Faster version of ‘pygame.event.get()’. Why are events being missed and why are the events delayed?

I’m making an Asteroidz clone in pygame and have two for event in pygame.event.get() loops, one for checking an exit request and wether the game should have started by pressing spacebar, then further in the game as to try and limit the player from holding spacebar down and continuously shooting. The relevent code for my check_input function, which is run once every loop, is below;