TAMPA, Fla.--Gov. Rick Scott has rejected a request from Tampa mayor's to prohibit the carrying of guns at the Republican National Convention this summer because it would infringe on “sacred constitutional traditions,” the Associated Press reports.
Mayor Bob Buckhorn, concerned about a possible outbreak of violence during protests outside the convention hall, wrote to the governor on Tuesday asking him to issue an executive order temporarily overriding state law allowing people with concealed-weapons permits to carry firearms in the downtown area, the wire service said.
In a letter in response to Buckhorn, Scott, a Republican, said that banning firearms in downtown Tampa would infringe on citizens’ constitutionally protected rights to legally arm themselves. He wrote that while he shares the Democratic mayor’s concerns about possible civil unrest, “it is unclear how disarming law-abiding citizens would better protect them from the dangers and threats posed by those who would flout the law.”
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