Harris on Georgia school shooting: ‘It doesn’t have to be this way.’

Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday called the shooting at a Georgia high school an “outrageous” and “senseless tragedy,” telling a crowd in New Hampshire that gun violence is one of the issues at stake this November.

“This is just a senseless tragedy on top of so many senseless tragedies, and it’s just outrageous that everyday in our country, in the United States of America, that parents have to send their children to school, worried about whether or not their child will come home alive. It’s senseless,” Harris said.

“We’ve got to stop it, and we have to end this epidemic of gun violence in our country once and for all. You know it doesn’t have to be this way.”

Yet Harris, who has regularly called for an assault weapons ban and universal background checks, did not mention any specific policy changes in her remarks.

Harris addressed the shooting during a campaign event in New Hampshire, hours after a shooter opened fire Wednesday morning at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, about an hour outside of Atlanta. At least four people are dead and an additional nine have been taken to hospitals with injuries, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. The suspect is alive and in custody.

The tragedy came just weeks into the high school’s new school year, making it the 385th mass shooting of this year, in which four or more people were injured or killed, according to the Gun Violence Archive.

The vice president, who was briefed on the incident before leaving Washington, has been heavily involved in the White House’s response to gun violence. President Joe Biden tapped her to lead the Office of Gun Violence Prevention, which helps coordinate policy across the federal government, aid communities in the aftermath of a tragedy and identify new executive actions while gun safety legislation remains stalled in Congress.

Harris on Wednesday said that during her monthlong tour of college campuses last year she heard from young voters who told her about their experiences with active shooter drills — now routine practice in American schools.

“Our kids are sitting in a classroom where they should be fulfilling their God-given potential, and some part of their big beautiful brain is concerned about a shooter busting through the door of the classroom. It does not have to be this way,” Harris said.

Ahead of Harris’ event, Biden called the shooting a “horrific reminder of how gun violence continues to tear our communities apart.” He noted that’s why he signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act into law, established the White House guns office and announced dozens of executive actions since taking office.

“Republicans in Congress must finally say ‘enough is enough’ and work with Democrats to pass common-sense gun safety legislation. We must ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines once again, require safe storage of firearms, enact universal background checks, and end immunity for gun manufacturers,” he said in a statement. “These measures will not bring those who were tragically killed today back, but it will help prevent more tragic gun violence from ripping more families apart.”