Could Santa Fe Be A Catalyst For Action On School Violence?

“I’m an optimist. Everyone of these is an opportunity to do something,.”

By Rhonda FanningMay 21, 2018 2:34 pm, ,

Reactions to Friday’s shooting at Santa Fe High School were immediate and predictable, based on well-worn sets of talking points about gun rights, school safety and gun control.

But Texas Tribune Executive Editor and Co-Founder Ross Ramsey writes that the latest shooting gives lawmakers a chance to take action.

“I’m an optimist. Everyone of these is an opportunity to do something,” Ramsey says. “And the hard part about an intractable problem is that it’s intractable. Everybody has to move some in order for something to happen.”

Ramsey says it’s even possible that the roundtable discussions Gov. Greg Abbott is convening this week could lead to results.

“The way to be cynical here would be to say they do something like this every time, but you have to keep trying to push the rock in order to get the rock to move,” Ramsey says.

Ramsey says the governor and legislative leaders would need to make progress toward concrete proposals before it would make sense to call the legislature into special session, as at least one Republican lawmaker has suggested.

Written by Shelly Brisbin.