The Pentagon’s efforts to punish Sen. Mark Kelly for appearing in a video message and urging U.S. troops not to follow illegal orders was smacked down by a judge on Thursday.
A U.S. District Court judge in Washington, D.C. wrote that the Pentagon had no jurisdiction to police the speech of retired service members in a preliminary ruling issued in the case, which hinged around Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s attempt to reduce Kelly’s retirement rank and pay.
The decision is just the latest defeat for the Trump administration in its failure-prone campaign to use the criminal justice system against enemies and critics of the president and his administration, and comes after previous failed efforts to prosecute the likes of former FBI Director James Comey as well as other Democrats involved in the video with Kelly. The senator sued the Trump administration in January after Hegseth’s announcement of his plans to go after Kelly.
Judge Richard Leon ruled that 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” but reminded the Pentagon’s chief that no court had ever ruled that the Pentagon would be able to exercise similar control over Americans who aren’t actively serving in the military.
His ruling continued: “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.’ To say the least, our retired veterans deserve more respect from their Government, and our Constitution demands they receive it!”
Kelly responded in his own statement, calling the effort to reduce his rank and pay a broader attempt to send a message to other retired service members about cricitizing the Trump administration.
“[T]his case was never just about me,” said the Arizona Democrat. “This administration was sending a message to millions of retired veterans that they too can be censured or demoted just for speaking out.”
This is a breaking news report, more to follow…
Source: independent.co.uk