Mark Kelly slams handling of Iran conflict, says he’s discussing potential presidential run

U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly said Sunday the Trump administration is “flailing” in Iran without a clear strategy and it’s wasting the country’s military supplies.

He characterized the operation as a “disaster” during an interview on NBC News’ “Meet the Press.”

“These guys are flailing and this thing is completely stuck because this president got into this without a strategic goal,” Kelly said. “At first, this was about regime change. Then it became about nuclear weapons, then about ballistic missiles, then about the navy. They are flailing here.”

He referred to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth using terms like “maximum lethality” as evidence of simply wanting to drive numbers up, which has cost taxpayers exorbitantly because of the amount of supplies being dispensed.

“In a time where (the American people) couldn’t afford their lives, this president gets us into this war and costs continued to skyrocket,” Kelly said. “The price of gas — $4.50 a gallon here in Arizona, over $4 a gallon across the country — people can’t afford groceries and rent.

“This thing has been a disaster and they do not know what to do.”

In response to an NBC News report that the U.S. military is picking and choosing which Iranian missiles to shoot down because of dwindling munitions, Kelly described it as an “obvious” consequence of an aggressive approach without foresight over five months.

“(Hegseth) was talking about setting records. … Most of those targets are hit with multiple weapons, so of course we’ve expended tens of thousands of weapons,” Kelly said. “And it takes, as Pete Hegseth said in the committee hearing when I asked him this question, it’s going to take years to replenish these.”

The Trump administration on Wednesday requested $87.6 billion in supplemental funding, $67.1 billion of which was designated for the Pentagon ($21 billion to cover munitions).

“Do we really feel that we’re that threatened?” Kelly said. “If we had some competent people running this department, you could figure out how do you defend our nation and give the troops what they need within a reasonable budget. What they’re asking for is not reasonable.”

He said he has not decided whether he’ll vote to approve the funding.

Is Mark Kelly eyeing a 2028 presidential run?

A 2028 presidential bid may be on the table for Kelly, who wants to see how the national landscape looks after the midterm elections.

“I think we gotta see what are the issues that we’re facing after we get on the other side of November,” Kelly said. “It’s really critical that Democrats win back the House and the Senate, and put a check on a president who’s so corrupt there’s nothing to compare him to.

“It is corruption that we’ve never seen before, and it’s hurting the American people. People can’t afford their lives.”

He said he will continue to discuss the potential bid with his family.

Arizona’s other U.S. senator, Ruben Gallego, told KTAR News 92.3 FM on Friday that he’s considering his own presidential bid.

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