Protecting our Children at School

Statement

On Monday, our nation remembered and honored our military heroes who have given the ultimate sacrifice for our nation -- including Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jared M. Schmitz from Missouri, who was one of the 13 service members killed last fall during the Afghanistan withdrawal.

America is truly the land of the free because of the sacrifices made by these brave individuals.

To all Missourians we have lost over the years: Thank you for protecting our freedoms.

We will never be able to repay you.

Please see below for more news from this week.

Following the senseless tragedy in Uvalde, Texas, Congressional Democrats are now pushing to strip Americans of their 2nd Amendment rights.

This is the wrong approach to protect our schoolchildren.

Let's be clear: Banning guns and infringing on due process is NOT the answer to mass violence.

Instead, Congress should be working to empower our law enforcement to protect our education centers and provide our schools with the resources needed to increase security.

That's why I have taken multiple steps this Congress to address this crisis. One solution is my legislation, the Police Officers Protecting Children Act, which would allow off-duty and qualified retired law enforcement officers to carry a concealed firearm onto school grounds if the local school board passes a policy to allow it. I've also joined multiple other pieces of legislation from my Republican colleagues, such as the Safer Schools Act, which also increases security resources to our schools to protect our children.

Rest assured, I am fighting to both protect our children and respect our God-given, fundamental rights.

Source