Vice Presidential Pool Reports of August 11, 2023

VP Travel Pool #1 — VP lands in Chicago

Good morning from Chicago. AF2 landed at Midway International Airport at 11:16 a.m. under cloudy but picturesque skies. The VP was greeted by Illinois Lieutenant Gov. Juliana Stratton and Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul. She offered up a quick wave before getting into the motorcade.

Harris will headline Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund's annual Gun Sense University conference at McCormick Place. Her remarks come just hours after the Illinois Supreme Court upheld the state's assault weapons ban, a law that also halted the sale of high-capacity magazines.

Friday marks the vice president's ninth trip to Illinois since taking office. She was last in Chicago on July 24 to speak at the UnidosUS 2023 annual conference, also at McCormick Place.

Motorcade was on the move at 11:29 a.m.

Passing along this background on today's trip.

On background from a White House official:

Today, August 11th, Vice President Kamala Harris will return to Chicago, IL to headline Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund's annual Gun Sense University conference. During a moderated conversation in front of thousands of Moms Demand Action members, Students Demand Action volunteers, and survivors of gun violence from across the country, the Vice President will highlight the Biden-Harris administration's historic progress on advancing commonsense gun safety policies and discuss their continued commitment to reducing gun violence in communities throughout America. The forum will be moderated by Moms Demand Action Executive Director Angela Ferrell-Zabala and Emmy-nominated Actor Jason George. Today's conversation will be livestreamed at www.WhiteHouse.gov/live at 1:50 p.m. ET.

Vice President Harris continues to lead the administration's work to address the epidemic of gun violence and save lives. Last year, she fought alongside President Biden to successfully enact the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the first significant piece of federal gun safety legislation in three decades. In May, the administration announced more than a dozen additional actions to reduce gun violence. The Vice President also continues to call on Congress to renew the assault weapons ban at a time when guns are the leading cause of death for children in America and there have been more than 400 mass shootings this year.

The Vice President's trip to Chicago is part of a whirlwind of summer travel in which she is holding a blitz of large-scale events with key constituencies. She has already traveled to 16 states this summer while also participating in a flurry of media appearances across a diverse range of platforms. In June, Vice President Harris traveled to Springfield, VA to mark Gun Violence Awareness Day and deliver remarks calling on young people to continue leading efforts to end gun violence.

Vice President Harris has mourned with families directly impacted by gun violence across the nation; from Monterey Park, CA and Highland Park, IL, to Buffalo, NY — the stories she has heard have underscored the need for additional action.

Additional background about the Biden-Harris administration's actions to reduce gun violence:

• In June 2022, President Biden signed Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA), which enhances background checks for people under 21 by requiring an investigative period to review juvenile and mental health records, invests in mental health services, increases grant funding for implementation of state red flag laws (i.e., extreme risk protection orders), and protects domestic violence victims by closing the "boyfriend loophole."
• In March 2023, the President signed an Executive Order which improved regulation of gun dealers, including clarifying the definition of who is engaged in the business of dealing in firearms in order to increase compliance with the federal background check requirement for firearm sales; promoting extreme risk protection orders; developing policies designed to ensure the prompt entry of ballistics data recovered in criminal investigations into the national database; and encouraging the Federal Trade Commission to issue a report analyzing how gun manufacturers market firearms to minors and use military imagery.
• The President has also signed more than two dozen executive actions to provide crucial funding and other authorities to help keep guns out of dangerous hands.
• The President and Vice President have repeatedly called on Congress to reinstate the Assault Weapons Ban, repeal the liability shield for gun manufacturers, and pass universal background checks.

Additional background about the Vice President's record on combatting gun violence:

• As District Attorney, Vice President Harris implemented new policies to streamline and strengthen how the DA's office prosecutes gun crimes and created an inter-governmental task force to combat gun crimes.
• As Attorney General of California, Vice President Harris worked with the CA Bureau of Firearms to conduct several seizures of weapons from prohibited owners throughout her tenure and convened law enforcement officers across the state to reduce gun violence through existing laws and programs.
• As Senator, Vice President Harris co-sponsored several pieces of gun safety legislation, including an assault weapons ban.

VP Travel Pool #2 - arrival at McCormick Place

VP arrived at McCormick Place at 11:47 a.m. after an uneventful drive down the Stevenson Expressway. Pooler did not see the VP exit the motorcade and has not seen her since.

The VP's office says she is meeting with a small group of young gun violence prevention activists before taking the stage at 12:50 p.m.

VP Travel Pool #3 - VP takes stage

VP took the stage at the Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund's annual Gun Sense University conference at 1 p.m. She is on stage with Moms Demand Action Executive Director Angela Ferrell-Zabala and actor Jason George, an actor on "Station 19" and "Grey's Anatomy" who is also a gun violence prevention activist.

You can watch the event live at www.WhiteHouse.gov/live. But here are a couple of quotes:

Harris: "I know who's here and so many of the leaders are here because you have chosen to translate your grief and fear into the empowerment of communities and our country. And it's an extraordinary thing that you are doing on behalf of people you may never meet and people who may never know your name...Our measure of the strength of a leader is not based on who you beat down, it's based on who you lift up. So I'm here to thank you."

George asked VP: "I'm just wondering how you're thinking about this issue [gun violence] right now, in this moment."

Harris said, "Vote.gov," to applause.

On assault weapons: "It is reasonable to say that a weapon of war, a weapon that was literally designed to kill a lot of human beings quickly, has no place on the streets of a civilized society."

VP Travel Pool #4 — VP concludes moderated discussion

The moderated discussion with the VP — about 31 minutes — ended at 1:31 p.m. There were two questions from audience members, including one from Emily DeSantis from Students Demand Action's Pennsylvania chapter. DeSantis asked, "How do you see my generation playing a role in this movement? And what do you think we should be doing?"

Harris, who had been seated for the discussion, stood up and pointed: "Your generation is critical. Critical. Critical. You are critical to this issue," the VP said to a standing ovation. "We are counting on you. We need you. You are critical to this issue. You are everything. Everything. Everything." The VP appeared to have tears in her eyes — and then sat down.

"Students Demand Action is so critical, and when you and your peers...when your generation starts to vote in your numbers, I see this changing completely."

Pooler is holding ahead of the trip back to Midway.

VP Travel Pool #5 - leaving event

Motorcade left McCormick Place at 2:33 p.m.

And correcting that the Students Demand Action audience member's first name is Erin, not Emily — as I've tracked her down after the event.