Senate Democrats on the chamber's Armed Services Committee called the Pentagon's investigation into Senator Mark Kelly, D-Arizona, "an outright, brazen abuse of power" in a letter sent to Secretary of the Navy John Phelan on Dec. 9.
"We believe this 'review' along with the Department of Defense’s social media post announcing a 'thorough review' of Senator Kelly’s actions ... amount to a purely political exercise seeking to threaten legitimate and lawful actions by a duly elected Senator, and politicize our military justice system," according to the letter provided to USA TODAY.
The Pentagon announced on Nov. 24 that it was investigating Kelly for "serious allegations of misconduct." The announcement came after Kelly joined five other Democratic lawmakers who released a video on Nov. 18 telling service members they have the right not to obey orders they believe are illegal.
The letter notes that while military retirees generally remain subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice, it calls a potential disciplinary action for "restating the law as articulated in the UCMJ" an " incredibly dangerous precedent."
A Nov. 25 memo posted by the Department of Defense, under the moniker of the Department of War, states that Phelan is to brief Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on the investigation "no later" than Dec. 10.
