Sen. Mark Kelly said Sunday that President Trump “doesn’t understand the Constitution” and that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth should be fired for his handling of multiple issues.
Mr. Kelly, Arizona Democrat and a retired Navy captain, was responding to Mr. Hegseth’s plan to recall the senator to active-duty status so he can face court-martial proceedings over his appearance in the social media video that also featured Democratic Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan and four House Democrats.
In the video, the Democrats remind service members that they have a duty to refuse any illegal orders from the president under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
“We said something very simple and non-controversial, and the president said ’hang them, execute them, prosecute them,’” Mr. Kelly said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
“We’re, by the way, reciting the Uniform Code of Military Justice,” the senator said. “It’s obviously ridiculous.”
Democrats and some Republicans on Capitol Hill have raised concerns about the legality of U.S. military strikes against suspected drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, along with deploying National Guard troops to Democrat-led U.S. cities to help crack down on crime.
The video enraged Mr. Trump, who called it very serious and seditious.
The Democrats say they were highlighting established rules and principles. But the administration argued that the lawmakers were trying to undermine the president and did not bother to cite any Trump order that may have been illegal.
Beyond the Department of Defense, the FBI has requested interviews with the Democratic lawmakers involved and has coordinated with the Senate and the House sergeants at arms.
Reps. Jason Crow of Colorado, Chris Deluzio of Pennsylvania, Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire and Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania released a statement confirming the FBI contact.
Mr. Kelly, a former astronaut and possible 2028 presidential contender, unloaded Sunday on the defense secretary as unserious and unqualified for his job. He pointed to an early scandal in which Mr. Hegseth and other officials appeared to discuss attack plans over a Signal chat that accidentally included a journalist.
The senator also expressed concerns about reports that U.S. military personnel authorized a strike on two people clinging to a boat, alleged to be carrying drugs, after an initial strike failed to kill everyone on board.
Asked if it amounted to a war crime, Mr. Kelly said: “It seems to.”
Mr. Hegseth has been undeterred by criticism of Mr. Trump’s strikes against Venezuelan boats.
“We have only just begun to kill narco-terrorists,” Mr. Hegseth posted on X.
Mr. Kelly said Mr. Hegseth “should have been fired after Signal-gate, and he should be fired after this.”
“We have a president who doesn’t understand the Constitution, who installed an unqualified secretary of defense,” Mr. Kelly said.
