Thousands Sign Petition To Allow Open Carry At GOP Convention
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP)-- A petition seeking to allow firearms to be openly carried inside the arena for this summer's Republican National Convention is sparking debate, attracting tens of thousands of signatures in a matter of days. But it's raising questions about whether it's for real or satire.
The petition was created on change.org last week. In a matter of days, tens of thousands of people had signed it. As of Monday afternoon the petition had already garnered more than 45,000 supporters.
Some have weighed in, calling it a great idea to keep convention-goers safe. Others are voicing concerns about the prospect of gunfights breaking out inside the arena during what is predicted to be a volatile convention.
It's likely to be only a theoretical question. The Secret Service, which is in charge of security at presidential conventions, says it won't allow firearms inside the hall.
"Individuals determined to be carrying firearms will not be allowed past a predetermined outer perimeter checkpoint, regardless of whether they possess a ticket to the event," Secret Service spokesman Rob Hoback said Monday.
Ohio has an open-carry law, however, the arena bans visitors from carrying firearms inside, CBS News reported.
"We must take a stand," the petition reads. "We cannot allow the national nominating convention of the party of Lincoln and Reagan to be hijacked by weakness and political correctness. The policies of the Quicken Loans Arena do not supersede the rights given to us by our Creator in the U.S. Constitution."
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