Senator Mark Kelly

I am humbled and honored to continue serving Arizonans in the U.S. Senate. Now let’s get to work.

I’ve spent most of my career relying on science to keep me alive and do amazing things. I know it’s the single most important part of our country’s success in the last century, but Trump doesn’t seem to get that. His retreat from science will hurt us all in the long run.

I’m speaking live outside the Capitol with families that know better than anyone: We need real solutions to fix our broken immigration system, and that starts with a pathway for Dreamers. Watch here: twitter.com/i/broadcasts/1…

Coming after me is easier for Pete Hegseth than answering for a war with no strategic goals that is hammering Americans with higher costs.

Visited the John McCain VFW Post in Chandler. I heard about VA staffing cuts, wait times, and cancer screenings. Not all veterans are getting the support they need and hearing their stories helps me do my job fighting for them. Thank you to everyone who came out.

This should have happened months ago. @SenMarkKelly and I have legislation to suspend the federal gas tax through September to put money back in families’ pockets. It also protects funding for roads and bridges and will hold oil companies accountable if they don’t pass these savings along to consumers. Let’s pass it this week.

Families need help now. @RepChrisPappas and I already have a bill to suspend the gas tax. Let’s get it done.

This past Thursday, I spent the morning at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit. I was there to hear the arguments in my lawsuit against Pete Hegseth for violating my First Amendment rights. I appreciate that the court made this case a priority because it has a significant impact on the First Amendment rights of over 2 million retired servicemembers. This case matters. Let me tell you what also matters. Right now, we have servicemembers putting their lives at risk because this President took our country to war against Iran without a strategic goal or a plan. Because of his reckless decision, parents can’t afford the gas to drive their kids to school, people can’t afford to drive to work and seniors can’t afford to drive to their doctor’s appointments. Millions of Americans can’t afford rent, healthcare, and in many cases food. As this President builds his new gilded ballroom, upgrades his new plane, builds his arch, and works on his next business deal that personally enriches him and his family, the American people continue to suffer. I didn’t vote for Donald Trump but after he was elected I wanted him to succeed and I hoped that as President he would at least try to make some things better. Instead he kicked millions of Americans off of their healthcare and took away free lunches for kids in order to deliver a tax cut to millionaires and billionaires. And recently Donald Trump has asked Congress for $1.5 trillion for next year's defense budget. That is more than double of what it was in my first year in the Senate just 5 years ago. It is nearly the amount that all other countries combined spend on defense. And this is for a department that is being managed by the least qualified secretary of defense in our country’s history. Where will this money go? Some of it will be used to fund the President’s top priorities like Golden Dome, an idea that Donald Trump, a real estate developer, had after seeing the success of Israel’s Iron Dome system, which is essentially a point defense system. That’s very different than what he envisions, which is a shield against all ballistic and hypersonic missiles. I understand the physics of the challenge of intercepting hypersonic missiles in space or in the glide phase and it looks like they will spend hundreds of billions of dollars building a system that will not work. And even worse some of this money will certainly go to companies that Donald Trump’s sons have recently invested in. The corruption in and around this President and his friends and family is almost unimaginable in its scale and scope. We have real problems that are being ignored and others that aren’t being addressed with a reasonable and rational approach. The top 1% of the wealthiest Americans now own more of our collective wealth than the middle class and if you are in the middle class you often can’t afford your life because this President and others in Washington DC have passed laws to give your money to them. It didn’t start with this President, but my hope is that perhaps it ends with him. We have to get this country back on track. We have to pass policies that help hard working Americans so that their hard work pays off for them, not for someone else. We have to address our country’s growing debt and we have to find solutions that will improve people's lives. Whether it is the outrageous cost of health care or the fact that young people can’t afford homes and young families can’t afford childcare — there are solutions to these problems. Corruption, cronyism, and a system designed to help the very few at the expense of the many is a significant challenge but it isn’t an insurmountable one.

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.

My team has helped thousands of Arizonans resolve issues with federal agencies. If you need help, you can start by reaching out to us here: kelly.senate.gov/services/casew…

Today, a federal court heard arguments in the government's appeal of my case against Pete Hegseth. It was a day in court not just for me, but for millions of retired veterans and our First Amendment rights. I will not back down from this fight.

Here is a quick tour of Node 2 and the US laboratory in the mockup of the @Space_Station at the Johnson Space Center. Not a ton of room in the bedrooms but it is better than where I slept aboard the space shuttle - which was in a bag across the two front seats on the flight deck.

From the Supreme Court gutting the Voting Rights Act to legislation like the SAVE Act, we’re seeing an effort to make it harder for Americans to vote. Voting rights are our most fundamental rights as Americans. I’ll never stop fighting to protect them.

Happy National Astronaut Day to all of the folks who have been lucky enough to strap themselves onto a rocket. This year, we celebrate the Artemis II crew. Reid, Victor, Christina, Jeremy, you made us all proud.

Today is Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Awareness Day. Indigenous women go missing and are murdered at far higher rates than any other group, and their cases go unsolved a lot of the time. Arizona is home to 22 tribal nations, their communities have suffered this injustice for too long. These women deserve better and their families deserve answers.

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week, folks. I'm the product of a good public education, from kindergarten all the way through the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. I owe a lot to my teachers and education. Say thank you to a teacher today.

America used to be the leader in shipping and shipbuilding. We let that slip away. My SHIPS for America Act is how we get back to it: Great-paying jobs, stronger supply chains, and a fleet worthy of America. ⚓️

A lot of hardworking parents can’t afford to take their family on a vacation or sign their kid up for sports right now — things that their parents’ and grandparents’ generations took for granted. In the richest country in the world, that can’t be our new normal. I’m doing everything I can to bring down costs and make life easier for Arizonans.

I spoke with TSA officers in Arizona who were working without pay. They shared what they were going through, so I introduced a bill to protect the credit scores of federal workers during government shutdowns. They didn't choose to stop getting paid. Their credit score shouldn't suffer because of it.

"No quarter" is a violation of the laws of war and puts American servicemembers at greater risk. I gave Secretary Hegseth a chance to clear up what he meant when he said "no quarter, no mercy" and he refused. As Secretary of Defense, the things he says matter and this is just another reason why he isn't right for this job.