Gwen Graham, Democratic candidate for Florida’s governor, yesterday held a work day at the USO at the Pensacola International Airport. She and I talked about common sense gun reforms in the wake of the Parkland, Fla. shooting.
Graham doesn’t think the effort for gun reform should become a debate that someone doesn’t believe in Second Amendment rights.
The Marjory Douglas Stoneman shooting on Feb. 14 has pushed elected officials around the state to discuss gun reform. Graham said she reacted to the shooting as a mother and as the wife of a law enforcement officer.
“I don’t want any parent to ever have to put their child on a school bus or let them out at a school and worry is my child going to be safe at school,†she said. “My husband was sworn for the first time at 18 years of age and has served in many different capacities in law enforcement, so I have a broader understanding. “
Graham believes most law-abiding gun owners support common sense gun safety measures such as the comprehensive background checks.
“We need to make sure that anybody who has a gun is mentally fit to have that gun and using it for hunting or self-protection, or in keeping with what I know the majority of gun owners want,†she said. “This cannot become a debate between the Second Amendment and common-sense gun safety because we should be supportive of both.â€
Graham does believe that we do need to ban the sale of military style assault weapons.
“I talk about this with my husband all of the time and he, as a law enforcement officer, recognizes that these are weapons of war,” she said. “I do not believe that we take guns out of the hands of law-abiding citizens. I do recognize that there is fear in some gun owners if that’s the direction that some people in elective office wish to go in. My commitment is to be an advocate for common sense gun safety measures and also not let that become a debate that someone does not believe in Second Amendment rights.”