Vice President Kamala Harris told Oprah Winfrey that she would shoot anyone who tried to break into her home. Winfrey interviewed the Vice President for an event she called the “Unite for America Rally,” which was streamed online. While discussing gun violence, Oprah told Harris she was surprised to learn the Vice President was a gun owner – a fact she revealed during her debate with Donald Trump in Philadelphia when the former President accused his rival of seeking to remove Americans’ firearms.
As the conversation with Oprah continued, Vice President Harris declared, “If somebody breaks into my house, they’re getting shot.” She then acknowledged she probably shouldn’t have said that and that her staff would likely need to engage in some damage control.
Critics have pointed to past remarks from Harris, however, including a 2007 statement supporting policies allowing police to inspect weapons storage in people’s homes. Ms. Harris made that statement to reporters when she was district attorney for San Francisco and intent on forcing responsible behavior among gun owners. The comments came as she spoke in support of legislation imposing criminal penalties for failing to store guns safely.
The Vice President previously mentioned that she is a gun owner in 2019, saying she had a firearm for the same reason most people do – self-protection. Speaking to reporters in Iowa, Harris stated that her career as a prosecutor made it essential for her to take personal safety measures as many prosecuting attorneys do. Evidence suggests that regular contact with some of America’s most hardened criminals prompts high numbers of criminal lawyers take their personal safety seriously.
A Harris campaign insider, who helped the Vice President prepare for the debate against Trump, confirmed that she did not intend to share her gun ownership status and did not include her remarks in scripts she had prepared. Nevertheless, the insider said she was pleased it came up because it allowed the Vice President to show the American public that she respects the Second Amendment despite her opposition to assault weapons and her support for some gun control measures.
The Harris campaign would not confirm to journalists what kind of gun the Vice President owns. Her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, also owns firearms and won a bipartisan sharp-shooting contest several times.
