Vice President Kamala Harris brought a gun control message to the scene of Florida's worst school shooting in history.
In Parkland at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Saturday, Harris announced the debut of the National Extreme Risk Protection Order Resource Center, dedicated to offering training and technical assistance for state red flag laws, per a White House pool email.
"This national resource center will be a place where we will through that provide for training for local leaders on how to use red flag laws and keep communities safe," the Vice President said.
She also called for red flag laws, a subject on which Gov. Ron DeSantis has offered mixed messages. In 2019, he spoke favorably about them in Florida. But four years later as a presidential candidate, DeSantis said there was a lack of "data" demonstrating their effectiveness.
Harris said red flag laws are "simply designed to allow communities a vehicle through which they can share and have somewhere to share it information about the concern about the potential danger or the crying out for help of an individual." Noting there are 21 states with such laws, the VP challenged others to pass similar legislation.
Harris, who oversees the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, met with families of some of the 14 students and three teachers killed by a former student back on Valentine's Day, 2018 before highlighting the administration's approach to gun safety in a prepared statement.
In the wake of that violence, Florida passed gun control legislation that blocks gun sales to those under the age of 21, mandates a three-day waiting period before buying a firearm, bans bump stocks, arms some school personnel, mandates a law enforcement presence in schools and allows police to confiscate guns from people perceived to be a threat.
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