PHOENIX – Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona said Monday he is “completely frustrated” that Donald Trump has a chance of winning the presidential election.

“I’m absolutely frustrated that this guy is back and has a chance. He shouldn't have a chance. There is something he says at certain times that resonates with people. I think they like that. He doesn’t sound like a politician,” Kelly said KTAR News 92.3 FM's Outspoken with Bruce and Gaydos.

“These people need to remember that while he was not a politician – he is now – he is also a convicted felon and someone who has no respect for those of us who have served in the military. And I think it’s fair to even say some disdain.”

Kelly served in the Navy from 1986 to 2011, while Trump never served. When Trump was elected in 2016, he was the first US president without military or government experience.

“I mean the way he referred to 1,800 dead Marines at Belleau Wood as 'suckers' or World War I veterans who are buried in the cemetery in Europe and, by the way, couldn't even return home after being labeled ' “A bunch of 'losers,'” Kelly said.

Kelly also pointed out that Trump called the late Sen. John McCain a “loser.”

“And that Donald Trump says he’s a loser because (McCain) was shot down. I mean, this is a guy who was trying to avoid the draft or actually avoided it and made up something about bone spurs,” Kelly said. “And now he won’t release his medical records.”

Trump received five military deferments, four for college and once for bone spurs.

Did voters turn to Trump to give them someone else?

Asked whether he thought Trump was so successful because he was an outsider given the recent political gridlock, Kelly said that may have initially resonated with voters in 2016. But he doesn't think voters got anything from Trump's presidency.

“Well, if you’re a billionaire, you have a huge tax cut,” Kelly said. “If you’re basically someone else, you’re screwed.

“I mean, if you're an everyday or working-class person, you didn't get a good deal under Donald Trump. They got a botched response to COVID. The President of the United States is telling you to inject bleach into your body.

“And if you care about national security, a lot of our alliances were essentially broken, making us less safe. And if you are a woman, your rights to reproductive health care will be taken away.”

Mark Kelly believes border issues are a matter for Congress, not the president

“I think it's important for people to remember that it is Congress's responsibility to pass laws and change immigration and border security policy,” Kelly said.

Kelly pointed to bipartisan border security legislation that was “just days” away from passage by Senators James Lankford (R-Okla.), Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.), Chris Murphy (D-CT) and himself before he claimed Trump had enacted them.

“We had the votes, and it would increase Border Patrol pay and we would have money to hire more Border Patrol agents and build infrastructure,” Kelly said. “Fentanyl detection machines. There would be money there to buy more of these machines to detect illegal fentanyl across the border. So this is how it should be done. Not through presidential action.

“This should have been another big piece of bipartisan legislation where both Democrats and Republicans and the whole country could have kind of celebrated that we did this thing. The way it is supposed to be done together for the good of the nation and one guy killed it.

“Donald Trump, he told Senate Republicans they would vote for it…he told them they couldn't vote for it because he needed it for the election. I think that’s the most hypocritical thing I’ve ever seen a politician do in my life.”

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