Appeals Court Appears Likely to Reject Hegseth’s Claim Against Sen. Kelly

WASHINGTON—A federal appeals court on May 7 seemed to side with Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) in his First Amendment suit against Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. Kelly, a veteran of the U.S. Navy, appeared in a video last November with other Democratic lawmakers urging soldiers to disobey any “unlawful” orders they received. All of those members of Congress are military or intelligence community veterans. Hegseth responded with a letter in January censuring Kelly, saying that his actions “undermined the chain of command,” “counseled disobedience,” and were “conduct unbecoming an officer.” He also said he would initiate proceedings to reduce the senator’s military rank and retirement pay because of his “seditious” conduct....