To the editor:

Recently, President Donald J. Trump, totally inappropriately and completely without merit, announced that he and his administration were strongly considering re-enlisting Sen. Mark Kelly, a Democrat from Arizona, into active military duty, in order to formally court-martial and disgrace him for his statement, which had been made in unison with five of his Democratic colleagues, that those in the military service to our great country must defy illegal orders and abide by their oath to military service, the U.S. Constitution and military protocol and not to simply break the law if ordered to do so, which is by no means controversial and required of all who serve our nation.

However, unfortunately, in the age of Trump, reinforced by his sycophantic, and utterly incompetent defense secretary Pete Hegseth, the rule of law, once again, has been completely ignored and disrespected in order that the egotistical Trump can seek revenge and retribution on Kelly, as well as countless others of whom he might disagree.

Kelly, who happens to be an outspoken Trump critic is, without question, an American hero, having long served in our nation’s armed forces as a Naval officer, where he served from 1987 until his retirement in 2011, having earned the rank of captain.

During his career in the military, Kelly served as a Naval aviator and flew in 39 combat missions during the Iraq war, and later as a NASA astronaut, and flew in four space shuttle missions, including as crew leader on the Endeavor in 2011.

Politically, Kelly began his career as a senator representing Arizona as a result of a special election held in 2020 to fill the seat previously held by legislative icon and military hero John McCain, who had died. Later, Kelly became Arizona’s senior senator upon the retirement of Sen. Krysten Sinema in 2025.

Throughout his legislative career, Kelly has been well known for his strong advocacy and support of our nation’s military and its veterans.

Kelly’s advising members of our military that they are not at all obligated to follow illegal orders should not be seen as controversial by any means, for it is the law.

However, Trump, who himself is a convicted felon and who has referred to those who have given their lives in support of our great country as “losers and suckers” and avoided serving in our nation’s military as a result of bone spurs, of which there is no corroborating evidence, obviously continues to attempt to rule as an autocrat who is simply above the law.

Hopefully, this very troubling situation will be resolved in a positive manner, and we as a nation can move forward in the very near future.

Richard Hord

Martins Ferry