ICYMI: In Wide-Ranging Interview on PBS, Kelly Talks About the Importance of Holding the Trump Administration Accountable and the Future of This Country

"We are stronger, more effective, and we'll have a much better future if we all realize that we are in this together."

In case you missed it, Arizona Senator Mark Kelly joined PBS' Overheard with Evan Smith for a wide-ranging conversation covering the Trump administration's attempts to silence retired servicemembers, the failed strategy in the war with Iran, wealth inequality in the U.S., and Trump's unprecedented corruption. Kelly also emphasized that political leaders need to bring people together and described his years long fight against gun violence alongside his wife Gabby Giffords.

Sen. Kelly speaks to Evan Smith.

Watch the full conversation here. See key excepts below:

On the administration's attempts to silence retired servicemembers…

"This isn't about me. This is about 2 million retired service members that they're trying to silence. But they're not going to shut me up. And I'm not backing down. Because there is a lot at stake here. I mean, retired service members have a role in our discourse. Especially on military matters.

"I'm also on the Armed Services Committee in the Senate. It's my job to hold these people accountable, the Secretary of Defense and even the president. When they make bad decisions, which in my view, they often do, it's my role to call them out on it. They don't like that. They want to shut people up."

On the administration's lack of strategy in Iran…

"The president hasn't made it clear case why we are there. He doesn't have a strategic goal. He didn't have a plan. He didn't have any kind of a timeline or an exit strategy. So, he finds himself kind of stuck."

On Trump's instinct to divide rather than unite…

"His instinct is every single opportunity, 'Let's try to divide us.' We are stronger, more effective, and we'll have a much better future if we all realize that we are in this together. It's a dangerous world out there."

On wealth inequality in the United States…

"This nation, the United States, we have collectively, folks in Washington, not me, have transferred an enormous amount of our country's wealth from the middle class and hardworking people to the top 1%. It's unsustainable. And it's not just about the fact that it makes it harder for people to afford their lives. It's also one of these things that divide us. There's the billionaire class. And they control as much of our country's GDP, more now, than the majority. And it's unhealthy. It is an unhealthy situation that we find ourselves in."

On holding the administration accountable for unprecedented corruption…

"You mentioned accountability as a 'looking back' kind of thing. I don't look at it that way. We are a country of laws. People have to be held accountable for the most egregious things. The amount of corruption we've seen out of this administration, it's unprecedented. It's outrageous. It's really obscene, what we are seeing. The pay for play, the, 'donate to my ballroom,' million-dollar fees at Mar-a-Lago, crypto-scams, meme coins, businesses around the world. There needs to be investigations for the most serious stuff. I think there has to be. These people need to be held accountable."

On passing commonsense gun laws…

"I'm a gun owner. I'm a supporter of the Second Amendment. At the same time, we just can't continue to be so stupid about it and let dangerous people have easy access to firearms. So, that's what Gabby is fighting for. Sensible laws that most Americans agree with. Things like background checks for gun sales. That polls at 90%. You know what polls at 90% in our country? Two things. Free money and ice cream.

"It seems pretty logical that we should be able to get this passed. But because of the money that is put into our political system from corporations and other special interest groups, it's become really, really hard to fix some problems that seem really, really simple."