MARK KELLY: COULD HE BE A CANDIDATE?

posted by Michael Chihak

Retired Navy Capt. and astronaut Mark Kelly says he has been approached about running for Congress.

For now, Kelly says, he won't spend much time thinking about that possibility, because he is focused on helping his wife, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, recover from the gunshot wound she took to the head on Jan. 8.

When we interviewed Kelly in the suburban Houston home where he and Giffords are living during her rehabilitation, he was insistent on his priority -- "motivator in chief" for his wife, as he put it.

Yet, he spoke with intelligence and clarity about issues near and dear to Giffords and said he has sat in on some of her congressional office briefings and is following the issues along with her.

He declined to absolutely rule out a run for political office.

In the interview, Kelly said there's a need for more balance in politics.

"It would be nice to move back towards more moderate politics and, to be honest, more moderate politicians, more people in the middle," Kelly said in the interview. "But civility in politics and being able to listen to your opponent and try to understand where they 're coming from is really important.

"I think you see a lot of people that don't want to have a discussion. They just want to be on transmit and not the receive mode."

Is that a hint that Kelly wants to have a discussion, perhaps as a candidate?