Jeanne's Cookies: They can threaten my rank and my pension, but they’re not going to shut me up

Wednesday, January 7, 2026

They can threaten my rank and my pension, but they’re not going to shut me up

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 Off the Sidelines and me so we can fight back.

If you've saved payment information with ActBlue Express, your split donation to Mark Kelly and Off the Sidelines PAC will go through immediately:

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Don't give up the ship.

Mark