CDR Salamander - Did Sen. Kelly (D-AZ) Put the SHIPS for America Act in Danger?

In the last week there is a topic that I’ve covered on the UNCLAS Read Board Podcast last Wednesday, and this Sunday on the Midrats Podcast, that it is still stuck in my craw—so let’s start the week with it as I think it has the potential to have an even worse second-order effect than I thought.

I am, of course, referring to one of the most irresponsible collective acts by our elected representatives who once wore the uniform or served in our intelligence services since, well, I’m having trouble coming up with something else this gross.

A group of six Democratic lawmakers with military or national security backgrounds released a video in November 2025 urging U.S. service members and intelligence personnel to refuse unlawful orders. Participants included Senator Elissa Slotkin, Senator Mark Kelly, Representative Jason Crow, Representative Chris Deluzio, Representative Maggie Goodlander, and Representative Chrissy Houlahan. Their message emphasized that the oath is to the Constitution, not to any leader, and warned that threats to constitutional order can arise “from within.” The lawmakers said troops “can and must refuse illegal orders,” a claim that is technically correct under military law. They framed the message as a reminder of constitutional duty rather than a political statement.

Here, watch it again.

There is no attempt here to specifically say WHAT orders are illegal. Of course not. No. What they are trying to do here is provoke someone to take their advice and personally/professionally/legally self-immolate themselves for some stupid reason so the politicians can consume that person—a real person with a life, family, and future-—for crass political purposes.

I will let others focus on Slotkin, Crow, Deluzio, Goodlander, and Houlahan—they are not my specific concern. As far as I can tell, in this gathering, Senator—belay my last—Captain Kelly is the Senior Officer Present Afloat (SOPA). As such, this is all on him. This is a stunt I would expect from some overly enthusiastic and narrowly experienced politician who has done nothing else in their life…but a career naval officer?

No.

Coming from him, it is bad in two different ways.

First, they ended this national embarrassment with “Don’t Give Up the Ship.” You know, the U.S. Navy’s battle cry that originated from the dying words of Captain James Lawrence in 1813.

It means something.

Second, one of the most important acts needed to bolster our maritime power to face the challenge west of the International Date Line to come in front of Congress in a generation, the SHIPS for America Act, S-1541, starts like this:

I’m sorry, but being SOPA on this reckless stunt—and worse, leading with the fact you are a “Captain, USN (Ret.)” as an appeal to authority and underlining the message with an almost sacred Navy moto—just poisons the SHIPS Act with his name at the lead of it. It gives any Senator who was on the edge of supporting it an excuse to either move into opposition, or perhaps worse, avoid expending unnecessary political capital to push it through.

And for what? This bit of ill-advised political posturing?

There are 27 members of the 119th Congress from the Democratic Party who have served in the military. Four of them decided to participate in this reckless call to dishonor. Captain Kelly was the most senior officer…and he wants to be the name to lead a maritime revival?

That’s a tough sell.

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