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Scott Ups Protection For National Guard Members
July 19, 2015
Alarmed by a shooting rampage in Tennessee that killed four Marines and a sailor, Gov. Rick Scott on Saturday issued an executive order designed to increase protections for members of the Florida National Guard.
Scott directed Adjutant Gen. Michael Calhoun to temporarily move National Guard members from six “storefront” recruitment centers to armories. Also, he ordered Calhoun to work with local law-enforcement agencies to arrange regular security checks of armories and said the state will expedite processing of new concealed-weapons licenses for members of the National Guard.
“We’re going to do everything we can to make sure that all of our National Guard members are safe,” Scott, who was scheduled to hold a late-afternoon news conference in West Palm Beach, said during a CNN interview.
The executive order said Guard members will be moved from the recruitment centers to armories until Calhoun “can fully evaluate and make recommendations for improving the security” of the centers. It said possible improvements could include installing bulletproof glass and enhancing video-surveillance equipment.
The move to expedite new concealed-weapons licenses would apply to Guard members who do not have such permits. Scott said during the CNN interview that the move is designed for “personal protection when they are not on duty.”
Scott issued the executive order two days after 24-year-old Mohammad Youssef Abdulazeez opened fire at a military-recruiting center and a Navy Reserve facility in Chattanooga, Tenn. Abdulazeez, whose name has been spelled in different ways by news organizations, killed four Marines, and a Navy petty officer died early Saturday of wounds, according to the Washington Post.
The shooting spree has spurred investigations into whether Abdulazeez, who also died, had links to terrorist organizations. In a Twitter post Saturday, Florida House Speaker Steve Crisafulli, R-Merritt Island, said he supported Scott’s executive order to “help protect our military from acts of terror.”
Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, whose agency administers concealed-weapons licenses, issued a statement that said he is “fully committed to supporting our military members, and we look forward to expediting their concealed-weapon license applications.”
by Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida
Comments
6 Responses to “Scott Ups Protection For National Guard Members”
Didn’t y’all hear the bugle call sounding retreat? No Mas, We Give, Uncle, however Gov. Scott says is its cowardice in the face of the enemy.
I think there’s irony in the way military can’t be armed but civilian police show up in military combat gear after the fact.
Issue concealed permits at no charge to our service members providing they pass the background checks. All these attacks on people could be stopped by 1 armed citizen willing and skilled to defend themselves.
Florida’s Concealed Weapon / Firearm License process through the Department of Agriculture is excessively SLOW.
Their information says it may take up to 90 days to process the application and when finally approved it may take another two weeks for the license to arrive in your mailbox.
I hear, hope it’s true, that Escambia County Tax Collector’s office will soon be taking the applications. This is good because now we in Esc Co have to go to other counties to apply.
Question is this, If Alabama can do an almost immediate background check and issue the Concealed Carry license then why can Florida not do the same?
Best thing would be for Esc Co Tax Collector’s office to be able to take the application, fingerprints, photo, etc. and process, or deny, the permit very quickly.
Friends, the world is NOT becoming a better place….
Why not simply arm our troops?
If our soldiers cannot be trusted with weapons, then they shouldn’t be in the military.
Thank you Gov. Scott! At least they might be safer; I wish I could say the same for our military men and women. It is a shame that they are not allowed to defend themselves.