COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Former U.S. senator and astronaut John
Glenn says he believes an "unattractive" elections process discourages
the best people from pursuing public service
The 90-year-old
Democrat is optimistic that good people will run for office but
understands some might shy from opening their lives to intense public
scrutiny, he told The Columbus Dispatch (http://bit.ly/AgYrvm ) in a wide-ranging interview
published Sunday.
"If
you’re going to run for high public office now, it’s just a given that
you’ve got to open up every bit of your financial information and your
medical records," said Glenn, who served 24 years in the Senate and
retired in 1999.
He said political fundraising was a tough part of the job.
"I’d rather wrestle a gorilla right here on the floor than ask anybody for five bucks — make it a
dollar," he said.
Glenn
said if he were running for office today, he wouldn’t rule out new
taxes to help balance the budget. He said he thinks President Barack
Obama has done well despite facing many challenges when he took office
but wishes the federal stimulus package that Obama supported had been
larger.
The interview, conducted late last year at the Ohio State
University public affairs school named for Glenn, covered topics ranging
from the economy and technology to his memories and his 68-year
marriage to his wife, Annie, now 91.
After having knee-replacement
surgery last year, Glenn is slowing down a bit and has put his
twin-engine Beach Baron up for sale because he wasn’t using it much.
"I miss it," he said. "I never got tired of flying. I still like to fly anything."

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Information from: The Columbus Dispatch, http://www.dispatch.com