Donald Trump has pledged to eliminate gun-free zones on his first day in office in order to keep the United States safe from mass shootings but it won't be easy.
"I will get rid of gun-free zones on schools, and — you have to — and on military bases," Trump said Jan. 8, 2016, at a rally in Burlington, Vt. "My first day, it gets signed, okay? My first day. There's no more gun-free zones."
Trump clarified his original statement about carrying guns to schools on May 23, telling CNN that resource officers or trained teachers should be the ones carrying guns.
It's highly unlikely Trump will be able to do this on his first day in office because of the overlapping federal, state and local laws that dictate gun-free zones.
WHY HE'S PROMISING IT
Trump says eliminating gun-free zones in schools and military bases could prevent mass shootings.
"You know what a gun-free zone is to a sicko?" Trump asked the Vermont crowd. "That's bait!"
WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN
In order to chip away at the federal laws, Trump would need Congress' help. But even this would only be one step of many.
In 1990, former Sen. Joe Biden introduced legislation known as the Gun Free School Zones Act of 1990, which was included as a section in the Crime Control Act of 1990.
The gun-free zone initiative prohibited individuals having or taking out a gun within 1,000 feet of public or private school grounds. Congress passed the act, and it was signed into law by President George H.W. Bush.
The Supreme Court struck down the gun-free zone act in 1995, after it decided the legislation encroached on states' rights. But, the act was quickly changed, and an amended version was adopted in the section of the Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act of 1997.
Congress would have to repeal the most current "gun-free zone act," or pass a bill that would eliminate the restrictions. Even if that happened, it would only be a step in the right direction, not a complete victory for Trump.
"I think it highly unlikely that Congress will move to repeal this law," said Robert Spitzer, a SUNY Cortland political science professor. "The gun lobby has other, higher priorities (No. 1 is the state handgun permit reciprocity bill)."
Trump also could encourage agencies not to enforce the current laws on the book, work with Congress to pass legislation to weaken the law, but not repeal it, or encourage private civilian gun carrying like he did during his campaign.
WHAT'S STANDING IN HIS WAY
Trump's efforts to slash regulations and laws that govern gun-free zones will be an uphill battle. Rules that prohibit guns in school zones are written into federal law and would require Congress to overturn the law. In addition, states have their own regulations and laws against firearms in schools.
"Theoretically, Congress could try and wipe away all these state provisions, but it would be a logistical, political and legal nightmare that would also upend traditional federalism standards," Spitzer said.
John Lott, president of the pro-gun Crime Prevention Research Center, said federal legislation has pre-empted state rules before, meaning there is plenty of precedent for rules to be passed federally. That being said, Congress hasn't introduced any bills.
"None of the bills so far being offered by Republicans on reciprocity currently propose changes in federal law to override state rules on where one can carry a permit," Lott said. "Yet, it is surely possible for those bills to be changed."
And, as for military bases, that's basically out of Trump's control. The Department of Defense mandates the gun-free rule, so at best he could convince the defense secretary to reverse the rule, but that's unlikely, too.
TIMELINE
Trump says he can accomplish this on his first day in office, but given everything that would need to be done, this seems unlikely.