Sen. Mark Kelly was against the Artemis return to the moon before he was for it

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) is locked in a tight race for reelection against Republican businessman Blake Masters. Kelly, who won his Senate seat two years ago to serve the late John McCain’s remaining term, is now running for a full term.

Kelly is a former astronaut and naval aviator. Space policy is not an issue in his race. However, Kelly’s views on the subject should be of interest, considering that he has flown in space.

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Kelly has a problem concerning space policy, especially the Artemis return-to-the-moon program, that speaks to his character. To put the matter bluntly, Kelly was against the Artemis program before he was for it.

The Daily Beast reported in October 2020, shortly before Kelly won his first campaign for the Senate, that the former astronaut took a dim view of returning to the moon. He said, “We should just go straight to Mars. Forget about the Moon. We’ve been there. We’ve already done that.”

Kelly’s words echoed those of former President Barack Obama 10 and a half years before. At a speech at the Kennedy Space Center, Obama heaped scorn on the idea of returning to the moon. “Now, I understand that some believe that we should attempt a return to the surface of the Moon first, as previously planned. But I just have to say pretty bluntly here: We’ve been there before. Buzz has been there. There’s a lot more of space to explore and a lot more to learn when we do.“ Apollo 11 moonwalker Buzz Aldrin was in the audience at the time, serving as a political prop for Obama’s space policy that bypassed the moon.

Fast forward to Dec. 1, 2021. Kelly introduced Vice President Kamala Harris at her first meeting of the National Space Council. In his remarks, Kelly stated that he looked forward to the day when the first woman and the first person of color would walk on the moon as part of the Artemis III mission. He said that the event will inspire a new generation to follow science and technology education.

What changed to cause Kelly to alter his views on returning to the moon? The senator has not chosen to enlighten anyone, so assumptions have to be made.

When Kelly ridiculed the idea of returning astronauts to the moon, Project Artemis was President Donald Trump’s initiative. As a loyal Democrat, Kelly likely opposed the program because it came from a Republican president. He was operating from the political template set by Obama.

However, soon after Joe Biden assumed the presidency, he adopted Project Artemis as his own. Indeed, because then-NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine had worked tirelessly to sell the program on a bipartisan basis, it had won widespread support in Congress. Biden, or at least the people around him, remembered the firestorm that occurred when Obama canceled the previous return to the moon program, Project Constellation. Artemis is one of the few Trump initiatives that Biden has not canceled.

Kelly, being a loyal Democrat, has fallen into line. The program he opposed because it was Trump’s he now supports because it is now Biden’s. No evidence exists that his change of position was based on a greater appreciation of the advantages of returning to the moon.

Kelly made the right decision, albeit for the wrong reasons. The return to the moon will be of immense benefit to the United States and its allies, from the advancement of science to the encouragement of commerce to the acquisition of political influence. Besides, if we don’t return to the moon, this time to stay, China will — an event which would be catastrophic for world peace and freedom.

Kelly has not had a position of influence on space policy in the Senate. However, should he be reelected, that might change. He could get an assignment on the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation that oversees NASA.

What if a Republican, either Trump or someone else, is elected in 2024? Will Kelly suddenly remember that we’ve “been there, done that” and oppose returning to the moon again? The question ought to be answered before Nov. 8, when the people of Arizona have to decide whether to vote for or against Kelly.

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Mark Whittington, who writes frequently about space and politics, has published a political study of space exploration titled Why is It So Hard to Go Back to the Moon?, as well as The Moon, Mars and Beyond, and, most recently, Why is America Going Back to the Moon? He blogs at Curmudgeons Corner.

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