Every time there’s a school shooting, advocates for gun control take to the op-eds and the airwaves to tell the American public their “thoughts and prayers” are worthless, and we instead need “sensible gun restrictions” immediately. The “sensible gun restrictions” vary based on the individual you talk to, but they all agree that there needs to be some kind of legislative remedy to all of the senseless carnage.

But they never seem to be concerned with holding politicians’ feet to the fire for failing to enforce the “sensible” gun restrictions that are already on the books.

A prime example is California’s absentee landlord of an attorney general, Xavier Becerra.

Now that former New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is in the political penalty box for allegedly beating up women he was dating, Attorney General Becerra is aiming to be President Donald Trump’s chief antagonist.

In a glowing profile, the Washington Post wrote that, “In just over a year as attorney general, Becerra has become a leader of the California resistance, the legal brain behind the state’s fight against the president’s policies on health care, the environment and most significantly, immigration.”

Apparently hosting finger-wagging press conferences is exhausting work, because Becerra doesn’t seem to have time to perform the basic duties of running the California Department of Justice.

One of those mundane duties is to make sure the more than 10,000 dangerous people who are prohibited by law from owning a firearm don’t still have them in their possession. This list includes people who have committed felonies, are the target of a domestic violence restraining order or have found to be severely mentally ill.

But who has time for that kind of minutia anyway? A star is born!

How often do we hear stories about mass shooters who were already on the radar of law enforcement because of their criminal history, mental illness or ties to radical groups? Yet they always seem to slip through the cracks.

Well, here you go. We have a list of 10,000 people, just in the state of California, who should not be in possession of guns. We know who they are. We know where they are. We know what types of guns they own. We just need an attorney general willing to go get them.

Becerra says he’s right on top of it — he just needs another term and “at least four years” to clear the backlog.

“At least.”

The slow pace of gun collection came up at a recent candidates forum among those vying to be California’s next attorney general. Republican candidate Steven Bailey, a retired El Dorado County judge, called Becerra’s inaction a “travesty.” Democratic candidate and state Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones told Becerra, “You have to do the job.”

In response, Becerra pretended the criticisms were launched against the rank-and-file employees of the California Department of Justice. “That’s a low blow to the men and women who have to do this every day,” Becerra said. He went on to say that collecting guns is dangerous work and that if you expect him to do it faster, he’ll need more money.

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In just over a year, the Los Angeles Democrat has filed an eye-popping 32 lawsuits against the Trump Administration, challenging initiatives on immigration, health care and environmental policy. Earlier in the year Becerra’s office received $6.5 million in extra funding and 31 new positions, which he used to build teams of lawyers to take on the Trump administration.

Preventing future gun violence is not Becerra’s priority, being “King of the Resistance” is.

Becerra is a partisan operative moonlighting as a dutiful lawman. The “gun control” advocates who are supporting his unconscionable behavior are his enablers.

If you think “something must be done” about senseless gun violence, then electing an attorney general who will actually do the job is a good place to start.

John Phillips is a CNN political commentator and can be heard weekdays at 3 p.m. on “The Drive Home with Jillian Barberie and John Phillips” on KABC/AM 790.