Remarks by President Trump in Roundtable Discussion on the Federal Commission on School Safety Report | Eastern North Carolina Now

    THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Thank you very much.

    Please. Sheriff?

    SHERIFF BYARS: Well, Mr. President, I want to thank you for listening. As someone has already mentioned, in previous administrations, they kind of wanted to bury their heads in the sand. You've listened. I appreciate that so much.

    Secretary DeVos, I appreciate all the work you've done. Everything in here is spot on, from a law enforcement aspect.

    Our shooting happened on January 23rd, but it wasn't the first in our area - 20 years prior to that, at Heath. And this type of thing was still done 20 years ago, and no progress. I think there will be progress this time. And I want to thank you for all of the work that you've put in on it. Ms. DeVos, thank you so much for everything that you've done. And I think it's going to be a whole lot better now. I think our schools will be a whole lot safer across this nation, if the state and local level takes what's in here, uses it, and gets in the legislature, and passes some things that will help these recommendations stay in our schools. Because our children are our most precious resource. That's our future.

    And I agree with Mr. Norman, this has got to stop; we've got to change. And this is a great step in that direction. And I want to thank you.

    THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. Thank you, Sheriff.

    Please.

    SUPERINTENDENT ARNTZEN: Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you very much for your leadership within this.


    From a rural state, with a rural voice at the table here, thank you for not having it be top down. This is organic. This is coming from the bottom up. And it is not a mandate. All of the things that are here are going to be put into play in any fashion that can happen in Montana or across any of our other very rural states.

    Teachers - I taught for 23 years. How exciting this is to put in the hand of teachers - teacher leaders - to protect our most treasured: our students.

    I thank you for your leadership. And thank you very much, Secretary DeVos.

    THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. I appreciate it.

    So this is available to everybody. I think you probably have a copy; if not, we'll get you one. And it will be at your disposal. And, more importantly, it will be sent all over the country to different schools. And I think we have a lot of tremendous ideas here put up by tremendous people.

    So thank you all for being here. Thank you very much. Thank you.

    Q Mr. President, can I ask about the shutdown?

    THE PRESIDENT: We'll see what happens.

    Q Well, you say that, but what about -

    THE PRESIDENT: Too early to say, sorry. Thank you.

    Thank you everybody.

    Q Are you still willing to shut it down for $5 billion?

    THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much, everybody.

    We need border security. Thank you very much everybody.

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