President Donald Trump revealed why he will not push for raising the federal minimum purchasing age for a firearm to 21 in a series of Monday tweets.
Very strong improvement and strengthening of background checks will be fully backed by White House. Legislation moving forward. Bump Stocks will soon be out. Highly trained expert teachers will be allowed to conceal carry, subject to State Law. Armed guards OK, deterrent!…….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 12, 2018
….On 18 to 21 Age Limits, watching court cases and rulings before acting. States are making this decision. Things are moving rapidly on this, but not much political support (to put it mildly).
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 12, 2018
Trump’s tweets come as the White House will announce a slew of new school safety proposals in the wake of a February school massacre in Parkland, Florida. The president will push for federal funding and support for arming and training voluntary teachers and is set to form a special commission on school safety headed by his secretary of education Betsy DeVos.
Officials told reporters Sunday the commission could recommend raising the minimum age for guns. The president’s tweet noted that there is not much “political support” for raising the federal minimum age to 21, likely referencing the opposition of the National Rifle Association.
The NRA came out strongly against raising the federal minimum age to 21 and sued the state of Florida Friday for enacting such legislation.
“This bill punishes law-abiding gun owners for the criminal acts of a deranged individual,” NRA spokesman Chris Cox said in a statement accompanying the lawsuit. “Securing our schools and protecting the constitutional rights of Americans are not mutually exclusive.”
The White House will also push for states to strengthen their laws allowing them to place risk protection orders on the mentally ill to mitigate their access to a firearm. Legislatively, the president will continue to back the Fix NICS Act, which strengthens the federal background check system, and the STOP School Violence Act, which provides additional funding to the Department of Justice.
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