After a mass shooting, gun control advocates want to ban assault-style weapons and install background checks. Gun rights advocates argue the solution is more "good guys with guns."
In this week's episode of Snollygoster, Ohio's politics podcast from WOSU, hosts Mike Thompson and Steve Brown discuss the bill that would make arming state teachers with less training possible.
Guns and Schools
Uvalde, Texas is 1,400 miles from the Ohio Statehouse, but Ohio lawmakers are reacting to the horrible shooting with a focus on mental illness, school safety, and arming teachers.
Governor DeWine wants to increase funding for school security and mental health resources. He said he wants to accomplish what is "possible" to accomplish.
Over at the Statehouse, the House and Senate have approved a bill that would set training requirements for faculty, staff and volunteers to carry guns in schools. This bill has been on a shelf since March, but it moved with blazing speed this week.
The bill would reduce the number of hours required for armed school employees from more than 700 to 24.
At a hastily scheduled hearing this week, the Buckeye Firearms Association’s Rob Sexton said 24 hours is enough.
Cleveland Teachers Union president Shari Obrenski pointed out that lawmakers support other controversial bills that would limit teachers' power in the classroom. She said lawmakers don't trust teachers to choose books but will trust them to carry guns.
Governor DeWine promises to sign the bill. He said the bill leaves it up to local school districts to choose how many hours of training to require. DeWine thanked the legislature for passing the bill he says will protect Ohio children and teachers.
Snollygoster of the Week
We all know inflation is pretty bad right now and politicians are trying to find a way to fix it. One cause was that the government stimulus checks pumped too much money into the economy.
Well, Ohio candidate for Governor Nan Whaley wants to hand out even more government money. The Democratic challenger to Mike DeWine wants the governor to give every low-income and middle-income Ohioan $350 each. Whaley says the money would offset the cost of high gas and food prices.
Whaley wants to use the 2.7 billion dollars Ohio is set to receive in the next round of federal COVID relief funding. Individuals making less than $80,000 a year and couples making less than $160,000 would be eligible.
Send questions and comments to snollygoster@wosu.org.