White House reveals Biden does not support ‘hardening schools’ to protect students from mass shooters

Just days after a deadly Texas school shooting took the lives of 19 students and two administrators, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre revealed on Tuesday that President Joe Biden does not support “hardening schools” against potential school shooters.

“I know there’s been conversation about hardening schools, that is not something he believes in,” Jean-Pierre told reporters at a White House press conference. “He believes that we should be able to give teachers the resources to be able to do their job.”

In the days since the shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, lawmakers have scrambled to address the flood of mass shootings that have overtaken the United States, coming together in a rare spirit of bipartisanship.

While Biden has repeatedly called for weapons bans – suggesting restrictions on high-caliber weapons including the 9mm handgun -- some Republican lawmakers have said they would be willing to support the “hardening” schools by providing money for more security resources, law enforcement officers or even arming teachers – all moves aimed at protecting students from potential harm.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on Tuesday told reporters that lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are presently “discussing how we might be able to come together and target the problem, which is mental illness and school safety” and said the GOP is open to reforms that “directly” address the Uvalde massacre.

Similarly, a bipartisan group of 10 senators led by Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy has agreed to negotiate legislation during the Senate’s upcoming recess – with proposals including expanded background checks or red flag laws “that keep guns out of the hands of potentially dangerous people,” the New York Post reported.

Murphy also told the Associated Press last week that he was “open” to increasing school security, but argued that more must be done in order to protect students.

But the press secretary on Tuesday dismissed the notion that America is the only country suffering from widespread mental health issues which cause violent outbursts.

“We are the only country that is dealing with gun violence at the rate that we’re dealing, and other countries have mental health issues. So what’s the problem here?” Jean-Pierre said. “The problem is with guns, and not having legislation to really deal with an issue that is a pandemic here in this country.”

By Tuesday night, however, the administration walked back on Jean-Pierre’s comments about “hardening schools.”  

“Karine was referring to proposals by some Republican lawmakers to arm teachers. The President doesn’t believe that arming teachers is the solution – they should be focused on doing their jobs, and we should be providing them the support and funding they need,” a White House official told the Post. 

“It’s important that schools think through their safety plans, and after Sandy Hook the then-Vice President developed model emergency school safety plans, and he believes that they should be following evidence-based comprehensive plans.”

In light of potential bipartisan compromise, Biden also appeared to rule out the possibility of issuing an executive action on guns.

“I can’t dictate this stuff. I can do the things I’ve done and any executive action I can take, I’ll continue to take. But I can’t outlaw a weapon. I can’t, you know, change the background checks. I can’t do that.”