From Mark Kelly <[email protected]>
Subject They can threaten my rank and my pension — but they’re not going to shut me up
Date January 7, 2026 6:21 PM
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Team:

Pete Hegseth decided he's going to censure me, and is threatening to demote me and reduce my pension.

I got shot at in service to this country. I missed holidays and birthdays. I commanded a space shuttle mission and launched to the International Space Station while my wife recovered from a gunshot wound to the head.

My rank and retirement are things that I earned through my service and sacrifice for this country. Generations of servicemembers have done the same. Pete Hegseth wants to send a message to every single one that he will come after them if they say something he doesn’t like.

You swear an oath to the Constitution when you join the military — including the First Amendment right to free speech. We swore to defend the foundational principles of this country. I took that oath seriously 40 years ago, and I still do.

Pete Hegseth can threaten to reduce my rank and my pension. But I am not going to let him intimidate me, or anyone else. He is not going to stop me from defending our democracy from a president who is hellbent on destroying it.

If they think this is going to shut me up, they’ve got another thing coming.

And if you’re still with me, please: Split a donation between Eric Sorensen and me so we can fight back. [[link removed]]

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Don’t give up the ship.

Mark
    
Eric Sorensen is a meteorologist born and raised in Rockford, IL representing IL-17 in Congress. He’s seen firsthand the importance of establishing trust with the community, and he’s determined to use his expertise as a climate communicator to fight for Illinoisans on environmental justice and more in Washington. To support Eric consider making a grasssroots contribution here: [link removed]

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