Arizona Senator Mark Kelly has held many jobs, including astronaut, Navy captain and, apparently, Chinese pharmaceutical salesman.
Revelations this week about Mr Kelly’s past peddling vitamins in China have sparked speculation that presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris may choose him as her running mate.
Democratic Senator in 2015 Entering the stage Washington Post columnist Jim Geraghty reported that to promote Shaklee vitamins, he was riding a motorcycle bearing the American and Chinese flags while blasting Kenny Loggins’ “Danger Zone.” I have written A link to unearthed footage showing the bizarre sight.
“While I was in orbit aboard the Space Shuttle, I was drinking Shaklee vitamins and Shaklee hydration drinks,” the former astronaut boasted to the crowd.
“They worked very well for me in a very tough environment. Now it’s up to you,” he urged. “Each of you can start your own successful Shaklee business, and the rewards from that business will help you achieve your dreams.”
The California-based multi-level marketing company enriched Kelly through a series of speaking engagements in China and the United States between 2011 and 2016, The Huffington Post reported. First reported The Arizona Democrat’s 2020 candidacy for U.S. Senate.
Mr. Kelly’s wife, former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), served in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2011, and financial disclosures show Mr. Kelly made $50,000 speaking for Shaklee that year alone.
“Are we paying our astronauts enough?” Geraghty asked in his column, criticizing Kelly’s decision to accept a speaking engagement touting the “Shaklee difference.”
A Kerry campaign spokesperson told Huffington Post in 2019, “NASA has used Shaklee products on every space flight since the early 1990s as part of its hydration protocol to counter the loss of blood volume that occurs in space. Mark has found both the hydration drinks and the vitamins to be effective.”
“Since retiring from NASA, Mark has spoken to numerous organizations about his experiences in space,” spokesman Jacob Peters added.
During the campaign, Kelly said he would lower prescription drug costs during his term.Politicians who receive money from pharmaceutical companies“Protect them [own] Profit“And the work of politicians.
A 2011 study by the Consumer Attitudes Institute found that at least 99% of participants in MLM companies incur losses rather than profits.
The Federal Trade Commission also warns consumers against getting involved in such companies’ get-rich-quick schemes because “the majority of people who participate in legitimate multi-level marketing schemes make little or nothing.”
“Some people are going to lose out.” web page “Some people believe they are taking part in a legitimate multi-level marketing scheme only to find it is an illegal pyramid scheme that can steal all of their investment and leave them deep in debt,” the agency’s ad reads.
It’s unclear whether Kerry, who is currently on the shortlist to be Harris’ running mate, is still taking the powerful Shaklee supplements to keep him ahead of the Washington political game.
A poll released Thursday by The Associated Press/NORC Center for Public Policy Research found that Kelly has the highest name recognition among U.S. adults.
At least 45% of Democrats also have a favorable view of him, the highest of any Democratic vice presidential candidate.
Kelly is competing for the No. 2 spot on the 2024 Democratic nomination list against Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro.
A representative for Kerry’s congressional office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
