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TUSCON, January 11 – Gun control critics are once again exploiting the dead to trumpet their own political agenda.
Hours after the Tuscon shooting spree that left 6 dead, 13 wounded and a US Congresswoman fighting for her life, local officials in Arizona are callously twisting a national tragedy to their own ends, making emotional arguments against state legislation which actually enhances the ability of law-abiding citizens to protect themselves
Pima County Democratic Party Chairman Jeff Rogers used a CNN interview on Saturday to slam a bill allowing lawful concealed carry on campus, calling such an idea “crazy” in light of the shooting. In a press conference on Sunday, Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik called the bill “ridiculous.” Then Brady Campaign spokesman Paul Helmke took to the airwaves to decry the ease of obtaining firearms in the US.
Now Students for Concealed Carry, the leading voice for self defense rights on college campuses, is firing back.
“What these guys are saying doesn’t even match the facts of the case,” said David Burnett, president and spokesman for the group. “Our bill has nothing to do with college drop-outs who can’t even pass an army drug test. It’s about allowing professors, ROTC cadets or anyone that has a concealed carry permit to be armed for their own protection.”
Records indicate that the Tuscon shooting suspect attended college in 2010, engaging in outbursts and rants that unnerved other classmates.
According to the Washington Post, one classmate wrote “Needless to say, I sit by the door. … [The suspect] is one of those whose picture you see on the news, after he has come into class with an automatic weapon.” The suspect eventually dropped out of school.
Reports also indicate the suspect cleared the FBI criminal check required by the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act prior to a firearm purchase. Failing the check requires a person to have been declared mentally defective or committed to a mental institution.
“This is exactly what we need to protect against,” said Burnett. “The suspect showed warning signs, but no one followed up on them, and there’s no law against being creepy. If anything needs changing, it’s the laws about mental illness, not guns.
“Until we have a way of finding and stopping every deranged killer, we can’t forbid citizens from protecting themselves.”
CONTACT:
David Burnett
Director of Public Relations
Students for Concealed Carry
