Vice President Kamala Harris has been accused by a heartbroken father of using his tragically murdered child as a pawn in her push for stricter gun control laws. The allegations come after Harris was photographed posing at a memorial for victims of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, where 14 students and three staff members lost their lives on February 14, 2018.
Ryan Petty, a grieving parent of one of the students who died that day, spoke out against Harris’ visit to the high school, accusing her of exploiting the pain of the families for her own political agenda. In a statement to Fox News, Petty said, “The vice president and the White House’s Office of Gun Violence Prevention made it very clear to the families early on that nothing short of new gun control was going to satisfy them with regards to protecting our nation’s schools. And that is just a slap in the face to those of us that have worked for six years now to try to protect our nation’s schools.”
Harris’ visit to Marjory Stoneman Douglas was to announce a new federal grant program worth $750 million to assist 21 states, including Florida, in implementing “red flag” laws. These laws allow authorities to temporarily seize guns from individuals who are deemed dangerous by a judge. Harris also took the opportunity to call on all states to pass similar legislation and push for other gun control measures such as universal background checks and an assault weapons ban.
However, it is not just Harris’ visit to the school that has sparked controversy. In a post on social media, Harris shared a photo of herself looking at the memorial for the Parkland victims with a caption that read, “The memory of what happened at Marjory Stoneman Douglas will never be erased. Inspired by the community’s courage, let us find it within ourselves to do more.” She then listed the gun control measures that she believes will prevent future tragedies. But for Petty, this was another instance of Harris using his daughter’s death as a prop for her political agenda. “Stop using my daughter for your photo op!” he wrote in response to her post.
Stop using my daughter for your photo op! https://t.co/pgFHJHau3G
— Ryan Petty (@rpetty) March 25, 2024
This is not the first time that the Biden administration has been accused of exploiting the Parkland shooting for political gain. Last year, on the anniversary of the tragedy, President Joe Biden pushed for a ban on “assault weapons,” prompting Petty to slam him on social media. “Don’t use my daughter’s death to advance your political agenda,” he wrote. Petty also pointed out the failures within the system that allowed the shooter to carry out the attack and urged politicians to focus on addressing those issues instead of scapegoating gun owners.
Despite being asked repeatedly by the families to refrain from using their loved ones’ deaths for political purposes, Harris and the administration continue to push their own agenda. For Petty, this is a constant reminder of his daughter’s tragic death and the pain he and other families continue to endure.
Five years ago, a gunman committed an act of horror at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
Today, we mourn the 17 loved ones lost. And pray for the countless loved ones left behind.
For the lives lost and the lives we can save, we must ban assault weapons. pic.twitter.com/CRR4g6oLXK
— President Biden (@POTUS) February 14, 2023
His message to the president remains the same, “Mr. President, thank you for remembering the loved ones taken from us 3 years ago. Alaina loved this country and the freedoms it guarantees. Common sense tells us that honoring her life does not require infringement on the rights of law-abiding citizens.” It is a plea that falls on deaf ears in the face of relentless political maneuvering.