(Radio Iowa) – South Carolina Senator Tim Scott is spending his Wednesday in Sioux City — his first trip to Iowa since officially launching his campaign for the Republican nomination for president this week. Scott’s first stop was the Siouxland Christian School. “The closest thing to magic in America is a quality education,” Scott said. “As a kid, I attended four different elementary schools by the fourth grade and being raising in a single parent household and mired in poverty, one thing I can tell you finding the right place for your kid is really hard when you’re moving a lot.”

Scott touted the state-funded savings accounts that will be available this fall to cover private school expenses for some low income Iowa parents. “Frankly, the governor of this state has done a fabulous job with what has been a signature issue since I started my ‘Opportunity Agenda,’ which is focusing on education,” Scott said. Scott toured the private school, then met with teachers and administrators. Scott was asked about providing better security for schools — and he talked about a proposal from Senate Republicans after the shooting in Uvalde, Texas, that would have provided federal grants to train law enforcement and purchase equipment like metal detectors, surveillance cameras and bulletproof whiteboards.

“Providing the resources for communities to make the best decisions that they can to protect their kids,” Scott said. Scott ultimately voted against the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act which included tighter background checks for gun buyers under the age of 21 and incentives for states that enact so-called “red flag” laws to confiscated guns from people considered a potential threat to themselves or others. Scott said at the time that mass shootings are a painful reminder that congress has failed to have a meaningful and honest debate about the issues surrounding gun violence.