Editorial Note: This week the main top story was about the Parkland Shooting in Florida. During the week the President held a meeting with Students and teachers discussing the options of school safety. The following is an excerpt from that meeting, which was held in the White House, the President suggest arming teachers....
Remarks by President Trump and Vice President Pence at Listening Session with Students, Teachers, and Parents
From the White House ( link source)
THE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you, too. And I will say, again, background checks are going to be very strong. We need that. And then after we do that, when we see there’s trouble, we have to nab them.
You know, years ago, we had mental hospitals — mental institutions. We had a lot of them, and a lot of them have closed. They’ve closed. Some people thought it was a stigma. Some people thought, frankly, it was a — the legislators thought it was too expensive.
Today, if you catch somebody, they don’t know what to do with them. He hasn’t committed the crime, but he may, very well. And there’s no mental institution, there’s no place to bring them. And we have that a lot. Even if they caught this person — I’m being nice when I use the word “person” — they probably wouldn’t have known what to do. They’re not going to put them in jail. And yet — so there’s none of that middle ground of having that institution, where you had trained people that could handle it and do something about it and find out how sick he really is. Because he is a sick guy. And he should have been nabbed a number of times, frankly.
Your concept and your idea about — it’s called concealed carry — and it only works where you have people very adept at using firearms, of which you have many, and it would be teachers and coaches. If the coach had a firearm in his locker when he ran at this guy — that coach was very brave. Saved a lot of lives, I suspect. But if he had a firearm, he wouldn’t have had to run; he would have shot and that would have been the end of it.
And this would only be, obviously, for people that are very adept at handling a gun. And it would be — it’s called concealed carry, where a teacher would have a concealed gun on them. They’d go for special training. And they would be there, and you would no longer have a gun-free zone. A gun-free zone to a maniac — because they’re all cowards — a gun-free zone is, let’s go in and let’s attack, because bullets aren’t coming back at us.
And if you do this — and a lot of people are talking about it, and it’s certainly a point that we’ll discuss — but concealed carry for teachers and for people of talent — of that type of talent. So let’s say you had 20 percent of your teaching force, because that’s pretty much the number — and you said it — an attack has lasted, on average, about three minutes. It takes five to eight minutes for responders, for the police, to come in. So the attack is over. If you had a teacher with — who was adept at firearms, they could very well end the attack very quickly.
And the good thing about a suggestion like that — and we’re going to be looking at it very strongly, and I think a lot of people are going to be opposed to it; I think a lot of people are going to like it — but the good thing is that you’ll have a lot of people with that. You know, you can’t have a hundred security guards in Stoneman Douglas. That’s a big school. That’s a massive school with a lot of acreage to cover, a lot of floor area.
And so that would be, certainly, a situation that is being discussed a lot by a lot of people. You’d have a lot people that’d be armed. They’d be ready. They’re professionals. They may be Marines that left the Marines, left the Army, left the Air Force. And they’re very adept at doing that. You’d have a lot of them, and they’d be spread evenly throughout the school.
So the other thing — I really believe that if these cowards knew that the school was well-guarded, from the standpoint of having, pretty much, professionals with great training, I think they wouldn’t go into the school to start off with. I think it could very well solve your problem.
So we’ll be doing the background checks. We’ll be doing a lot of different things. But we’ll certainly be looking at ideas like that.
You know, a lot of people don’t understand that airline pilots now, a lot of them carry guns. And I have to say that things have changed a lot. People aren’t attacking the way they would routinely attack. And maybe you have the same situation in schools.
So does anybody like that idea here? Does anybody like it? Right? Yes. For Meadow — your beautiful Meadow. We talked about that.
And do people feel strongly against it? Anybody? Anybody? Strongly against it?
All right. I mean, I could — look, we can understand both sides. And certainly, it’s controversial. But we’ll study that along with many other ideas.
Related stories....
SCHOOL SHOOTINGS: Senator Murray to Secretary DeVos: I Agree, Let’s Hold Hearings on School Shootings and Gun Safety
Press release issued 2/ 15/ 18 (link source)
(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), top Democrat on the Senate health committee, released the following statement in response to Secretary DeVos calling for Congressional hearings into school shootings.
“As a mother and a grandmother, I can't imagine the shock and pain families in Florida are going through right now, and sadly those feelings are not new or rare in our country. Families across the country are tired of waiting for Congress to step up, have the tough conversations, and adopt common sense gun safety and other policies to end this scourge in our schools and communities, so I am very glad that Secretary DeVos has requested Congressional hearings on this issue and I wholeheartedly agree. I look forward to working with Chairman Alexander and other members of our committee overseeing education to invite Secretary DeVos and other witnesses to a hearing in our committee to push this conversation forward and move toward action.
