Yet there they are, at President Obama's rallies, bold and seemingly unconcerned about the fear they are creating. One man displayed a loaded handgun in a holster, another had an automatic weapon slung on his back. There were others, as many as a dozen at one rally, who joined in this disturbing trend.
It's probably no surprise that the two places this has occurred were at rallies in Arizona and New Hampshire, which both have "open carry" laws that allow anyone with a gun to carry it openly.
Open carry laws are one thing, but it seems like utter lunacy to extend these rights to presidential rallies. We ban guns in public places like schools, stores, city halls, courthouses and sporting events. Why not gatherings featuring the president?
Many people alive today vividly remember the tragedy of President Kennedy's murder. That seemed to open an awful "era of assassinations" that included his brother, Sen. Robert Kennedy, The Rev. Martin Luther King and Gov. George Wallace, who was paralyzed but survived. A madman with a crush on a movie star shot President Reagan, who also survived. Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme was just released from prison after spending 34 years for pointing a gun at President Ford.
Those who remember those dark days and those who have only read about them should join to say, with feeling, "never again."
We're happy to report that the incidents weren't quite as nutty as they appeared. In both cases, the Secret Service had matters well in hand.
They kept the gun-toting demonstrators far from the president. The president creates a federal authority zone wherever he travels, the Secret Service said, and open carry laws don't apply.
In order to protect the president, we are happy to accept that minor "infringement" on our right to have guns. Open carry laws, and all legislation, must be tempered by common sense.
