Trump Meets Florida Survivors, Suggests Arming Teachers

Donald Trump sat in the middle of a semi-circle in the White House State Dining Room

Washington - US President Donald Trump suggested arming teachers to deter future mass shootings as he held an emotional meeting Wednesday at the White House with survivors of the gun rampage that left 17 people dead at a Florida high school.

“I just want to say before we begin, because I want to hear you, but we’ll be very strong on background checks, very strong emphasis on the mental health of somebody,” Trump told the students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in a meeting in the White House.

"If you had a teacher who was adept with the firearm, they could end the attack very quickly," he said, stating that schools could arm up to 20% of their teachers to stop "maniacs" who may try and attack them.

"This would only be obviously for people who are very adept at handling a gun," said Mr Trump. Voicing support for an idea backed by the powerful National Rifle Association.

"It's called concealed carry. Where a teacher would have a concealed gun on them, they would go for special training and they would be there, and you would no longer have a gun-free zone."

"A gun-free zone is, let's go in and let's attack," he said.

"There are many ideas that I have, many ideas that other people have and we'll pick out the most important ideas and work to get them done. It won't be talk, it's gone on too long."

The White House meeting was attended by Stoneman Douglas students, their parents and also the parents of victims of the Columbine, Sandy Hook and other shootings.

Andrew Pollack, whose 18-year-old daughter Meadow was among the Stoneman Douglas victims, told Trump it was far too easy for people such as the 19-year-old shooter gunman Nikolas Cruz to acquire weapons.

"I'm here because my daughter has no voice. She was murdered last week and she was taken from us, shot nine times," he said. "We as a country failed our children. This shouldn't happen.

"We protect airports. We protect concerts, stadiums, embassies," Pollack said, his voice seething with rage. "I can't get on a plane with a bottle of water, but we leave some animal to walk into a school."

Justin Gruber, a 15-year-old Stoneman Douglas student, said "there needs to be significant change in this country because this has to never happen again.

"People should be able to feel that when they go to school they can be safe," Gruber said.

Samuel Zeif, who lost a close friend at Stoneman Douglas last Wednesday, said it was important to "be strong for the fallen who don't have a voice to speak anymore."

"Let's never let this happen again. Please," he told the president, later adding: "I don't understand why I can still go in a store and buy a weapon of war."

Urgent calls for action following the 2012 Sandy Hook massacre, which left 20 children and six teachers dead, had failed to break the national deadlock on gun control.

But students have vowed to make the Parkland tragedy a turning point, with youths inspired on social media by the activism of their peers staging walkouts from high schools in Florida and elsewhere on Wednesday.

Hundreds of students descended on city hall in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and marched in other cities, including Chicago, the Midwestern metropolis racked by gun violence.

In Washington, hundreds more gathered outside the White House chanting slogans against the National Rifle Association (NRA), the powerful gun lobby, and demanding action from Trump. "Hey hey, ho ho, the NRA has got to go," they chanted.

Students are planning a march on Washington on March 24, with sister rallies planned across the country.

The president threw his support Tuesday behind moves to ban "bump stocks" — an accessory that allows a semi-automatic rifle to be fired nearly as fast as an automatic weapon.

But his suggestion of arming teachers drew immediate scorn from the founder of the advocacy group, Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America.

"I'm honestly gobsmacked that the President just used a forum with gun violence survivors to pimp the @NRA's priority legislation and to suggest arming teachers," tweeted Shannon Watts.

There has been long impasse on the gun debate in the US congress, accomplishing nothing despite a spate of mass shooting and polls showing that Americans support stricter gun laws by a two-to-one margin.



(AFP)