Donald Trump's panel wants guns in US schools

US President Donald Trump

A safety panel set up by US President Donald Trump in the wake of numerous school shootings recommended Tuesday that schools consider arming staff, using veterans as guards and reversing Obama-era guidelines.

The Federal Commission on School Safety panel, led by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, was set up after the February massacre in Parkland, Florida, when a former student shot dead 17 people, sparking mass gun control protests.

The commission rejected calls to increase the minimum age required for gun purchases, arguing in its 180-page report that most school shooters obtain their weapons from family members or friends.

Instead, it suggested arming staff -- even teachers in some circumstances -- "for the sake of effectively and immediately responding to violence." School districts where police responses could be slower, such as rural districts, may benefit in particular, the commission said.

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