Political leaders in the space sector are over the moon that Sen. Mark Kelly — a former astronaut — has emerged as a top contender to become Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate.
Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) said during a POLITICO event about the space industry that Kelly is one of the most impressive people he knows, touting the Arizona Democrat’s extensive knowledge of national security, consistency and character.
Kelly paused his training as commander of Space Shuttle Endeavour’s final mission after his wife, former representative Gabby Giffords, was shot during an event with constituents outside a grocery store in Tucson, Arizona.
After taking time to care for Giffords, Kelly resumed his training and commanded the mission just months later.
“He’s close to a national hero, so he’d be a perfect, amazing pick,” Hickenlooper said.
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson also said he thought Kelly would be a good pick to become Harris’ vice president, praising Kelly as a great Navy test pilot, astronaut and husband.
“Mark was this incredible force of standing by her through all that time and I think that’s a testimony to his character,” Nelson said. “So I think Mark can be good at whatever.”
In a statement after the POLITICO event, Nelson added that Harris has “many outstanding candidates to choose from.”
Nelson, who was the last Democrat to represent Florida in the Senate, said that the White House could gain two strong space boosters if a Harris-Kelly ticket wins in November, noting that Harris has demonstrated an interest in space since they served together in the Senate.
He also praised Harris’ decision to keep the National Space Council that the Trump administration established in 2019 and noted that Harris represented California in the Senate — a state that has three NASA centers.
“I had lengthy talks with her about space,” Nelson said. “She’s a space aficionado.”
During the event, Hickenlooper and Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) also argued that politicians with a space background could play a role in encouraging kids in elementary schools across the country to become interested in science, technology, engineering and math.
“No fourth grader was ever interested in a senator, but to meet an astronaut or see an astronaut in uniform is inspiring,” Moran said.
“Just imagine if there was a vice president who had been an astronaut,” Hickenlooper replied. “A powerful thought.”
Matt Berg contributed to this report.
Some space leaders are starry-eyed at the idea of Vice President Mark Kelly
Source: Viral Showbiz Pinay
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