U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick meets with Parkland families, Trump on school safety measures

Friday marks two years since the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Fla., that claimed the lives of 17 people. With years now rolling by, legislators and families are still pressing to find a consensus and solution to safer schools. 

U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-1st District, met privately Monday in the Oval Office with the families of victims of the Parkland shooting and President Donald Trump. 

Fitzpatrick, who has been advocating for legislative reform for school safety with Parkland families, presented Trump with an update on bills currently under consideration to enhance school safety measures. 

Included in the update was HR 3714, or the EAGLES Act of 2019, which reauthorizes the National Threat Assessment Center of the Department of Homeland Security through fiscal year 2023 and expands establishes a national program on targeted school violence prevention in addition to funding school safety assessments nationwide.

“We must ensure that no child, and no family, will ever endure such a tragedy again,” Fitzpatrick said in a statement. “I commend these families for their commitment to bipartisan solutions, and for having the courage to turn their tragedy into positive action.”

The statement did not offer any insight into Trump’s take on the bill or the other bills discussed during the private meeting.