- “We will not take away anyone's guns,” says US Vice President Harris.
- Harris appeals to moderate Pennsylvania voters in interview.
- Trump angers supporters by saying Harris will 'confiscate' guns.
US Vice President Kamala Harris revealed that she is a gun owner and will “not take guns away from anyone” as she sat down for a solo interview on Friday.
This was Harris' first solo interview since becoming the Democratic nominee on a local news station in Philadelphia, where she discussed different policies about which voters have expressed concerns.
During the interview, the 59-year-old Democratic US vice president appealed to moderate voters in the critical swing state of Pennsylvania, reiterating that she is a gun owner who wants to preserve Americans' rights to own guns while maintaining “reasonable” gun safety laws. AFP reported.
“We will not take away anyone's guns. I support the Second Amendment and I support reasonable gun safety laws,” Harris said. alphabet subsidiary WPVI.
Analysts believe her recent interview could be the turning point on which her race for the White House against Republican Donald Trump could hinge.
Gun rights have been a contentious issue in American politics for decades. Trump, meanwhile, has riled his supporters on the campaign trail by saying Harris wants to “confiscate their guns.”
In the interview, Harris cited her raw experience as a prosecutor and how it brought her closer to victims of gun violence.
“I have personally prosecuted homicide cases,” he said. “I have personally examined autopsies. I have personally seen what assault weapons do to the human body.
“That's why I strongly believe that it's consistent with the Second Amendment and the right to own a gun to say that we need to ban assault weapons. They are literally tools of war.”
Polls show most Republicans oppose banning semi-automatic rifles, known by some as assault weapons, including the popular AR-15-style rifles that have been used in many mass shootings.
But Harris said she also supports more popular policies, such as universal background checks for gun buyers. “Most NRA members support that,” she said, referring to the powerful lobbying group, the National Rifle Association (NRA).
The White House candidate surprised many during this week's debate with Trump when she identified herself and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, as gun owners.
She reiterated that again during her 11-minute interview on Friday, while also repeating her campaign speech of unity and a new direction for the country.
“Most Americans want a leader who will unite us as Americans, not someone who will proclaim himself leader and try to get us to point the finger at each other,” she said, referring to Trump. “I think people are tired of that, to be honest.”
