The National Rifle Association slammed the speaker of the Florida House of Representatives for comments he made about a gun bill passed by the state legislature in the wake of the shooting in Parkland, Fla., and accused him of betraying gun owners.
“Speaker of the House Richard Corcoran (R) is adding insult to injury by calling the betrayal of law-abiding firearm owners ‘one of the greatest Second Amendment victories we’ve ever had,’” NRA lobbyist Marion Hammer wrote in a legislative alert to members Monday.
Hammer was referencing comments Corcoran made last week about the gun bill that passed the Florida legislature, calling it “one of the greatest Second Amendment victories we’ve ever had.”
“Corcoran tried to justify his betrayal by claiming the provision in the bill to arm school employees makes it ‘one of the greatest Second Amendment victories we’ve ever had’ because it ends ‘gun free zones on school campuses,” Hammer wrote. “That is complete nonsense and ignores the unconstitutional gun control included in the bill.”
Florida Gov. Rick Scott, a Republican, signed the gun reform bill earlier this month. The legislation is called the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act, named for the high school in Parkland where 17 people were killed in a shooting Feb. 14.
The measure from Florida raised the minimum age for gun purchases in Florida from 18 to 21 and banned the sale of bump stocks. The legislation also implemented a three-day waiting period for most gun purchases and created a program under which some teachers and school staff are trained and armed.
The NRA filed a lawsuit against Florida over the law to raise the minimum purchasing age to 21, which the group said violates the “fundamental rights of thousands of responsible, law-abiding Florida citizens.”