DeVos calls for congressional hearings on school shootings (Politico)
Following a shooting at a Florida high school that left more than a dozen dead, Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos said Thursday that Congress should hold hearings on school shootings.
“Congress needs to be holding hearings on these issues. And we’ve seen lots of discussion about this every time we’ve had another incident,” DeVos said during an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt.
https://www.politico.com/story/2018/02/15/florida-school-shooting-betsy-devos-412176
Amid student anger, Trump hosts live White House special on gun violence
A week after the Parkland shooting, the president found a way to respond, letting students and families express raw emotions and divergent views on guns. (Politico)
https://www.politico.com/story/2018/02/21/trump-gun-violence-student-anger-420491
Inslee statement on Parkland shooting
February 15, 2018 press release
https://www.governor.wa.gov/news-media/inslee-statement-parkland-shooting
“Our nation’s families and communities are grieving from the loss and fear of yet another school shooting, the 18th shooting in only seven weeks. Washington state extends our deepest sympathies to the victims’ families and friends in Parkland and pray for those currently battling for their lives.
"Elected leaders need to do more than grieve. They need to take action. We are not doing nearly enough to regulate access to weapons designed to cause mass casualties. We can do better if we choose to do better. If we are serious about honoring the 17 lost lives in Parkland, and the 96 lives that are likely to be lost to gun violence today and every day to come, we will take action to keep our children, our homes and our communities safer.”
WORLD NEWS HEADLINES FROM THE UN NEWS CENTER & OTHER SOURCES
UN PRESS RELEASE: Adapt Peacemaking, Security Tools to Overcome Humanitarian Crisis, Emerging Crisis Worldwide, Particularly in Syria, Speakers Urge Security Council
(see full statement)
The Security Council must swiftly and effectively discharge all its power and responsibilities to overcome emerging threats and prevent massacres, genocide and the killing of civilians around the world and immediately in Syria, members heard today while they considered the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations.
“We have to rebalance our approach to international peace and security,” United Nations Secretary‑General António Guterres said, appealing for the Council’s action to swiftly end the violence in eastern Ghouta, Syria. “Our goal must be to do everything we can to help countries avert the outbreak of crises that take a high toll on humanity.”
As relevant as ever, UN Charter is ‘our living template’ for tackling global challenges – Guterres
The Principles outlined in the United Nations Charter remain the foundations of international relations and global harmony at a time when conflicts have come more complex, new threats and challenges have emerged and impacts of instability are felt far beyond their source, Secretary-General António Guterres said on Wednesday.
https://news.un.org/en/story/2018/02/1003221
Evidence-based approach crucial to migrants and migration – top UN officials
As Governments begin to negotiate a global compact on migration, an accurate portrayal of migrants, and of migration, is needed more than ever before to help shape public discourse and policy, senior United Nations officials said Wednesday, underscoring the importance of an evidence-based approach to the issue.
https://news.un.org/en/story/2018/02/1003261
US MISSION TO THE UN: Remarks at a UN Security Council Briefing on Purpose and Principles of the UN Charter in the Maintenance of International Peace and Security
(see full statement) Dated 2. 21. 18
https://usun.state.gov/remarks/8313
Quote: " Sovereignty is critically important. The United States will never forfeit our sovereign right to govern ourselves and determine our future. All Member States share this right. But all Member States also struggle to balance their sovereign interests with the need to work cooperatively with other nations. In the United States, our constitution and democratic system of government binds us to act in the interests of our people. I am accountable to the American people in what I say and what I do. Governments that are not accountable to their people are less constrained. They often point to sovereignty to justify bad behavior – and to claim this Council has no business meddling in their affairs. But sovereignty gives no country the right to trample on the human rights and fundamental freedoms of others."
US STATE DEPT: United States and Libya Sign Cultural Property Protection Agreement
Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs I. Steven Goldstein and Libyan Ministry of Foreign Affairs Under Secretary for Political Affairs Lutfi Almughrabi will sign a landmark bilateral Memorandum of Understanding on cultural property protection on February 23, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. at the U.S. Department of State.
https://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2018/02/278502.htm
US DEFENSE DEPT: Stoltenberg Discusses NATO Transatlantic Link at Munich Conference
WASHINGTON, Feb. 21, 2018 —
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is arguably the most successful alliance in history, ensuring no general war in Europe since the end of World War II. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told the Munich Security Conference last week that the organization is adapting to ensure it continues its success against new threats and challenges.
https://www.defense.gov/News/Article/Article/1446630/stoltenberg-discusses-nato-transatlantic-link-at-munich-conference/
IN THIS WEEK'S EDITION
