Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore
President Donald Trump said that when it comes to the mentally ill he was ok with taking the guns first and to let due process come later which contradicted Vice President Mike Pence’s prior remarks.
“Take the firearms first, and then go to court,” Trump said during a televised bipartisan meeting with legislators on Wednesday. “Because that’s another system. Because a lot of times, by the time you go to court, it takes so long to go to court, to get the due process procedures — I like taking the guns early. Like in this crazy man’s case that just took place in Florida, he had a lot of firearms. They saw everything — to go to court would have taken a long time. So you could do exactly what you’re saying, but take the guns first, go through due process second.”
U.S. Senator Ben Sasse (R-NE), who wasn’t at the meeting, blasted the President’s remarks.
“Strong leaders don’t automatically agree with the last thing that was said to them. We have the Second Amendment and due process of law for a reason. We’re not ditching any Constitutional protections simply because the last person the President talked to today doesn’t like them,” Sasse said.
During the meeting, Trump also indicated that he would support raising the age of buying a rifle from 18 to 21-years of age, strengthening background checks, and he shot down a proposed amendment to a comprehensive bill that would make concealed carry permits reciprocal between states saying it would make the broader bill unpassable.
The National Rifle Association balked at the ideas discussed at today’s meeting.
“While today’s meeting made for great TV, the gun-control proposals discussed would make for bad policy that would not keep our children safe. Instead of punishing law-abiding gun owners for the acts of a deranged lunatic, our leaders should pass meaningful reforms that would actually prevent future tragedies,” NRA spokeswoman Jennifer Baker said in a released statement.