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CNN Live Today
Administration, Congress at Odds on Arming Pilots
Aired July 10, 2002 - 11:07 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: The Bush team decided against it, but Congress may have other ideas: Theyre talking about guns in the cockpit. The House will be voting today on a bill to allow just that.
Our Patty Davis is watching the vote in Washington.
Patty, good morning.
PATTY DAVIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Daryn. The Bush administration decided against arming pilots with lethal weapons earlier this year. Now this is the House's attempt to change that. The bill would be a two-year test program. It would put guns into the hands of as many as 1,400 commercial pilots. That's 2 percent of the current pilot work force. Pilots who are former military or law enforcement officers would get priority.
Now, there would be no liability for the airlines or pilots if they acted in good faith. Pilots would be screened and receive training similar to air marshals.
Pilots groups support this bill. They argue they are the last line of defense in an airplane guarding against another September 11 hijacking. They also say with U.S. military jets on their wings in the event of a hijacking they, the pilots, should have a way to stop that hijacking short of being shot down.
Now, the Bush administration says pilots guns could fall into the hands of hijackers. They oppose it. With air marshals -- all the beefed-up layers of security added since September 11 -- the Bush administration arguing that guns in pilots hands not necessary.
The sponsors of the House bill, which is now on the House floor -- it came on the House floor a half hour ago -- say that they do indeed have the votes to pass this bill.
The Senate, though, still hasn't passed its version. That version allows many more pilots to have guns. It's having trouble getting the bill out of the Commerce Committee. Senators say that they may try to attach it to an appropriations bill over in the House -- in the Senate and bypass that committee's chairman, Ernest Hollings, who is strongly opposed -- Daryn.
KAGAN: And speaking of opposition, in the end, wouldn't President Bush have to sign this anyway to make this happen? DAVIS: He would have to sign it.
KAGAN: They could override it, of course.
DAVIS: Absolutely. He would have to sign it. And pilots groups are saying that this is something that if there's -- if theres enough strong support in the House and the Senate, that the president is not politically going to be able not to sign. That's what they're hoping.
KAGAN: All right. Well, we will be tracking -- actually, youll be tracking that for us.
Patty Davis, in Washington. Thank you so much.
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