The Cleveland Police Patrolmen’s Association is pushing the OH governor to suspend during the Republican National Convention state laws that allow people to openly carry firearms, USA Today reported. Meanwhile, Donald Trump’s campaign chair said the convention’s goal is to help America understand more about the candidate.
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The chairman of the Republican National Committee, Reince Priebus, expects the party’s convention in Cleveland, Ohio to be “safe and secure”. The convention starts on Monday. “He could very easily do some kind of executive order or something-I don’t care if it’s constitutional or not at this point”, Stephen Loomis, the union president, told CNN. NewsHour’s own Judy Woodruff and Gwen Ifill join Hari Sreenivasan to discuss.
“This is not an attack on the second amendment”, Loomis said.
There are 5,500 law enforcement officers assigned to RNC security.
OH is an open-carry state, meaning legal gun owners can carry certain types of firearms in plain sight. Mr. Kasich says the bonds between communities and police must be reset and rebuilt.
The only exception for open carry during the Republican convention will be inside and around Cleveland’s Quicken Loans Arena, where the convention is being held, which will be controlled by U.S. Secret Service. “Everyone has an important role to play in that renewal”, he said.
“We are sending a letter to Gov. Kasich requesting assistance from him”.
The shooting in Louisiana’s capital of Baton Rouge Sunday left three police officers dead, and three others injured. Perhaps that’s why a director of Citizens for Trump, while vowing support for gun rights, told The New York Times that “no AR-15s, no shotguns or sniper rifles” would be allowed at its rally in Cleveland. I couldn’t care less if it’s legal or not.
“We are going to be looking very, very hard at anyone who has an open carry”, Loomis told CNN.
Kudos to Governor Kasich for dismissing the request.
Cleveland Police Chief Calvin D. Williams said that the city is prepared, and has been aware of the concerns about the open carry laws. He said he wants to “make sure officers are not taken aback when they see that activity” and know how to respond.
“While we are strong supporters of an individual’s right to bear arms, having individuals carrying firearms throughout the Downtown area of Cleveland where passionate protesters from all parts of the world are converging only increases the potential for violence”, Loomis said.
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Williams said police have changed their tactics in response to recent attacks including the one in Nice, France, on July 14 by placing barriers or barricades at key streets and intersections downtown.
