I grew up in Minnesota, and I hunted and shot guns a lot. I’m not against guns. I even bought my two younger brothers their first rifle. And also as a kid I got to tour the Capitol, as kids still do.

As an adult exercising the First Amendment in the rotunda, I was told I could not carry a sign on a stick. However, others were allowed to carry firearms. I’ve also been in committee rooms where half the observers there were carrying guns. How can we have a civil discourse in that atmosphere? Imagine a group of school kids taking a tour as a demonstration goes on in the rotunda. Suddenly gunshots ring out! Why would we put our Capitol security, St. Paul police and state troopers in such an impossible situation?

The carrying of guns is not allowed in county courthouses.

Even the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia said states can make laws for public safety and that it doesn’t violate Second Amendment rights. It is time for Minnesota lawmakers to honor the lives and the will of the citizens of Minnesota, instead of just pandering to lobbyists (NRA), by prohibiting the carrying of weapons in our Capitol.

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