Tennessee House Republican Leader Gerald McCormickNASHVILLE – Republican lawmakers likely will take up Second Amendment issues in the General Assembly next year, but they won’t be “dictated to” by the National Rifle Association, Chattanooga Rep. Gerald McCormick says.
McCormick, a Republican and House majority leader, said he anticipates the GOP-controlled legislature again will look at the NRA-backed “Safe Commute Act” but will do so on its own terms.
“No disrespect to [NRA lobbyist] Darren LaSorte, but he doesn’t tell us what to do,” he said.
The Safe Commute bill, dubbed the “guns in parking lots” bill, sought to guarantee workers and many visitors the ability to store weapons in vehicles on public and private parking lots, including schools, universities and churches, despite property owners’ opposition.
After the measure failed to pass, the NRA and Tennessee Firearms Association went on the warpath in several GOP primaries, spending more than $100,000 to help topple House Republican Caucus Chairman Debra Maggart, of Hendersonville, whom they blamed for helping block the bill.