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Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., speaks during a news conference at Capitol Hill, Wednesday, in Washington, D.C.
If you’ve ever thought about running for president, don’t. You probably don’t have what it takes.
That’s not because you’re inherently unqualified — hell, if Donald Trump can get elected, it sure feels like anyone can, and I have no doubt you’d probably do a better job. But a good presidential candidate must have a few important things going for him or her that would make running for president nearly impossible for most people.
They have to have money, for one, or access to people with lots of it. Some relevant experience helps, usually in politics, law or the military. Trump is, in fact, the only U.S. president to have never held public office or a military position when he was elected in 2016.
A good personality isn’t a must — see Richard Nixon. But there is one intangible that is a must, and it’s nearly impossible to buy it or create it overnight: Name ID.
Trump, for all his moral, ethical and intellectual failings, was able to trade mostly on his name and brand to get elected the first time, convincing a not small number of voters that, despite his lack of political experience — or interest in policy — he was the right man for the job.
A new crop of Democrats is eyeing the 2028 election, each hoping they have the right combination of things to get across the finish line. But one just got a huge boost in name ID — and from Trump himself.
If Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, is thinking of running for president — and there are plenty of indications he is, including his own words — he couldn’t buy the exposure he got this week.
In a one-two punch to the administration, Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s attempts at punishing Kelly for a video in which he and five other Dem lawmakers urged military service members to not follow illegal orders, were swatted down.