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Reaction to NRA proposal to have armed guards at schools
Reaction to NRA proposal to have armed guards at schools
MILWAUKEE -- There are questions being raised after the National Rifle Association (NRA) had its first news conference since the tragedy at Sandy Hook.
The NRA is now calling for its own version of a plan; what the pro-gun group calls "arming the good guys."
"I am calling on congress today to act immediately to appropriate whatever is necessary to put armed police officers in every single school in this country," said NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre.
Amidst protesters, the NRA announced in Washington that it will assemble experts to spearhead a national school safety plan.
"The National Rifle Association knows there are millions of qualified, active police, active reserve or retired military, security professionals, certified firefighters, rescue personnel, an extraordinary core of patriotic, trained, qualified citizens to join with local school officials and police to come up with a security plan for every school. We can deploy them to protect our kids now. We can immediately make our schools safer," said LaPierre.
Parents at Clara Barton Elementary School in Milwaukee have mixed reactions to the NRA's proposal.
"I think it's a great idea. I mean we put armed guards to protect our money. Why is that more important than our children?" said one parent.
"I know things happen, but I don't think we need to put guards at schools," said another parent.
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett is an advocate of more gun control. On Friday, he criticized the NRA's solution.
"It appears they want us to institute a police state at least as it relates to children," said Barrett. "He did not talk about having armed guards at Sikh Temple or salons or bowling alleys or at playgrounds or other places where we've seen massacres in this country. He didn't talk about November 2009 at Fort Hood you had an Army psychiatrist who murdered who killed 12 people and injured 31 others, a place where there are many, many guns."
On Thursday, December 20th, Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn criticized the NRA as well, calling it a small but powerful lobbying group that legislators need to break away from.
Earlier in the week, Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke wrote that he supports armed guards in all schools as well as malls and movie theaters.