Thursday, May 9

Kamala Harris targets NRA conference in speech lamenting assaults on democracy

Vice President Kamala Harris tore into the National Rifle Association’s annual conference as she decried the gun foyer as a risk to freedom in communities overcome by violence.

Ms. Harris lamented the overwhelming influence that the spate of mass shootings and rise of gun violence is having on the Black group, in her keynote handle on the progressive civil rights group National Action Network’s annual conference on Friday.

“We speak here while the NRA is holding its convention in Indiana,” she stated. “They have called it a ‘freedom-filled weekend.’ Freedom for who, exactly?”

“Gun violence is now the number one cause of death of children in our nation,” she stated. “And while all this violence impacts all communities in devastating ways, we know it does not do so equally. Black people are only 13% of America’s population but more than 60% of homicide victims from gun violence.”

The vp urged these in attendance to declare: “Enough is enough.”

The NRA’s annual gathering kicked off on Friday in Indianapolis. Several Republican heavyweights, together with former President Donald Trump and former Vice President Mike Pence, are anticipated to talk in the course of the conference.

Other potential and declared contenders for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, together with Nikky Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, are anticipated to talk.

This 12 months’s gathering comes amid heavy stress from Democrats who’ve urged Congress to cross gun restrictions in response to a collection of mass shootings in cities throughout the U.S.

Ms. Harris listed gun violence amongst a wide range of threats that she says have put the very basis of America’s democracy in danger. She accused Republican lawmakers of pushing to roll again voting rights and silence state lawmakers who fought for the rights of minority communities.

“That was what Nashville was all about, an attempt to silence the voices of the people,” Ms. Harris stated referring to the Republican-led Tennessee state House voting to expel two lawmakers for main a protest on gun legal guidelines within the chamber. 

“The voice of the people was too much for these extremists to handle,” Ms. Harris stated. “It was too much. They couldn’t bear it.”

She stated: “At this moment, the founding principles are under attack.”

“I believe always, and especially today, the strength of our nation depends on us each to fulfill our duty,” she stated. “Our duty to stand and protect democracy.” 

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