Kamala Harris may not have offered any specifics about her anti-gun agenda, but she’s made it clear that if she’s elected she’ll push, at a minimum, for a ban on so-called assault weapons, a federal “red flag” law, and “universal” background checks. I suspect that Harris’s gun control agenda is far more extensive than what she’s willing to talk about on the campaign trail, but those policies are usually included in her stump speeches. 

The national media has been largely uninterested in delving into the details of Harris’s gun policies (Fox News being a notable exception), but writer Steve Almond, a contributor to WBUR’s “Cognoscenti” opinion pieces, essentially ignored Harris’s extensive record in support of gun control. Almond has published a “Harris policy primer”, spurred on by a recent NPR caller named Doug who said Harris hasn’t detailed any of her policy positions on the economy or for small businesses. 

After chiding NPR host Jen White for not pushing back on Doug’s criticisms and pointing to a few of Harris’s vague campaign promises, Almond declared he’d perform a “public service” by sharing more of Harris’s plans if elected.

Doug’s ignorance, and White’s failure to call it out, is par for the course. It echoes the current GOP line of attack on Harris, which is that she’s all vibe and no policy. In fact, in contrast to Trump, who appears incapable of coherently answering even the most basic policy questions, Harris has set out an array of proposals. But very few of these get covered in any depth by our Fourth Estate, because America’s publishers and producers and algorithms are too busy amplifying her opponents’ rank demagoguery about mythical Haitian pet eaters and rigged elections. So, as a public service to all Americans of good conscience — and, in particular, any undecided voters in your life — the Fifth Estate has compiled a very brief summary of the vice president’s policy positions.

Almond’s summary is indeed very brief, especially when it comes to her policies on gun control. 

On gun violence, Harris:

*Has made prevention of gun violence central to her campaign.

*Supported the bipartisan Safer Communities Act, legislation President Biden signed into law in 2022, which expanded background checks for gun owners and created new penalties for gun trafficking and purchasing a gun for someone banned from doing so.

*Oversaw the White House Office of Gun Violence Protection, which worked to accelerate implementation of the Safer Communities Act, and so-called red flag laws.

Aaaannnd…. that’s it. Almond doesn’t mention Harris’s call for a ban on so-called assault weapons. He also ignores Harris’s push for “universal” backgroud checks or a federal “red flag” law. In fact, based on Almond’s “policy primer”, WBUR readers could easily be left with the impression that Harris isn’t demanding any new gun control laws. 

For a piece that’s supposedly devoted to detailing Harris’s policies, those are some extremely odd omissions. And if Almond is going to bring up Harris’s support for the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, why not include her previous support for handgun bans in San Francisco and Washington, D.C., or her more recent opposition to the Bruen decision, which she said “defies common sense and the Constitution”? 

I reached out to Almond via email to ask why he didn’t share Harris’s support for a semi-auto ban, federal “red flag” law, and “universal” background checks in his primer on her policies. To his credit, Almond was quick with the following reply:

Thanks for your interest. I did mention her support of red flag laws, but absolutely I could have been more explicit about her other positions, as most Americans support both a ban on assault weapons, and universal background checks. I’m guessing you don’t. Based on your site, it looks like the right to bear arms is a pressing issue for you, and that these measures strike you as an infringement on your rights/governmental overreach. 

I’m not sure why you’re placing certain words in quotes, such as “assault weapons” and “universal.” Do you consider these phrases to be somehow misleading, or suspect? I’m genuinely curious.

Either way, appreciate your friendly tone, 

Steve

I appreciate Almond’s quick response, though he never did explain why he didn’t include Harris’s support for a semi-auto ban or “universal” background checks. 

The national media has largely decided it’s more important to camouflage Harris’s real record on gun policy, and whether by design or accident, Almond’s policy primer is just another example of the press selectively covering Harris’s views instead of offering a complete picture of all she’s said and done about the Second Amendment and gun control throughout her career.