NRA Fired Up Over Military Gun Ban, Too Darn Bad IMHO
As if the Pentagon or Joint Chiefs should not be the experts to review this? I don’t recall any clamor from the military leadership or those serving over this. The gun accident rate among trained supervised professionals is pretty low, but it’s sure not zero.
So maybe we can let the military use the armed MP’s, the guards, the rapid response teams do their jobs and not add tens of thousands of loaded guns to the already busy or crowded circumstances we find at bases. My added bold below.
A quick Google got me the directive in question. I have pasted the parts that show the defense of a base or law enforcement actions can be armed as necessary. Proof in black and white. Once again(twice in as many days?) we see the NRA and it’s lobby calling for change we not only don’t need but really don’t want in the name of open or ccw carry.
Oh and let’s not forget these guys are even getting the President who signed off wrong. The credibility gap looms large, no?
2. Authorizes DoD personnel to carry firearms while engaged in law enforcement or security duties, protecting personnel,
vital Government assets, or guarding prisoners.
An authorization to carry firearms may be granted to
personnel authorized to be engaged and in fact engaged in the
following activities:
1. Law enforcement activities, including investigations of
espionage, sabotage, and other serious crimes in which DoD
programs, personnel, or property are the victim, or
a. In cases where DoD personnel are involved in serious
crimes; or b. Where investigations are conducted in hazardous
areas or under hazardous circumstances.
2. Protecting classified information, systems, or
equipment.
3. Protecting the President of the United States, high
ranking Government officials, DoD personnel, or foreign
dignitaries.
4. Protecting DoD assets and personnel.
5. Guarding prisoners
The gun lobby is calling on the Defense Department to strike down a directive signed under the George H.W. Bush administration that prohibits most soldiers from carrying guns on base.
Soldiers should be “allowed to defend themselves on U.S. soil,” Cox added.
This comes as two congressmen from Tennessee proposed new legislation Monday that would repeal the military gun ban. Reps. Scott DesJarlais (R) and Steve Cohen (D) suggested their bill could mitigate future mass shootings on military bases.
Critics of the military gun ban argue the armed soldiers may have been able to stave off not only the recent Chattanooga attack but also previous attacks on military bases, such as the 2013 Washington Navy Yard shooting that killed 12 people, or the Fort Hood shooting that killed 13 people in 2009.