Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) set tongues wagging on Sunday when he appeared on "Face the Nation" and spoke about munitions being depleted because of Operation Epic Fury against Iran.
It was host Margaret Brennan's tweet that got people going:
After hearing the Pentagon classified brief on Iran war impact on US weapons stockpiles, Senator Mark Kelly says it is "shocking how deep we have gone into these magazines." He said the Tomahawks, ATACMS, SM-3, THAAD rounds, Patriot rounds, so those interceptor rounds to defend…
— Margaret Brennan (@margbrennan) May 10, 2026
After hearing the Pentagon classified brief on Iran war impact on US weapons stockpiles, Senator Mark Kelly says it is "shocking how deep we have gone into these magazines." He said the Tomahawks, ATACMS, SM-3, THAAD rounds, Patriot rounds, so those interceptor rounds to defend ourselves have been hit hard. He says it'll take years to replenish those stockpiles, which could affect a hypothetical US conflict with China.
Then this was what Kelly said.
🚨 HOLY CRAP! SecWar Pete Hegseth has just opened a Pentagon legal investigation into Sen. Mark Kelly for possibly OPENLY LEAKING a *classified* briefing on CBS' Face The Nation
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) May 10, 2026
The topic was US weapons stockpiles — info that could help OUR ENEMIES
EXPEL HIM! Traitor!
HEGSETH:… pic.twitter.com/NEMdqPHBdk
A number of times, we've been briefed by the Pentagon on specific munitions. Actually, it's been pretty detailed on Tomahawks, ATACMS, SM-3, THAAD rounds, Patriot rounds, so those interceptor rounds to defend ourselves. And the numbers are, I think it's fair to say it's shocking how deep we have gone into these magazines, because this president got our country into this without a strategic goal, without a plan, without a timeline, and because of that, we've expended a lot of munitions, and that means the American people are less safe, whether it's a conflict in the western Pacific with China or somewhere else in the world, the munitions are depleted. You may have seen me ask the Secretary of Defense this question about how long it's going to take to replenish. We're talking about years.
Brennan specifically asked Kelly if China attacked Taiwan and we became involved, how long our supply could hold out, and he actually responded to that question, saying if it took days or weeks, he thought we would be "well-positioned to do that," but if it took months, we would be in a worse position than we would have been before the Iran action.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth responded to Brennan's tweet.
“Captain” Mark Kelly strikes again.
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) May 10, 2026
Now he’s blabbing on TV (falsely & dumbly) about a *CLASSIFIED* Pentagon briefing he received.
Did he violate his oath…again? @DeptofWar legal counsel will review. https://t.co/mPBZHxZqpr
“Captain” Mark Kelly strikes again. Now he’s blabbing on TV (falsely & dumbly) about a *CLASSIFIED* Pentagon briefing he received. Did he violate his oath…again? @DeptofWar legal counsel will review.
READ MORE: Mark Kelly Sets Internet Ablaze With Claim About Our Munitions, Hegseth's Response Is Pure Fire
So now here's Kelly's response to Hegseth. He doesn't address the question of the briefing he spoke of, and Brennan referenced, but he claims what he said wasn't classified, and refers to a video of him questioning Hegseth (and pontificating against Trump).
We had this conversation in a public hearing a week ago and you said it would take “years” to replenish some of these stockpiles. That’s not classified, it’s a quote from you. This war is coming at a serious cost and you and the president still haven’t explained to the American… https://t.co/q3wX9AjRzO pic.twitter.com/5q7Gg81Xtg
— Senator Mark Kelly (@SenMarkKelly) May 11, 2026
We had this conversation in a public hearing a week ago and you said it would take “years” to replenish some of these stockpiles. That’s not classified, it’s a quote from you. This war is coming at a serious cost and you and the president still haven’t explained to the American people what the goal is.
A few points. Hegseth did not verbally identify any systems. He didn't say which might take "years." He also said some took months and were already being rapidly replaced. So what he said varied from what Kelly said.
Hegseth also noted that there was depletion from the Ukraine War. Yet I don't recall Democrats objecting to pouring money and weapons out the door to Ukraine, which was not even our fight. And again, he's not specific, so he's not putting out anything problematic.
Then, too, Kelly claims that President Donald Trump hasn't explained what the goal is, when Trump is constantly repeating the main goal: to stop the Iranian regime from getting a nuclear weapon.
Why are Democrats so rabid over the use of weaponry in a fight in our own interests to stop Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, after they've threatened us and killed hundreds of Americans through proxies for 47 years? They should be supportive that the threat is finally being addressed.
Plus, should a senator ever be answering that question of how long our munitions would hold out, if China attacked Taiwan and we became involved? What is China going to think if they hear that?
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