President Trump met with Parkland students on Wednesday and lawmakers regarding school safety on Thursday. He has stated that having armed teachers would greatly change the perception that schools were easy targets. He also suggested a bonus for teachers who participated in the armed program.
“If you had a teacher who was adept with the firearm, they could end the attack very quickly.” President Trump
Breitbart reported,
“Students showed considerable support for the idea of arming teachers. Hunter Pollack, who lost his sister Meadow in the attack, said, ‘I’m not here to debate, but I lost my sister. And like Mr. President said, if you could find 20% of maybe retired law enforcement officers, or a teacher who could go through discreet training to carry a firearm around his waist, it could’ve been a very different situation.'”
On Thursday, the President suggested that giving the armed teachers a bonus would be much cheaper than hiring additional security guards.
Today, it was my great honor to host a School Safety Roundtable at the @WhiteHouse with State and local leaders, law enforcement officers, and education officials.
There is nothing more important than protecting our children. They deserve to be safe, and we will deliver! pic.twitter.com/WhC2AxgWXO
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 22, 2018
….If a potential “sicko shooter” knows that a school has a large number of very weapons talented teachers (and others) who will be instantly shooting, the sicko will NEVER attack that school. Cowards won’t go there…problem solved. Must be offensive, defense alone won’t work!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 22, 2018
….History shows that a school shooting lasts, on average, 3 minutes. It takes police & first responders approximately 5 to 8 minutes to get to site of crime. Highly trained, gun adept, teachers/coaches would solve the problem instantly, before police arrive. GREAT DETERRENT!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 22, 2018
I never said “give teachers guns” like was stated on Fake News @CNN & @NBC. What I said was to look at the possibility of giving “concealed guns to gun adept teachers with military or special training experience – only the best. 20% of teachers, a lot, would now be able to
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 22, 2018
….immediately fire back if a savage sicko came to a school with bad intentions. Highly trained teachers would also serve as a deterrent to the cowards that do this. Far more assets at much less cost than guards. A “gun free” school is a magnet for bad people. ATTACKS WOULD END!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 22, 2018
We have advocated arming teachers (to the trolls who made constant remarks about “not all teachers should have guns” we say…duh.) Any program for arming teachers must be selective with strong training to go with it. Running with a weapon while firing, the stress of an active shooter situation, all would require training – and the ability of a teacher to handle themselves with the weapon could be assessed.
It is also true that there are veterans already familiar with firearms among teachers and coaches in schools, as there were in the recent Florida shooting. Let’s give them an edge now to take out an active shooter isntead of causing them to lose their lives.
But the President is right. Gun free zones make schools shooting galleries for the mentally deranged. Armed staff members would be able to stop an attack before massive loss of life.
Featured photo: Screenshot from White House video of meeting with Parkland students.