BELLEVUE, WA – The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms today blasted Capitol Hill Democrats for once again pushing legislation to finance “gun violence prevention research” in response to the Nashville tragedy, and instead called on Congress to provide funding to make schools “hard targets.”
“Anti-gun Democrats want to spend $50 million a year for the next five years to finance boondoggle research by the CDC under something called the ‘Gun Violence Prevention Research Act,” noted CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb. “That $250 million would be far better spent supporting local districts to hire armed school resource officers, improve school building security, and/or provide funding to local police agencies for personnel whose job is to protect schools.
“Democrats want to make it appear they’re doing something by spending a fortune in taxpayers’ money for research by the CDC which,” he continued, “experience tells us will result in recommendations for additional gun control, while not preventing a single crime. Democrats want to sit around for the next five years pontificating about nasty-looking guns while parents, teachers, and local law enforcement want action now.
“Why spend five more years on unproductive research which,” Gottlieb contended, “we all know, will ultimately recommend more research? It translates to job perpetuation for bureaucrats who do nothing while our schools remain vulnerable soft targets.
“Capitol Hill Democrats didn’t learn a thing from Nashville,” Gottlieb stated, “while the rest of the country learned a lot. We were reminded that a swift response by well-trained, courageous officers produces a quick resolution to a murderous incident. We learned immediate action by boots-on-the-ground cops works far better than standing around outside wondering what to do next, while the sound of gunfire echoes through school hallways. And, we saw that a deranged killer taken down decisively is not going to harm anyone else.”
Gottlieb said school security camera footage revealed a weak spot in any public building. Glass doors, he observed, “may look pretty but they don’t keep criminals out.” He said $50 million can help provide one of the simplest improvements: stronger doors that cannot be shattered by gunfire.
“We know there’s a mental health crisis, not a gun crisis, and we don’t need more research to prove it,” Gottlieb said. “Let’s spend the taxpayers’ money where it will do the most good. While we improve the mental health services we already have, use this proposed $250 million to harden our schools and protect the soft, innocent lives inside.”