LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Could abortion eventually be enshrined in the Nevada constitution?
Vice President Kamala Harris thinks it would be a great idea while making remarks on the issue Monday during a visit to Las Vegas.
Harris says if such a measure went to Nevada voters, it would likely be approved, similar to what has happened in a number of other states in recent years.
"From Virginia to Ohio, when this issue has been on the ballot, the voters have voted in favor of freedoms," Harris said Monday afternoon while at an event at a Las Vegas co-working space.
Harris said reproductive rights, a hot-button issue this year during a bitter presidential campaign year, is a topic likely to energize voters. She also referenced the recent court decision in Arizona that effectively banned nearly all abortions in the state.
"We're not going to stand for this," Harris said. "It is not alright and we are prepared to organize and to take to the streets."
During a morning visit Monday to Southwest Career and Technical Academy, Harris broached the subject of gun violence, something she admitted residents in the Las Vegas Valley are all too familiar with.
Contrary to what she says is at times pushed by the far right, she and other Democrats don't want to take guns away from lawful firearm owners.
"There's this suggestion that you're either in favor of the Second Amendment or you want to take everyone's guns away," Harris said. "I'm in favor of the Second Amendment, and I believe we need assault weapon bans and things like universal background checks."
Geena Springmann, a Las Vegas resident and an activist for a group called Nevada Moms Demand Action, a group that works to end gun violence in the state, was at the event at the school.
"Any progress is progress in the right direction," Springmann said. "Our goal is to elect gun sense candidates, which means they're going to prioritize gun violence prevention and gun sense legislation. I'm really grateful for the vice president to be here and to talk about and fight for these issues."
Monday's visit represented Harris' fourth visit to the Silver State this year. Nevada is seen by experts as a battleground state that could go for the incumbents Joe Biden and Kamala Harris or for former president Donald Trump, who is attempting this year to recreate his 2016 presidential election win.
