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Politics

Rubio, Rooney Push 'Threat Assessment, Prevention, and Safety Act' after Mass Shootings

August 9, 2019 - 8:30am
Marco Rubio and Francis Rooney
Marco Rubio and Francis Rooney

In the wake of the mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton  last weekend, two Republicans in the Florida delegation are continuing their push to create a task force to offer a national strategy “to keep communities safe from targeted violence through threat assessment and management.”

At the start of the year, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., paired up with U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., and U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis, R-NC, to introduce the “Threat Assessment, Prevention, and Safety (TAPS) Act" which, they insist,  “would help provide resources, training, and assistance in establishing and operating locally driven threat assessment and management units."

“We must proactively engage with experts in the field of threat assessments in order to help prevent future tragedies,” Rubio said when he brought out the proposal. “We have the expertise to implement systems to identify and stop dangerous individuals before they commit an act of violence, but we have yet to fully and effectively develop and utilize it to prevent future attacks. By bringing threat assessment experts together and utilizing evidence-based behavioral threat assessment and management processes, this bill will help equip our communities with the tools they need to prevent future tragedies.”

The bill will develop guidelines and provide states with the “training, resources, and support they need in order to stand up community-based, multidisciplinary behavioral threat assessment and management units" while creating a “temporary task force made up of experts in behavioral threat assessment and management to make recommendations to Congress for a National Strategy for preventing targeted violence.” The legislation has garnered the support of a host of law enforcement organizations including the Association of Threat Assessment Professionals (ATAP), the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA) and the National District Attorneys Association (NDAA). 

This week, Rubio pushed the proposal again. 

“As a father, husband, and American, I am as concerned as anyone about the serious epidemic of violence plaguing our nation. Whether this violence is the product of radical jihadists, white supremacists, or personal grievances, too many killers have taken the lives of far too many innocent Americans. We must confront the societal and cultural issues that breed violence,” Rubio said.  “Research has shown that the vast majority of these terrorists and killers exhibit clear warning signs before committing these atrocities. That is why I have offered a number of bipartisan proposals to help identify and stop them before they act. I will continue to push for these solutions and support any new law that can prevent these tragedies.”

Now in his second term in Congress, U.S. Rep. Francis Rooney, R-Fla., is backing the House version of the bill which is being championed by U.S. Rep. Brian Babin, R-Tex. 

“As we mourn the senseless loss of life in Dayton and El Paso, we must also take action to prevent similar tragedies from occurring elsewhere. We need to commit to a serious, bipartisan review of how to avoid guns getting into the hands of unstable people. This is a multi-faceted challenge to our society,” Rooney said. “I am a cosponsor of the TAPS Act, which is bipartisan legislation that offers state and local authorities the same training and support to identify mass shooters as the Secret Service and FBI.”

On the first day of the new Congress, Rubio brought back the “Extreme Risk Protection Order and Violence Prevention Act.” He paired up with Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins and independent U.S. Sen. Angus King of Maine and U.S. Sen. Jack Reed, D-RI, to reintroduce the bill which “will dedicate Department of Justice funds to incentivize states to give law enforcement the authority to prevent individuals who pose a threat to themselves or others the ability to purchase or possess firearms, while still providing due process protections.” Rubio first unveiled the bill in March after the Parkland shooting.

Rooney said he also supported taking Florida’s red flag law to the national level.

“I also support instituting red-flag laws similar to those enacted in Florida following the tragedy at Parkland, and a Violent Threat Restraining Order (VTRO) process that balances the need to interdict dangerous people while preserving due process,” Rooney said this week.   

Comments

When a mass shooting happens why do politicians promote and propose ideas that only hurt the thousand and thousand of responsible gun owners who have never broken a law? It's about time these politicians begin to address the real reason for these killings, the bad people that commit them. Make the punishment severe and quickly execute the offender.

This is a bandaid. Bernie and Joe have it right: ban future sales and institute a buy back plan.

So Joe had it right when he said: "poor kids are just as smart as white kids". Bwaaa ha ha ha! Joe would be dangerous if he had a brain - seriously!

Marvel and bare witness with the speed and energy in which RINO RUBIO rushes to offer up your 2nd Amendment rights along with your privacy to the Unholy Alter of The Deranged Left. And with no thought whatsoever of getting ANYTHING in return from the Unholy Left. My best advice to South Florida is just keep your rears KY'ed up with plenty of lubrication 24/7 as long as Rubio remains in office. 24/7

The second amendment in the Bill of Rights was originally intended to protect us. Two-hundred-and-twenty-eight years later, it endangers us! DO SOMETHING!

The democRAT party endangers Americans infinitely more than any other danger.

If you cannot see the irony in having a gun ban enforced by men with guns, then you fail to understand why the 2nd amendment was written in the first place.

See John Allen's article on violence in America. John Rutherford Allen assumed the presidency of the Brookings Institution in November 2017, having most recently served as chair of security and strategy and a distinguished fellow in the Foreign Policy Program at Brookings. Allen is a retired U.S. Marine Corps four-star general and former commander of the NATO International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and U.S. Forces in Afghanistan. https://www.brookings.edu/blog/brookings-now/2019/08/05/gun-violence-in-america-a-true-national-security-threat/

I do NOT believe that 'Government' or 'new Laws' can defeat the root cause of Tragic Mass Shootings... PEOPLE must come around that THEY are responsible to ensure that the mentally deranged who are responsible "Keep Tabs" on everyone they come in contact with. Divisiveness must settle out of America, and peace and acceptance of all people must 'take over' America.

I have been actively raising the mental health issue since the Columbine massacre. "Red Flags" laws merely allow police to confiscate firearms from those deemed to be a threat. We need to dig deeper and prevent folks with mental issues flying beneath the radar from being able to waltz into a gun shop and buy a weapon 'legally'. We need to hold mental health providers and even family members accountable for keeping secret telltale signs of being disturbed 'quiet' versus alerting local law enforcement to this impending danger. We continue to be reactive not proactive. Putting the onus on family members and health care industry as being culpable in their failure to report and prevent these tragedies . that the best solution if we are serious about reducing the incidence of these senseless shootings.

DARPA PROJECT..MILITARY WEAPON...MIND CONTROL..PEOPLE INVOLVED ON MASSIVE SHOOTINGS ARE BEEN STATED THAT THEY BEEN HEARING VOICES ..YOU JUST CHECK THAT OUT ...I BELIEVE THEY ARE TESTING THIS DANGEROUS WEAPONS. WITH THE CITIZENS AND THE. RESULTS IS ALL THIS MASS SHOOTINGS..CHINA HAS THIS WEAPON AS WELL...MENTAL ILLNESS AND MOST OF THE HOMELESS ARE HAVING THE SAME ISSUES ...PLEASE CHECK THE DARPA PROJECT MIND CONTROL..IS ALL A SET UP

I cannot afford to live in an expensive neighborhood. I need the security to be able to defend myself and my young children. Please don't take away the only thing that I have for security. The criminals will use whatever they can get their hands on. Please don't put my children in danger by taking my protection away.

why bother when you won't follow the difficult recommendations like, universal background checks for all firearm purchases, stricter guidelines for assault rifle purchases, close all screening loopholes, and tighter requirements on those with mental health issues

Comments are now closed.

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