War Secretary Pete Hegseth sharply criticized the “Seditious Six” group of Democrat lawmakers for publishing a “despicable video” urging service members to refuse orders from President Donald Trump.
The Democrats, most of them military veterans, released a video suggesting the military should scrutinize whether orders from Trump are “lawful.”
Hegseth has just fired back, warning that the message was crafted to sow doubt inside the ranks.
The video featured six Democrats: Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), a former CIA analyst; Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), a retired Navy captain; and Reps. Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA), Maggie Goodlander (D-NH), and Jason Crow (D-CO).
The group urged troops to “refuse illegal orders.”
Hegseth warns that the language took on a very different meaning inside the military than it might appear to civilians.
The War chief responded in a detailed post on Tuesday, calling the video a deliberate attempt to undermine the chain of command.
“The despicable video urging @DeptofWar troops to ‘refuse illegal orders’ may seem harmless to civilians — but it carries a different weight inside the military,” Hegseth wrote.
“This was a politically-motivated influence operation: It never named a specific ‘illegal order’;
“It created ambiguity rather than clarity;
“It used carefully scripted, legal-sounding language;
“It subtly reframed military obedience around partisan distrust instead of established legal processes.”
He continued, “In the military, vague rhetoric and ambiguity undermines trust, creates hesitation in the chain of command, and erodes cohesion.
“The military already has clear procedures for handling unlawful orders. It does not need political actors injecting doubt into an already clear chain of command.
“As veterans of various sorts, the Seditious Six knew exactly what they were doing — sowing doubt through a politically-motivated influence operation.
“The @DeptofWar won’t fall for it or stand for it.”
The despicable video urging @DeptofWar troops to “refuse illegal orders” may seem harmless to civilians — but it carries a different weight inside the military.
This was a politically-motivated influence operation:
☑️ It never named a specific “illegal order.”
☑️ It created…— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) November 25, 2025
Hegseth has also moved quickly on potential disciplinary action. Because Kelly is retired military, he remains subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
On Monday, Hegseth noted that fact publicly, and on Tuesday, he sent a memorandum to the Secretary of the Navy requesting a full review of Kelly’s statements in the video.
Hegseth said he expects a briefing on the review no later than December 10.
— Department of War 🇺🇸 (@DeptofWar) November 25, 2025
The Department of War has already opened a broader review into the conduct of the lawmakers featured in the video, signaling that the administration views the message as a serious breach of military norms at a moment when clarity in the chain of command remains essential.
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