Hegseth Targets Mark Kelly Again, Cites Possible Oath Violation Over Briefing Comments

After Senator Mark Kelly’s latest comments about U.S. weapons stockpile, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has called for a Pentagon review for a second time. This has now deepened the conflict between the two political leaders in less than a year.

Hegseth, on May 10, said Pentagon legal officials would examine whether the Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly improperly discussed information from a classified military briefing after the Democratic senator warned that American missile supplies had been heavily drained during the Iran conflict.

“Did he violate his oath…again? @DeptofWar legal counsel will review,” Hegseth said on social media.

Kelly, a retired Navy captain, serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee and the Senate Intelligence Committee. He previously appeared on CBS News’ Face the Nation, where he discussed briefings on U.S. munitions, including Tomahawk missiles, ATACMS systems and Patriot interceptors.

Kelly, while speaking to CBS News, said, "It is shocking how deep we have gone into these magazines.”

“We have expended a lot of munitions, and that means the American people are less safe. Whether it is a conflict in the western Pacific with China or somewhere else in the world, the munitions are depleted,” he added.

Kelly continued to warn that lower stockpiles could weaken the country’s readiness for future conflicts.

The senator quickly pushed back against Hegseth’s accusation. He posted a video online showing the defence secretary speaking at a recent Senate hearing about the same issue. “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,” Kelly said. He further added that the “war is coming at a serious cost.”

The latest dispute between the two comes as concerns grow inside the Pentagon over the pace at which the U.S. military is using advanced weapons in the Iran conflict.

Defense assessments and reviews by officials and outside experts show major declines in several key missile inventories. According to an analysis by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), the U.S. had used at least 45% of its precision Strike Missile stockpile by April 21. The report also said nearly half of Patriot interceptor missiles and at least half of THAAD missile supplies had been used.

The figures mentioned closely match Pentagon assessments and reviews by people familiar with the matter.

The investigation threats also follow an earlier legal fight between Hegseth and Kelly. In January, Kelly sued the defense secretary after the Pentagon moved to punish him over a November 2025 video in which he and other Democratic veterans urged U.S. troops to reject illegal orders.

A federal judge blocked those efforts earlier this year, calling them unconstitutional retaliation. In May, a federal appeals court signaled it may also reject the Pentagon’s attempt to revive the penalties.