(Washington) The US Department of Defense announced Monday that it had opened an investigation against Democratic Senator Mark Kelly, threatening this ex-navy pilot and astronaut with court martial for having called on the military to disobey “illegal orders” from the White House.
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In a statement published on X, the Pentagon said it had received “serious accusations” regarding the conduct of “Captain Mark Kelly, retired from the US Navy”.
In accordance with current military justice regulations, the ministry adds, “a careful examination of these accusations has been initiated in order to determine what additional actions to take.”
Such actions may include “recall to active duty for court-martial proceedings or administrative action,” the statement said.
Asked by AFP, the senator’s services did not react immediately.
Alongside Mark Kelly, elected representatives of Congress who served in the army or the intelligence services published a video last week in which they launched to the military and intelligence agents: “You can refuse illegal orders. »
“Today, threats against our Constitution do not only come from abroad, but also from here, at home,” they denounced.
Their message angered the White House, and Donald Trump accused these elected Democrats of “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!” “.
“TRAISTERS WHO TOLD THE ARMY TO DISOBEY MY ORDERS SHOULD BE IN PRISON NOW,” the US president said in a new message on Saturday.
The elected Democrats do not specify in their video which orders they are referring to, but Donald Trump and his faithful ally at the Pentagon, Minister Pete Hegseth, are criticized for their use of the armed forces.
The US president ordered the deployment of the National Guard in several Democratic cities, including Los Angeles and Washington, against the wishes of local authorities.
In recent weeks, the United States has also carried out around twenty strikes in the Caribbean and the Pacific against boats that it accuses – without presenting evidence – of transporting drugs, causing at least 83 victims.
Mark Kelly, senator from Arizona since 2020, served in the US Navy as a fighter pilot, before becoming an astronaut and space shuttle pilot.
The elected Democrat, of moderate leaning, is seen as one of the rising stars of the party with a view to the 2028 presidential election.
