Arizona's Kelly vows to stay outspoken despite threats over illegal order video

Source: Nebraska Examiner

By: Jennifer Shutt - December 1, 2025 6:10 pm Updated 6:14 pm (CST)

WASHINGTON — Arizona Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly said Monday the threat of a court-martial for a video he and other senators released telling military members not to follow illegal orders is an effort to silence the president’s political opponents.

Kelly, a retired Navy captain, was one of six Democratic lawmakers with backgrounds in the military or intelligence agencies who appeared in the video that was posted on social media in mid-November.

President Donald Trump alleged the lawmakers had committed “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!” for telling members of the military and intelligence communities that they “can” and “must refuse illegal orders.”

Kelly said during a press conference that he and his wife, former U.S. Rep. Gabby Giffords, who survived being shot during a town hall in 2011, have experienced a sharp increase in threats in the weeks since Trump reacted negatively to the video.


Arizona Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly speaks with reporters in the Mansfield Room of the U.S. Capitol on Monday, Dec. 1, 2025. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)


Read more: https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2025/12/01/repub/arizonas-kelly-vows-to-stay-outspoken-despite-threats-over-illegal-order-video/