NRA: NRA

NRA Dept: Video: Anti-gun protesters interrupt NRA event David Keene, president of the National Rifle Association, leads a moment of silence for victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary school shootings in Newtown, Conn., before a news conference in Washington Dec. 21, 2012. Reuters Social Media, according to Globe and Mail. Gun control Knee-jerk gun ban won t solve problem, says Canadian Shooting Sports Association Video: NRA chief calls for armed police in U.S. schools Video We don t need this now : Reaction to the NRA news conference Left off his list of society s culprits were guns. A week after gunman Adam Lanza killed 20 children and six adults in a Connecticut elementary school, pushing gun control to the fore of national debate, Mr. LaPierre said it is a dangerous notion to suggest one more gun ban would make Americans safer. The NRA executive vice-president insisted the Newtown tragedy might have been avoided had the country heeded his call to deploy armed guards in every school after a shooter killed 32 people at Virginia Tech in 2007. What if, when Adam Lanza started shooting his way into Sandy Hook Elementary School last Friday, he had been confronted by qualified, armed security? he said. Will you at least admit it s possible that 26 innocent lives might have been spared? While few gun-control advocates were expecting the NRA to embrace President Barack Obama s call for new restrictions, observers were nevertheless taken aback by the vehemence with which Mr. LaPierre stuck to the NRA s hard line in the wake of a tragedy they believe has changed the country. New Jersey Democratic Senator Frank Lautenberg called Mr. LaPierre s statement beyond belief. Still, Mr. LaPierre s dismissal of enhanced gun restrictions served as a warning to other politicians in Congress now contemplating them. And it leaves Mr. Obama with the difficult decision about whether to spend political capital on a potentially fruitless battle with the NRA or abandon gun control to push other legislative priorities, such as immigration reform. Mr. Obama this week asked Vice-President Joe Biden to lead a team of administration officials to come up, by next month, with concrete proposals to stem gun violence. In addition to renewing the assault weapons ban that expired in 2004, Mr. Obama has expressed support for a law that would force all gun buyers to pass an expanded background check and legislation to outlaw high-capacity ammunition clips. The NRA is seen as a fearsome political foe that has successfully kept gun control off the national agenda for two decades. Democrats from conservative-leaning states and districts may be reluctant to vote for stiffer laws, such as a renewed ban on assault weapons, now that Mr. LaPierre has spoken. We can t lose precious time debating legislation that won t work, Mr. LaPierre said during Friday s event, at which he took no questions and was interrupted twice by protesters, one flashing a banner reading: NRA killing our children. Mr. LaPierre blamed the media for perpetuating the dangerous notion that one more gun ban one more law imposed on peaceful, lawful people will protect us where 20,000 others have failed. Rather, he called for Congress to immediately allocate enough funding to put armed police officers in every school by the time students return to classes in January. Police officers have increasingly been assigned to U.S. high schools in recent years, mainly to discourage gang violence, bullying and illegal drugs. A 2010 Department of Justice study estimated about 17,000 police officers were stationed in public schools, but elementary schools accounted for a small proportion of institutions with armed guards. A lot of that came about as a result of school shootings in the middle and late 1990s, and most of those were in middle- and high schools, explained Mo Canady, executive director of the Alabama-based National Association of School Resource Officers. It does serve as a deterrent. There is no question about that. In many parts of the country, however, schools are located in so-called gun-free zones where it is illegal to carry weapons. Instead of keeping children safer, Mr. LaPierre said the signs designating such zones tell every insane killer in America that schools are the safest place to inflict maximum mayhem with minimum risk. He announced the creation by the NRA of a National School Shield Program to help schools develop security plans and train teachers and officers. The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun, Mr. LaPierre said, adding that every school should have a properly trained and armed good guy. Public reaction on Twitter about the National Rifle Association s highly anticipated response to the Newtown massacre was vociferous. Walking out of another funeral and was handed the NRA transcript. The most revolting, tone-deaf statement I ve ever seen. Connecticut Congressman Chris Murphy @ChrisMurphyCT Librarians in every school. #nra First things first. American Libraries @amlibraries British news is covering the NRA response to Newtown and has had to clarify twice that what they re showing is not a spoof. @HelenLOHara It s amazing that the NRA can even shoot logic full of holes. @bruce arthur NRA: If we banned schools there would never be another school shooting. Comedian Seth Meyers @sethmeyers21 More Related to this Story (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.