Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance made headlines on Thursday with his remarks about school shootings, which he described as a troubling “fact of life” in America. Speaking at a rally in Arizona, Vance, a U.S. senator from Ohio, expressed his frustration over the frequency of these tragic events and called for increased security in schools.
“I don’t like this. I don’t like to admit this. I don’t like that this is a fact of life,” Vance said, addressing the media’s questions. “But if you are a psycho and you want to make headlines, you realize that our schools are soft targets. We have got to bolster security so that if a psycho wants to walk through the front door and kill a bunch of children, they’re not able to.”
Vance’s comments sparked immediate criticism from Democrats, who viewed his statements as insensitive. Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign highlighted former President Donald Trump’s earlier comments on a school shooting in Iowa, noting his dismissive tone. “Donald Trump and JD Vance will always choose the NRA and gun lobby over our children. That is the choice in this election,” said Ammar Moussa, spokesperson for the Harris-Walz 2024 campaign.
In response, William Martin, Vance’s spokesperson, defended the senator’s remarks. Martin accused the media of misrepresenting Vance’s comments and criticized Harris for her past stance on police officers in schools. “This is yet another case of the fake news media brazenly lying about a Republican politician,” Martin told Fox News.
Vance is scheduled to return to Georgia on September 16 to speak at the Georgia Faith & Freedom Coalition’s annual dinner. This event will mark his first appearance in Georgia alongside Governor Brian Kemp this campaign season, according to Greg Bluestein of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.