US Senator Mark Kelly should become the Democratic nominee for President to make the race more competitive and end the distraction of Biden’s mental state from the important issues of this election.

Unfortunately, the contest for the highest office in the land has come down to the lesser of two evils; a choice between a too-old President with clear mental degradation, and an almost-as-old convicted felon with a tendency toward authoritarianism and a litany of legal issues still haunting him.

Voters have been denied a clear, comprehensive, and detailed explanation of how the country would be better off with either of the two current contenders.

Instead, the debate has been polarized into simple bases of anti-Biden and anti-Trump camps fighting over two men who are both probably too old for the job in the first place.

Kelly, 60, is the junior US Senator from Arizona who holds the seat previously held by John McCain until his death in 2018. Kelly was a NASA Space Shuttle astronaut and a decorated Navy combat fighter pilot before his election to the Senate in 2020.

But Kelly is best known as the husband of then-Congresswoman Gabby Giffords who was shot by an anti-government 22-year-old gunman during an assassination attempt in 2011 that killed six people and left Giffords with permanent brain damage, a paralyzed arm, and 50% loss of vision.

Giffords resigned from Congress the following year and has since written a book and launched a political action committee to back candidates who support gun control laws.

Kelly’s military and electoral experience alone would be enough to make him a viable candidate for President, but his direct connection to his wife’s assassination attempt would also help counter the new narratives that Trump and his supporters are using after the assassination attempt on him last week.

As we all know, a 20-year-old loner shot at Trump during a campaign rally last week, hitting the former President in the right ear and killing a man standing behind Trump.

Trump got back onto his feet after the shooting and yelled out “fight, fight, fight” with blood still dripping from the side of his head.

His campaign quickly started raising money off the assassination attempt, his supporters pointing to devine intervention that saved him, and Republicans clamoring to support the now-seemingly invincible death-defying candidate.

But what Republicans and Trump have not done is even mention that he wasn’t shot by an undocumented immigrant, Muslim, or other person Trump has led us to fear.

No, Trump was shot by a White, Republican, natural born US citizen with an AR15 assault rifle in a state with no assault weapons ban, no waiting period, no gun knowledge tests, and no restriction on private sales of weapons.

After every past mass shooting, including Giffords’, Republicans offer their thoughts and prayers but saying it’s not the time to politicize a shooting by demanding more gun control laws.

But they never come around to having an honest discussion about why the US has more guns per capita and more guns overall than any other country in the world, and worse, why he have the most gun violence by far among all industrialized countries.

There are 20% more guns in America than there are men, woman, and children, with an estimated 393 million guns for 329 million people, but only about one million of those guns are registered.

Of all of the small arms estimated to exist in the world, about 43% of those are owned by Americans, and only about 2% are owned by police.

The US experiences more than 48,000 gun-related deaths each year for a per capita death rate of 14.3 per 100,000 residents.

Only third-world countries like Columbia, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Venezuela have higher rates of gun deaths.

American gun use and violence is an epidemic and we must address the legal and mental health issues that cause it.

Kelly’s nomination and Trump’s attempted assassination could focus us on real gun violence solutions, like universal background checks, waiting periods, gun registrations, and mental healthcare which Republicans, and Trump especially, have rejected and dismissed.

Trump wants to use the close call he had for his political advantage instead of acknowledging that he came within millimeters of losing his life at the hands of a crazed loner with an assault weapon he took from his dad.

Kelly would take away the distraction of Biden’s age and also Vice President Kamala Harris’ perceived weakness among general election voters.

High-profile Democrats like California Congressman Adam Schiff and even local Congressman Scott Peters have already called on Biden to drop out, and the chorus will only grow and make his candidacy untenable.

Democrats can select another nominee at their upcoming convention in Chicago, and turn the campaign into a real debate on issues of substance, not partisan rhetoric and name-calling.

Trump will continue to use Biden’s age and speaking gaffes against him, but Kelly could instantly turn the 79-year-old Trump into the old man in the race, counter the assassination attempt into a debate on gun control, and use his experience as a Senator to discuss women’s health, social security, and national security in ways Biden simply can no longer do effectively.

Democrats have a choice: Change horses now and make this a competitive race, or go on to lose a consequential election that could put Trump back in power to execute his plan of retribution which he and his supporters have already pledged to unleash.

Senator Mark Kelly would be a great choice to bring serious issues back to the forefront of the campaign and give Americans a real choice between two clearly different agendas and futures for our country.

Watch what Democrats decide to do in Chicago, then hold on for a wild ride through the November election.

Not much is at stake in this election; only the direction of our country for a generation to come. Vote wisely.

Correction: a previous version of this article incorrectly included information that Pennsylvania does not require buyer background checks before gun purchase. The article has been updated.

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