Andrew Yang talks up personalized guns as way to boost safety

Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang on Monday provided some more details on his idea to personalize guns so only the owner would be able to operate them as a potential way to cut down on gun violence.

“You can make a grip that essentially knows whether it’s the owner based upon the size of their hand, the pressure,” Mr. Yang said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” “It’s not a fingerprint thing, it’s just like essentially the dimensions of your hand, and then if someone else tries to fire the gun then it doesn’t work.”

He said that while it sounds “very James Bond-ish,” the technology is available to make it work.

“It’s just the gun manufacturers have not felt like it was going to be good for their businesses to have this, and this technology’s become controversial because of inflammatory arguments on both sides,” he said.

He said it would be optional for gun owners to do so.

“But a lot of owners would love it, because who doesn’t want a gun that’s just yours?” he said. “And a lot of gun owners have children … so if you were to make it cost-free, you would see hundreds of thousands of these guns become personalized, and then much, much safer.”

Mr. Yang also said there should be a “perpetual” buyback program to compensate people who turn in their firearms.

“The reality is we have over 300 million firearms already in this country … whatever law we pass, those firearms are still out there,” he said. “So how do you decrease supply? How do you make those guns safer?”

Many 2020 Democratic presidential candidates have come out in favor of stricter gun controls in the wake of the recent mass shootings in Texas and Ohio that have left a total of more than 30 people dead.

President Trump has also talked up the idea of expanding gun-purchase background checks, though it’s unclear exactly what specific legislation Mr. Trump might endorse that could pass Congress when lawmakers return to Washington, D.C., next month.