The state Legislature is the only entity vested with authority to regulate conduct in the Capitol. But people should respect the Michigan Capitol Commission’s decision to ban open firearms inside the State Capitol until it is successfully challenged in the courts. The Michigan State Police will be enforcing the ruling, and it’s important to respect our state troopers.

This measure is just a finger in the dam of a larger problem facing American politics. Whether it’s banning signs or guns, removing how the public chooses to express themselves doesn’t fix the deep divisions and lack of civil discourse in our public spaces. While I personally oppose this ban — to me there is so much more at stake at this moment in our country.

Democrat and Republican lawmakers from the U.P. have open carried in the Capitol for many, many years. To me, this appears to be a solution in search of a problem. Every year, thousands of citizens from Marquette to Monroe flood into the Capitol with guns openly and lawfully carried. Law-abiding citizens have safely openly carried firearms in the Capitol for over 200 years.

— State Rep. Beau LaFave,

R-Iron Mountain