WASHINGTON — A National Rifle Association task force yesterday released a report recommending that every school have an officer or staffer carry a gun as the key to the NRA plan to protect schools.
The plan, rolled out as Congress is expected to take up gun reform next week, was met by President Obama’s announcement that he’ll travel to Connecticut on Monday to prod lawmakers to act.
The task force for the nation’s most powerful gun lobby made eight recommendations in a 225-page report including that states mandate that every school have a security plan and the federal government create a new agency to improve and fund better school security.
“Response time is critical,” said Asa Hutchinson, a former Republican congressman who directed the task force. “If you have the firearms in the presence of someone at the school, it will reduce the response times and save lives.”
President Obama will speak at the University of Hartford Monday as the Senate intends to kick off debate next week over gun-control measures that include universal background checks and stiffer penalties for gun buyers who sell to illegal holders.
The NRA borrowed a page from gun-control advocates’ playbook yesterday by introducing a parent whose 6-year-old son was killed in the Newtown, Conn., massacre of 26 children and six adults in December.
“These are recommendations for solutions, real solutions that will make our kids safer, and that’s what we need,” said Mark Mattioli at a press conference where armed guards flanked the podium.
The Brady Campaign, a leading gun-control group, accused the NRA of “missing the point” by ignoring the need for expanded background checks and other measures the Senate is considering.