Republican vice presidential candidate J.D. Vance told Joe Rogan on Friday that he went into “fight or flight” mode after learning about the attempt on Donald Trump’s life in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13th, and his first instinct was to lock and load in case his own family came under attack. 

“When you first see the video he grabs his ear and then he goes down, and I’m like ‘Oh my God, they just killed him,” Vance told Rogan. 

“And I was, I was so pissed. But then I go into, like, fight or flight mode with my kids, you know? I’m like ‘All right kids,’ you know, we were at a mini-golf place in Cincinnati, Ohio. I grab my kids, throw ’em in the car, go home and load all my guns, and basically stand like a sentry in my front door. And that was my, sort of my reaction to it.” 

Vance’s comment drew praise from Second Amendment attorney Kostas Moros. 

JD is one of us.

If you are pro-2A and don’t like the idea of voting Trump, do it for Vance. https://t.co/ysAsnHCYLc

— Kostas Moros (@MorosKostas) October 31, 2024

The Bulwark’s White House correspondent Andrew Eggers, on the other hand, had a bizarre take on Vance’s comment. 

If you are at all familiar with J.D. Vance’s neighborhood this is a particularly funny visual. https://t.co/zbz9rvec84

— Andrew Egger (@EggerDC) October 31, 2024

I’m with Mary Katherine Ham on this one. 

I mean, there was an attempted mass murder of Republican officials, for being Republicans, in that very neighborhood. So, it seems less funny if you remember that and it happens to also be a day someone is trying to murder your running mate. 🤷🏻‍♀️ https://t.co/iWZyPDfcl6

— Mary Katharine Ham (@mkhammer) October 31, 2024

Put yourself in Vance’s shoes for a moment. You’re out enjoying an afternoon with your family when all of a sudden you get word that there’s been an attempt on your running mate’s life. Even if you had Secret Service protection, wouldn’t your first instinct be to make sure your kids were safe and secure? 

It doesn’t matter how wealthy a neighborhood Vance lives in, or even that there were armed law enforcement agents ready to protect you and your family. I don’t know about you, but even under those circumstances I would acted in much the same way Vance did; not relying on others, but taking personal responsibility for the safety of my family and myself. 

It’s also worth comparing Vance’s reaction to what Kamala Harris told Oprah Winfrey about an intruder in her home “getting shot.” 

Kamala Harris told Oprah Winfrey that intruders to her home would be “getting shot” in an apparent jest. pic.twitter.com/Eaob0HsBQb

— USA TODAY Video (@usatodayvideo) September 20, 2024

Watch those two clips back to back. Vance is deadly serious when he talks about arming himself in reaction to the news of the attempt on Trump’s life. Harris, on the other hand, treated shooting someone as a punchline, complete with her fake laugh. 

Now, it’s possible that both of these comments were made in an attempt to gain the trust (and votes) of gun owners, but Vance comes across as far more authentic than Harris. It’s not just that Harris has refused to disclose the most basic details of her alleged gun ownership like what kind of Glock she owns, when she became a gun owner, or how often she goes to the range. She’s proclaimed herself to be a Second Amendment supporter, and has even suggested that it’s Donald Trump who poses a threat to our right to keep and bear arms, even though she’s on record in s support of handgun bans and a collective rights interpretation of the Second Amendment. 

It’s possible that Harris has changed her mind on those positions, but if so she should have a compelling conversion story to tell. So why haven’t we heard it? Why hasn’t Harris said, “I used to think nobody should be able to own a handgun, but I realized I was wrong when…”? 

The simplest answer is that she hasn’t converted, that she’s still just as hostile to the right to keep and bear arms as she was when she was calling for a handgun ban in San Francisco 19 years ago. For Harris, her claims of gun ownership have always been pegged to demonstrate her supposed moderation when it comes to gun control. But as we heard from J.D. Vance today, his gun ownership is about protecting his family when they’re in danger. I suspect that will resonate with gun owners far more than Harris’ joking with Oprah about shooting an intruder.