The president pointed to a number of ideas that he has floated since the shooting, including improving background checks for gun purchases, arming educators, re-opening mental institutions and banning ‘‘bump-stock’’ devices like the one used during the shooting at a Las Vegas music festival.
He has also suggested raising the minimum age for the purchase of assault-style weapons along with paying teachers bonuses for carrying concealed weapons as a way of warding off potential shooters.
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, one of two Democrats to address Trump publicly, expressed his concerns over arming teachers as a way to respond to the school shootings. ‘‘We need a little less tweeting, a little more listening,’’ Inslee said.
Trump defended the proposal, saying he believes ‘‘retribution’’ is the only way to prevent more school shootings.
During the 75-minute event, Trump called on Florida Gov. Rick Scott to outline the steps he is taking to respond to the shooting in South Florida. Scott said he plans to increase funding to protect schools and to tighten gun restrictions on those with mental health issues.
The president renewed his criticism of former Broward County Sheriff’s deputy Scot Peterson as the officer’s lawyer said in Florida the accusations are untrue that he acted unprofessionally and cowardly during the shooting. Lawyer Joseph DiRuzzo said Monday that the school resource officer didn’t enter the high school because it sounded like the shooting was happening outside the building.
The president told the governors, ‘‘Look at Peterson. Look what he did in Broward where he thought he was probably a brave guy, but he wasn’t a brave guy under pressure. He choked and other people choked.’’
Trump said he had lunch during the weekend with key leaders of the National Rifle Association, including Wayne LaPierre and Chris Cox, and said the NRA officials ‘‘want to do something’’ to address the issue.
Trump said there is ‘‘no bigger fan of the Second Amendment than me,’’ but there’s a need to boost background checks and ensure that a ‘‘sicko’’ is unable to get a gun.
‘‘Don’t worry about the NRA,’’ Trump said. ‘‘They’re on our side.’’