying on Chapter 10 of the United States Code, which regulates the operation and purpose of the Armed Forces.
Under current regulations, officers typically retire with benefits corresponding to the highest grade performed "satisfactorily." However, there are mechanisms in place to reopen these cases:
- Secretary's determination: the person in charge of determining that last grade satisfactorily performed is the secretary of each department, and in the case of the highest ranks, the Secretary of Defense (now Secretary of War).
- "Good cause" exception: the text states that the grade recognized for each serviceman on the day of his retirement must be respected, "and may not be reopened." There are four exceptions and among them, there is one that Hegseth could avail himself of: "(D) If the applicable Secretary determines, pursuant to regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Defense, that good cause exists to reopen the determination of retired grade."
- Right of reply: once the process is initiated, the former serviceman must be afforded a "reasonable opportunity to respond. Hegseth has given Kelly 30 days to file his pleadings, estimating that a final ruling on his new retirement grade will be made in 45 days.
The process calls into question the last recognized grade at the time of retirement. As a result, a new grade may be granted, with a corresponding new pension. If the grade is lower in rank than previously awarded, the financial compensation is reduced.
"As a retired Navy Captain who is still receiving a military pension, Captain Kelly knows he is still accountable to military justice," Hegseth sentenced on social networks, stressing that his position in the Senate does not grant him immunity from these measures.
Mark Kelly vows battle and appeals to the First Amendment
"My rank and retirement are things that I earned through my service and sacrifice for this country," Kelly defended himself in a publication. "I got shot at. I missed holidays and birthdays. I commanded a space shuttle mission while my wife Gabby recovered from a gunshot wound to the head– all while proudly wearing the American flag on my shoulder."
The former astronaut claimed that the administration was infringing on his freedom of speech guaranteed in the First Amendment, and that he wanted to send a message to all retired military personnel that "if they say something he or Donald Trump doesn’t like, they will come after them the same way."
"I will fight this with everything I’ve got — not for myself, but to send a message back that Pete Hegseth and Donald Trump don’t get to decide what Americans in this country get to say about their government," he vowed.
The Democratic lawmaker then posted a combative video on Instagram, recalling that four generations of his family served in the Army and taking aim at Trump: "How many generations of Donald Trump's family have served in the military? Zero."
After accusing the president of avoiding wearing the uniform five times, Kelly assured that his service and that of his family had earned him "the right to speak."
Democratic Party closes ranks in the face of Pentagon reprisals
Since the release of the video that prompted the Pentagon's retaliation, the Democratic Party has closed ranks around the so-called "seditious six" by the Administration. In recent hours, several senior party figures again endorsed Kelly.
"Mark Kelly is a hero and a patriot committed to serving the American people. Pete Hegseth is a lap dog committed to serving one man – Donald Trump," asserted Chuck Schumer, the Senate Democratic minority leader. "This is a despicable act of political retribution. I stand with Sen. Kelly, who will always do the right thing no matter the consequences."
Tim Kaine, senator from Virginia, went even further in his rebukes of Hegseth: "There is no such thing as a Department of War. There is no such person as the Secretary of War. Hegseth wants to cosplay in an alternate universe with a fake title and a fake department name to seem like a tough guy. Kelly is the real deal—a patriot not a poser."
His colleague Elissa Slotkin, another protagonist in the video, also criticized the secretary, accusing him of hypocrisy and describing him as "a man who doesn’t understand the values of the institution he now leads."
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