With campus carry under consideration in the Georgia House, state Senator Nan Orrock (D-Atlanta) is making clear her belief that allowing concealed carry on campus for self-defense is an “abomination.”
The legislation, HB 859, was proposed by Representatives Rick Jasperse (R-Jasper) and Mandi Ballinger (R-Canton), and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC) reports it has “already picked up dozens of co-sponsors.”
The AJC reports that Orrock referenced the bill and the support it has garnered as “insane gun legislation that we see spreading like an evil tide across the state.”
Moreover, Orrock and gun control groups opposed to the bill claim that allowing concealed carry permit holders to carry guns on campus will cost colleges and universities money, leaving them scrambling for funds to pay for “additional staffing, training, equipment or insurance.”
Opponents of campus carry made similar arguments when Texas was considering concealed carry on campus for self-defense in 2015. The Houston Chronicle went so far as to report that campus carry could “cost Texas colleges millions” and take away money that would otherwise be dedicated to “cancer research.”
But Texas state Senator Brian Birdwell (R-Granbury) successfully defended his campus carry legislation with an argument that is equally applicable to Georgia at this time, stating:
It is patently absurd to suggest that additional security resources would be needed to accommodate faculty, staff or student [concealed handgun license] holders on Texas campuses. CHL-holders are statistically the most law-abiding citizens in our state, and I think it [is] bordering on offensive to suggest that they will conduct themselves any less thoughtfully or lawfully the moment they set foot inside a university building.
AWR Hawkins is the Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.
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