More than 1,000 demonstrators gathered at the Georgia Capitol to demand stricter gun laws after the latest school shooting in Florida. A handful of Republican legislators had a different sort of response.
State Sens. Josh McKoon and Michael Williams, both candidates for higher office, each proposed significantly boosting the number of security officers stationed at Georgia’s schools.
The measures are not likely to gain any traction in the statehouse. But they are designed to motivate the GOP base in an election year and send a message to gun control advocates that more security – not stricter regulations – is their solution to the spate of shootings.
McKoon’s measure would require the state to assign at least one member of the Georgia State Patrol at each public school “for the purpose of curbing the risk of mass firearm and other violence at schools.” Sen. David Shafer, a candidate for lieutenant governor, is among the co-sponsors of his bill.
McKoon, who is running for secretary of state, said he’s not certain how much his measure would cost the state, though it’s likely tens of millions of dollars. That’s beside the point, he said.
“Georgians are demanding action to protect our young people in school. For too long, we have allowed schools to remain a soft target,” he said, adding that the measure would “guard against any tragedy occurring here like what we witnessed last week in Florida.”
Williams, running for governor on an arch-conservative platform, outlined a proposal that would go a step further.
He would require each school to post a plain-clothed armed security guard at each building entrance. And he would let teachers who have concealed carry permits bring firearms to schools, along with a state stipend to supplement school staffers who do so.
“Georgia teachers who agree to serve as coaches receive monthly stipends of $150 to $400, and even more in some schools,” he said. “If Georgia can pay teachers to coach tennis, then Georgia can pay eligible teachers a stipend to protect the lives of our children.”
It’s worth repeating that these measures won’t soon be headed to Gov. Nathan Deal’s desk any time soon.
Williams has issued a flurry of proposals this year aimed to prop up his run for governor, and most stand little chance of even reaching a committee hearing. And McKoon has only recently begun to repair long-strained ties with Senate GOP leadership.
Instead, most Republicans have taken a different course. Secretary of State Brian Kemp, also a candidate for governor, said in an interview this week that the focus should be on giving law enforcement officials more resources to follow through on tips about potential threats.
“I don’t think banning some type of weapon is the way to deal with it,” he said. “People who want to do something like this are going to figure out how to get the weapon.”
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