Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) is standing up for his colleague Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), whom the Pentagon is investigating over alleged breaches of military law after he and five fellow Democratic veterans urged active service members not to obey unlawful orders.
“Mark Kelly is a patriot,” Gallego said in a self-recorded video Monday on Instagram.
He continued, “There’s no reason why they’re going after him. He was doing his duty and just reminding people about their rights as service members. And [Defense] Secretary [Pete] Hegseth, all these guys, fuck you guys. You’re not going to be able to scare us.”
Gallego appeared later that day on CNN to discuss the matter on “The Arena with Kasie Hunt,” whose host asked what he would say directly to Hegseth if the outraged senator had the chance. Gallego, a former U.S. Marine who served in Iraq, once again spoke freely.
“I think, No. 1, you will never, ever, ever even be half the man that Sen. Kelly is,” Gallego said directly into the camera Monday. “You, sir, are a coward, and the fact that you are following this order from the president shows how big of a coward you are.”
