Your veto of the guns in public places bill is very appreciated by the good citizens of Arizona.
And your message that you won’t sign such a bill unless it has wider support–from police, cities and the public–was a very clear statement that you will NEVER sign a guns in public places bill in Arizona.
You’re not going to find a sane police officer in the state of Arizona that doesn’t think guns in public places is a lousy idea.
You’re not going to find a city in Arizona that wants angry citizens coming to council meetings packing heat. Or to spend millions every year on special security in order to keep guns from coming into City Hall or the County Building. (And Jan, I remember you were there the day a crazed man shot Mary Rose Wilcox in the Maricopa County Supervisor’s Chambers.)
And the only “public” you’re going to get supporting this idea are those who believe guns should be everywhere–like the National Rifle Association. They lost all credibility with thinking Americans when they fought for teflon bullets, whose only use is to pierce the bulletproof vests of police officers. I remember doing a commentary on this lunacy and quoting policemen who said until then, they thought the NRA was on their side!
The Second Amendment says we have the right to bear arms; it doesn’t say we must arm every citizen–no matter how paranoid or dangerous.
So thank you. I hope this, your second veto of a ridiculous idea, will stand forever in Arizona.