From coast to coast, state lawmakers categorically reject forcing guns onto college campuses

As state legislatures across the country gaveled their sessions to a close, it signaled the culmination of a long, unanimous rejection of one of the worst ideas in modern political debate–the notion that state lawmakers should force colleges and universities to allow students to take loaded, hidden handguns into classrooms. All told, 34 independent efforts by the National Rifle Association and Students for Concealed Carry on Campus to pass guns-on-campus bills in 22 different states in the aftermath of the Virginia Tech tragedy failed miserably, notably with even ultra-conservative state legislative leaders who have been longtime reliable allies of the NRA opposing the idea. And the broad opposition included students and universities who felt under attack. The Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus, which is organizing a national coalition of universities and colleges to reject the gun lobby's agenda, lists 90 schools in 23 states and counting. (See list of colleges: http://tinyurl.com/guns-off-campus).