Mark Kelly criticizes Pete Hegseth for pretending to be a soldier

Arizona Senator Mark Kelly criticized Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday, accusing him of treating his role like a game, after Hegseth shared a juvenile meme that trivialized his militarys extrajudicial actions. At a press briefing, Kelly highlighted the alarming immaturity in Hegseths approach to leading the Pentagon.

Consider this: he talks about lethality and warrior ethos, boasting about killing, while leading what is arguably the most capable military force in history. That is not the message the Secretary of Defense should convey, Kelly said. He added that Hegseth behaves more like a child playing army than a responsible defense leader. He moves around on stage like a 12-year-old in costume. Its absurd, its embarrassing. I can only imagine how our allies view someone so unfit for one of the nations most critical roles, Kelly remarked.

Kelly referred to a controversial September summit where Hegseth gathered senior military officials to express personal grievances about overweight men with beards, a move widely seen as unprofessional. The Arizona senators remarks come after he became a target of the Trump administration. Recently, Hegseth threatened to court-martial Kelly, a former astronaut and Navy officer, after he appeared in a video urging military and intelligence personnel not to follow unlawful orders.

Kelly also condemned Hegseth for sharing an AI-generated image of Franklin the Turtle destroying drug boats shortly after revelations suggested the secretary might have committed a war crime himself. This is the person in charge of the nations nuclear arsenal, posting images of turtles with rocket-propelled grenades online. Its absurd and shows hes not serious. He should have been removed after the Signal Gate incident and every day since, Kelly said.

The senator further noted that threats against his family have escalated since former President Donald Trump accused him of sedition last week. Hegseth also leveled sedition accusations against Kelly, though even Trump-aligned legal experts consider the claim baseless.

Author: Sophia Brooks